Wednesday, March 19, 2025 - 11:30am (meetup) 12:00pm to 12:45pm (vigil) - Virtual & in-person (see below for locations)
Faithful Witness Wednesday: A Call for Congressional Courage
Sojourners and the Washington Interfaith Staff Community (WISC) are co-organizing a series of faithful witness vigils at the Capitol every Wednesday in March at 12 noon, which started on March 5. (March 5, 12, 19, 26, 2025)
These multi-faith vigils will call on Congress to exercise greater moral courage in upholding its Article 1 powers and preventing executive overreach.
Our nation faces an escalating threat of a constitutional crisis fueled by the Trump administration’s overreach and unconstitutional actions. A lack of leadership in Congress has allowed this crisis to grow, as it cedes its role as a co-equal branch of government. The faith community will be raising a prophetic and pastoral call to Congressional leaders to serve as a check and balance to advance the common good. These nonpartisan vigils will speak truth to power, highlighting what’s at stake and the communities already harmed. They will feature faith leaders from diverse traditions offering inspirational prayers and calls for faithful action.
Join Us for the March 19th Vigil – Stand Up for Children & Families
Now we turn our focus to the immediate and long-lasting harm facing children and families due to the administration’s executive orders and policy decisions. We will support programs like Medicaid, CHIP, SNAP, and the Department of Education that protect and uplift families across the country.
Our speakers will include:
Rev. Leslie Tune, Chief Operating Officer of the National Council of Churches
Jeanné Lewis, CEO of Faith in Public Life
Bishop Vashti Murphy McKenzie, President and General Secretary of the National Council of Churches
Rabbi Jonah Pesner, Director of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism
Rev. Marvin Silver, Director, Leadership of Development & Organizing for Children’s Defense Fund
Rev. Dr. Cassandra Gould, Senior Strategist for Faith in Action International
Sandy Ovalle, Senior Director of Campaigns and Mobilizing for Sojourners
Maggie Siddiqi, Senior Fellow at Interfaith Alliance
Be Part of the Movement - Watch the Livestream - Join us online at the SojoAction YouTube page – no account needed!
Every voice matters. Every gathering strengthens our call. Together, we speak truth to power—amplifying the voices of children and families most at risk and in need of our advocacy.
Meetup - 11:30 AM EST: Join us outside the United Methodist Building at 100 Maryland Ave NE, Washington, DC 20002 and we’ll walk over together to the nearby vigil site.
Vigil - Noon until 12:45 PM: Upper Senate Park - Area 2, Bounded by Constitution Ave NW/NE and Delaware Ave NE, Washington, DC 20001
Event Organization: Sojourners and the Washington Interfaith Staff Community (WISC)
Livestream link: SojoAction - YouTube