Mon Sep 1: Vigil for 'Immigrant Neighbors'
bareboards arts & entertainment listserve
A vigil of song and solidarity is coming to Haller Fountain in Port Townsend on Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 1.
An act and gathering of community resilience amid ongoing and troubling national and global events, “Spirit into Action: A Vigil for Our Immigrant Neighbors” is scheduled for 4 to 5 p.m. surrounding the local landmark.
The 50-member Port Townsend Women’s Chorus will perform “Give Me Your Tired, Your Poor,” a choral arrangement of Emma Lazarus’ poem “The New Colossus,” that is featured at the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty. Their performance will also include “Can We Sing the Darkness to Light” by composer Paul Pederson.
The group will also lead a group singalong of Woody Guthrie’s “This Land is Your Land” as part of an event planned by the Jefferson Interfaith Action Coalition.
“This vigil is for people of all faith traditions including those who follow no tradition at all. Join us for music, spoken word from diverse paths, shared silence, fellowship (as) we access deep currents together,” said The Rev. Paul Heins, pastor of First Presbyterian Church and co-founder of JIAC.
Participants will read words of wisdom from spiritual leaders from various traditions, including the late Pope Francis, The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Methodist South African President Nelson Mandela, Anglican and Christian Deist founder George Washington, Rabbi Tarfon, and the modern-day Somali-British Muslim poet Warsan Shire.
The event will commence with a time for those gathered to name feelings and reasons for lament and grief. It will conclude with a communal naming of reasons for hope in the midst of aggressive immigration enforcement, wars in Gaza and Ukraine, and impactful U.S. Supreme Court cases among other ongoing concerns.
“We believe that prayer, and the awareness and energy it nurtures, has power to bless and bring change for both those who are lifted up and those who do the lifting up,” Heins said. “We believe reflecting and working together in a positive way as people of faith is a needed, meaningful, and unique witness to a world where we are increasingly pulled farther and farther apart.”
“We are all on a wide variety of spiritual paths, but at our core, we share important values, seeking justice, peace and care for our neighbors, near and far,” added The Rev. Sean Janssen, pastor of Grace Lutheran Church. “We want to share this very intentional time to come together so people can see we are not alone in struggling with so much. Everyday there’s something more and we are looking for rest and recuperation in the midst of the storm.”
For more information about the vigil and JIAC, visit jeffersoninterfaithaction.org or email revsean...@gmail.com.
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