Hundreds of people gathered Jan. 30 in St. Barnabas Church, 10135 S. Longwood Drive, in solidarity with people who have been affected by the actions of federal agents in Minnesota.
The “You Are My Neighbor: Prayer and Solidarity with Minnesota Service” was hosted by Southside Catholic Peace and Justice, a joint effort of St. Barnabas, Christ the King, St. Cajetan, St. John Fisher and St. Mary Magdalene parishes.
“As we come together this evening, we are overwhelmed by the tragedies in Minnesota and elsewhere due to ICE raids,” said Liz Thibeau, a member of the peace and justice group, as she welcomed the congregation. “We raise our voices in lament to God in our sadness and our confusion, and we ask God to be with those who have been injured, killed and whose lives have been upended.”
The service was planned after federal agents shot and killed Renee Good on Jan. 7 and Alex Pretti on Jan. 24 in Minneapolis. Federal officials initially claimed both shootings were in self-defense, but their accounts did not match the many videos recorded by bystanders.
Good, 37, was apparently involved in efforts to warn neighbors about the presence of federal immigration agents; Pretti, 37, was helping a woman who had been knocked to the ground by agents when he was pepper sprayed, knocked to the ground and then shot several times.
Those deaths came as 3,000 agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Customs and Border Protection and other federal agencies were in Minnesota for ramped up immigration enforcement. The effort led to many reports of people being stopped and questioned, put into unmarked vehicles by unidentified, masked agents, often apparently based on their skin color or accent; and to many incidents of people protesting such actions being subjected to tear gas or other chemical irritants and being detained themselves.
Augustinian Father Anthony Pizzo led the service. It took place as darkness fell on a cold and snowy Friday evening, with the lights dimmed in the church and votive candles lining the sanctuary steps.
“We could all be home, in a nice warm house eating a hot meal right now,” Pizzo said, thanking people for making the effort to be present. “So why are we here? We’re here because we are hungry.”
They are hungry, he said, for peace and unity.
Sheila Gainer read a letter from Cenacle Sister Pam Falkowski, a native of Minnesota, who called on St. Paul and his analogy of one body made of many parts to remind listeners of the importance of unity.
“We are the living, breathing, pulsing Body of Christ, surrounded by the communion of saints, who have already run the race,” wrote Sister Pam. “No one is alone. It is in and through this Body of Christ that life, love, light and hope carry on. We are the bearers of this Christ in our bodies. Take courage.”
“There’s a lot going on,” Pizzo said. “There’s a lot of agitation, a lot of frenzied activity, and a lot of us don’t know what to do with this. We’re trying to make sense of something that seems to change the nature of our country.”
Pizzo looked to his fellow Midwest Augustinian, Pope Leo XIV, as a point of unity. Pope Leo often invokes St. Augustine, Pizzo said, and St. Augustine always emphasized relationship and unity.
“We have to address our conflicts,” Pizzo said. “Promoting unity and community is fundamental to the life and health of the people of God.”
Rev. Linda Wygant, a Presbyterian minister who works with Grace Seeds ministry, also offered a reflection.
“We are going to lift up and remember those who have been murdered,” she said. “We are going to lift up those whose voices have been silenced. … When those in power lie and tell us to hate and fear our neighbor, we say no.”
Petitions were read by students from Brother Rice High School, Marist High School, Mother McAuley Liberal Arts High School, Mount Carmel High School and St. Rita of Cascia High School.
Organizers said the service was pulled together over about three days, just as members of Southside Catholic Peace and Justice began meeting again after a hiatus.
“We knew people wanted to hear their church say something about this,” organizer Maureen Gainer Reilly said. “This is what people want. This is what people are hungry for.”
Pizzo said when Gainer Reilly called and asked him to preside, he found that he was available, and he was happy to do it.
Pizzo has ministered at St. Clare of Montefalco and St. Rita of Cascia parishes, he said.
“I’ve seen firsthand how people have been affected,” he said. “This is out of control.”
Watch the service at simplestreaming.com/prayer-service-peace-solidarity.