FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 19, 2021

Contact: Jessica Felix-Romero jromero@sojo.net 

Rep. DeLauro, Rep. Sewell, and National Faith Leaders to Hold 12-Hour Prayer Vigil  on Capitol Hill for Build Back Better

7 AM-7 PM Prayer Vigil and 1 PM Press Conference as Congress debates historic investment opportunity in reconciliation bill

WASHINGTON, DC – On Wednesday, October 20, the Washington Interfaith Staff Community (WISC) will host a 12-hour prayer vigil on Capitol Hill from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. ET to urge Congress to pass a robust Build Back Better package that aligns with the moral groundings of so many faith traditions.

During the vigil, a Press Conference with High-Level Faith Leaders and Members of Congress will be held from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. ET at the House Triangle.

Each hour of the vigil will be devoted to a specific issue that should be addressed by the Build Back Better package including hunger, children and families, the care economy, immigration reform, the climate crisis, and health care.

The participants will convey what passage of the Build Back Better legislation could mean for families and communities across the country. They will emphasize that the bill should prioritize those most in need and align with values central to a wide range of faiths.

Members of the press, RSVP here.

WHAT: 12-Hour Vigil and Press Conference

WHEN: Wednesday, October 20, 2021, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. ET 
Press Conference - 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. ET 

WHO:

  • Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro, (D-CT-03), Chair of the House Appropriations Committee
  • Congresswoman Terri Sewell, (D-AL-07)
  • Rabbi Jonah Pesner, Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism
  • Rev. Jennifer Butler, Faith in Public Life Action
  • Rev. Jim Wallis, Center on Faith and Justice, Georgetown University
  • Rev. Leslie Copeland-Tune, National Council of Churches
  • Diane Randall, Friends Committee on National Legislation
  • Rev. Adam Taylor, Sojourners
  • Rev. Nancy Neal, Bread for the World 
  • John Carr, Initiative on Catholic Social Thought and Public Life at Georgetown University
  • And other Faith Leaders and Members of Congress

WHERE: U.S. Capitol Grounds - Area 12

Press Conference at House Triangle
Vigil and Press Conference will be livestreamed at fb.me/e/2X7aVAE5v. 

Co-Sponsoring Organizations Include: Bread for the World, Center on Faith and Justice at Georgetown University, Church World Service, Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life, Creation Justice Ministries Faith in Public Life Action, Dayenu: A Jewish Call to Climate Action, Franciscan Action Network, Friends Committee on National Legislation, ICNA Council for Social Justice, Interfaith Power & Light, Leadership Conference of Women Religious, National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd, National Council of Churches USA, National Religious Campaign Against Torture, NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Justice, Pax Christi USA, Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Office of Public Witness, Sojourners, and United Church of Christ Justice and Local Church Ministries.

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About Sojourners - Sojourners, a faith-inspired nonprofit, articulates the biblical call to social justice through its magazine and digital publication and convenes, equips and mobilizes people to put their faith into action while building alliances for effective advocacy. Sojourners envisions a future in which Christians put their faith into action in the passionate pursuit of social justice, peace, and environmental stewardship, working in partnership with people of conscience and from other faith traditions. https://sojo.net/