ISJ Essay: Interfaith Prayer Service for Asylum Seekers
Last week, St. Ignatius Loyola Social Justice Ministry held an Interfaith Prayer Service in the church with St. Francis of Assisi, Park Avenue Synagogue, St. Mark’s on the Bowery, and Peace Island Institute.
Our Pastor, Rev. Dennis Yesalonia, S.J. welcomed everyone to our Interfaith Migrant Prayer Service and Bobby Reuter, Associate Director of Music played beautiful, improvised piano interludes between each speaker, and Wendy Baker was the cantor for the opening and closing hymns. The following are snippets of each reflection given by the speakers.
Jean Santopatre opened the service with these remarks: “Many of our ministries here at St. Ignatius are engaged in the corporal works of Mercy: Feed the hungry, Give drink to the thirsty, Clothe the naked, Shelter the homeless, Visit those in prison, Comfort the sick and Bury the dead. Collectively, as communities of faith, we are called to practice the corporal works of Mercy.
We are mindful of the unjust actions that target people who seek refuge from the danger they faced from their government or because of climate change in their homelands.
Recently, Rev. William J Barber II posed this moral message to our nation: ‘From Moses to Jesus, the Bible tells us that those who fought for justice—those who spoke truth to power, those who refused to accept that injustice and inequality had to exist and that there was no better way—always found themselves hated, hounded, and heaped upon with false accusations simply because they believed in the necessity of speaking and working for the cause of righteousness and building a more just community.
This lack of majority support is why the just must live by faith and must know exactly who we are.’
All of us gathered here tonight are members of a faith community and together our collective faith in God compels us to act with justice and mercy. We heed the call to accompany those in need, to look and not turn away, because we know who we are.”
Fr. Julian from St. Francis of Assisi shared a story about a Jewish man praying at the wailing wall for peace who felt like he was just talking to a wall. Fr. Julian reflected: “Faith can unify us as a community of believers to go out and serve with love, compassion, and empathy. Together, we can harness this synergy to weave a tapestry of hope, justice, and peace in our beautiful common home.”
When our efforts to work for peace and justice feel like talking to the wall because no one seems to listen, don’t be silenced. Our voices must not be stifled.
When our work to protect the rights of our migrant sisters and brothers feels like talking to the wall because we’re being dismissed, don’t be intimidated. If we allow fear to overcome us, then those who seek to silence us have already won.
When our efforts to end racism feel like talking to the wall because there seems to be no hope in sight, don’t give up. The minute we quit, evil triumphs.”
Rabbi Shayna Golkow Zauzmer reflected on the Talmud writings. “There’s an argument in the Talmud, Judaism’s central post-Biblical text, about how the Bible teaches us not to oppress the stranger living among us, the migrant. The argument is whether the Bible gives us this warning 36 times or 46 times! Whichever side of the debate you come down on, it is absolutely indisputable that our shared Biblical text tells us loud and clear that we must not mistreat the migrant living among us.
As Jews, we learn about our own Biblical history as slaves in Egypt, our more recent history as oppressed people in so many different societies and countries, and our current reality knowing all too well how it feels to encounter antisemitism. And it is precisely because of those experiences that we are commanded not to oppress the strangers and the migrants among us.
It’s very powerful that it is our shared religious text that teaches us over and over again – 36 or 46 times! – how we must treat migrants. It makes me proud to be a person of faith, and I am proud to be with you this evening to join our voices in prayer for the migrants who share this beautiful city with us.”
Dolores Troy Quinn shared the story about the Valverde-Bermeo family, which reflects the corporal work of mercy: bury the dead.
“I would like to focus on one family, the Valverde-Bermeo family. Their journey really exemplifies the courage and resilience we have come to know with the families we have accompanied these past few years and the power we have as a parish to effect change and improve people’s lives.
Geronimo Valverde, a migrant from Ecuador, made the arduous trip from Ecuador to NYC last year thanks to the assistance of the Jesuit Relief Services. Unfortunately, Geronimo spent the last few months of his life fighting valiantly against the cancer that ultimately took his life. Geronimo would have had a tragic end buried in Potter’s Field, but thanks to the coordinated and generous outreach of several St. Ignatius ministries, Geronimo instead had a dignified burial.
First, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul sprang into action. Geronimo’s remains were taken to Redden’s Funeral Home where his cremains were then given to Geronimo’s daughter Britney. St. Vincent de Paul members, Pattie Hughes and Liz Martucci, were able to arrange for this service free of charge.
My husband Terry and his siblings offered a place in the grave of their parents, James and Kathleen Quinn, in Calvary Cemetery, Queens. James and Kathleen were themselves immigrants from Ireland. Through the generosity of the Social Justice Ministry and funds raised by generous parishioners, we were able to open the grave and Geronimo was laid to rest with Terry’s parents.”
A beautiful funeral Mass was said by Michael Hilbert, S. J. in Spanish and members of Ignatian Social Justice Ministry were lectors, Eucharistic Ministers and led the mourners in song with Amazing Grace. “In his death, Geronimo Valverde has also taught us another important lesson – that whether we are from a small farm in Ireland, the mountains of Ecuador, or an apartment on the Upper East Side, we all share a common humanity.”
Selim Kilik from Peace Islands Institute expressed these words from his Muslim faith: “For migrants and asylum seekers, who face immense difficulties, our help becomes an act of profound spiritual significance.
Consider the historical precedent set by the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) himself.
