Evangelical pastors of Hispanic congregations have reportedly begun a 40-day fast to call for reform of U.S. immigration policies.
According to the Associated Press (AP), the pastors and members of their congregations began the fast on Wednesday. It was organized by the advocacy and legal services group Agencia ALPHA and is part of the Massachusetts-based campaign called Immigrants Make America Strong, which aims to reform the country's immigration policies in support of undocumented immigrants.
One of the pastors participating in the fast compared the plight of illegal immigrants to Israelites persecuted in Egypt.
"People leave their lands for reasons that are very frightening," Rev. Jose Rodriguez, of the Waltham Worship Christian Center, told AP. He expressed hope that members of Congress would be moved by their prayers.
Other pastors have been visiting illegal immigrants in their homes and holding short services there because they are afraid of leaving the house for fear of being detained by the authorities.
The Rev. Sergio Perez, president of a Hispanic fellowship of Christian pastors, said he has heard about churchgoers being detained by local authorities and turned over to federal immigration officers. "That fear ... that's why for me, as a pastor, I need to represent them," he told AP.
Immigration has been an issue of focus for religious leaders under the Trump administration. Several religious groups are currently protesting against the decision to include a new citizenship question to the 2020 U.S. census.
While the question about citizenship status has not been on the survey since 1950, the U.S. Department of Commerce announced on Monday that it has accepted the request by the Justice Department to include it in the upcoming census.
Several religious organizations denounced the decision, among them the Rev. John Dorhauer, president of the United Church of Christ, who said it was a "not so subtle attempt to disenfranchise vulnerable communities and diminish their capacity to affect their political future."
Tony Suarez, executive vice president of the National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference, said Congress must take action to ensure immigrants in the U.S. do not live in fear.
"Congress must fix our broken immigration system, which in turn will bring people out of the shadows, allow a proper census and more importantly allow families to live the American dream without fear," he said, according to Religion News Service.