When his early followers faced severe persecution in Mecca, they sought refuge elsewhere.
The Prophet, in an act of profound foresight and compassion, advised them to migrate to (modern-day Ethiopia), a Christian kingdom ruled by King (Najashi).
He described King Najashi as a “just king” in whose land no one was wronged. This historical event is a powerful example of interfaith solidarity and the imperative to offer protection to those fleeing oppression, regardless of their faith.
The Prophet understood that justice and compassion go beyond religious boundaries, and he sought refuge for his people in a place where these values were upheld. In conclusion, the importance of helping the less fortunate, including migrants, asylum seekers, and those seeking protection, is not merely a social obligation but a profound spiritual imperative deeply rooted in our traditions.”
Rev. Anne Marie Witchger, Priest-in-Charge at St. Mark’s in-the-Bowery, remarked: We’ve heard harrowing stories of the journeys people have made to get to this country. Unlike my grandmother who came directly by boat, migrants arriving in the United States today have often crossed many borders–by plane, by boat, by car, and on foot. By the time they get to New York, they are broke, exhausted, confused–and depending on what they’ve experienced, traumatized by violence or near-death experiences.
At our church, St. Mark’s Church in-the-Bowery, we run a Welcome Center which serves about one hundred new New Yorkers each week, mostly from West Africa. We’re kind of a scrappy program. We don’t have much funding. We depend on the incredible gifts and energy of our amazing and deeply devoted volunteers–some of whom are here tonight. We offer food, haircuts, clothing, English tutoring, health resources, legal support, mentorship, and one-on-one services as needed.
But the most important thing we do is we try to create an environment where people can relax and be themselves. We don’t ask for any personal information; we don’t have any requirements to participate. We encourage people to sit and stay; to talk, to laugh, to play games, to share their stories. We set out prayer mats so folks can pray when they need to. We try to convey that we care–that St. Mark’s is a safe place where everyone is welcome and where we strive to understand each other–with the same spirit of a God who believes in and understands all people.
As the climate in our country grows increasingly hostile, inhumane, and unjust we know who we are called to be–we know how we are called to be. We are committed to remaining a place of safety and care for all people; we are committed to expanding our welcome; and we are committed to preserving the dignity of our neighbors because all children–all people–deserve to know that they belong.”
The final reflection was offered by Rev. Zack Nyein from St. Bartholomew’s on Park Avenue.
“Indeed, I owe my faith largely to my dad. Although he was nominally Buddhist, he felt it was important for me to have a spiritual community and growing up in small town Tennessee I often joke that the closest thing to Buddhism there was the relatively free-spirited Episcopal Church. It was in that tradition that I learned about a Jesus of compassion, welcome, reconciliation and breaking down walls and barriers — one who has been in so many ways hijacked by those who would have such a distorted gospel of Christ as to suggest that empathy is a sin. It has been said the greatest act of identity theft of our time has been committed against Jesus Christ. As a Christian, I am committed to reclaiming Jesus — to taking him back for the sake of love, liberation, and life.
Today I stand in solidarity with all immigrants and refugees of goodwill echoing Episcopal Bishop Marianne Budde’s call for mercy and compassion towards all our neighbors — documented and undocumented, of every age race and gender, nation, station and orientation. I wish to close with a new version of the classic hymn Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus that I wrote as an offering, a prayer and a charge to my fellow Christians and all friends of Jesus of every faith and none.
Stand up, stand up for Jesus
From hate reclaim his name
Stand up, Stand up for Jesus
God’s kingdom now proclaim
With mercy ever flowing,
His movement leads the way—
In liberating action,
We serve and hope and pray.
Stand up, stand up for Justice
All you who wear the cross
Stand up, stand up for Justice
For all the least and lost.
Still countless crucifixions
Stain earth with grief and pain;
The Lamb who bore our violence
Now calls us to love’s reign.
Stand up, stand up for mercy,
Towards all humanity
Stand up, stand up for mercy,
In solidarity
With immigrants and strangers
— and foreigners in our midst
Remember, our dear Jesus
Was once denied, dismissed.
Stand up, stand up for kindness,
Compassion, peace, and joy
Stand up, stand up for kindness,
The Spirit’s gifts deploy.
From those who would misuse it
His name we will retrieve
The loving name of Jesus
In whom true saints believe.”
Each speaker offered a powerful story that lingered with the beautiful music accompaniment. The thread of the corporal works of mercy by the power of the Holy Spirit were woven into each reflection, as each of us did not know the content of each reflection.
As Rev. Mark Hallinan, S.J. closed with his prayer, silence was palpable:
“O God most holy,
pour forth your mercy and compassion
on all who are present in our country seeking
refuge; seeking hope for a better future for
themselves and for those whom they love.
Too many of your sons and daughters now
live in fear – fear that the lives they have
created here will be taken from them,
fear that their loved ones will be imprisoned,
fear that their children will be separated from them,
fear that they will be returned to places where their
safety and their future are at risk.
Give them strength, O God, and let us be for them
your consoling presence.
Have mercy on us, O God, for the fear of your
children has been visited upon them by a government
acting in our name.
May our shame at what is being done in
our name move us, by your grace, to be fearless
advocates for all migrants, refugees, and asylum
seekers. Give us the wisdom to serve them well.
As we go forth into this night, let your light, O God,
shine forth through us to cast out the darkness that
overshadows too many of your precious sons and daughters.
In your most holy and precious name, we pray, Amen.”
— Jean Santopatre, Pastoral Associate