Uploaded June 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
In Zechariah 7, God speaks to a people who have been fasting regularly and are proud of it. And God's response is essentially: who was that for? "When you fasted…was it really for me that you fasted? And when you eat and drink, do you not do it for yourselves?" And then, almost in the same breath, God says: "Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor." The connection isn't incidental. God is saying that the fasting that is truly for him will show up in how you treat the vulnerable. A fast that leaves you more spiritually self-satisfied but no more attentive to the suffering of your neighbor is, by God's own reckoning, a fast for yourself.
This week the Supreme Court upheld the revocation of Temporary Protected Status for Haitian and Syrian immigrants — people who came here fleeing violence, persecution, and devastation, who have built lives, raised children, put down roots. They are now unlawfully present. They are eligible for immediate deportation. They are the foreigner Zechariah was talking about. They are the ones whose hunger is not metaphorical.
We cannot fast to placate our own individual spiritual ambitions while remaining unmoved by this. The fast that God chooses — the one Isaiah 58 and Zechariah 7 both point toward — is the one that opens our hands, loosens the bonds of injustice, and sees the face of God in the face of the stranger.
As a church, we’re mobilizing to practically stand with our immigrant neighbors through our Migrant Solidarity group. You’ve been hearing about the interest meeting for a few weeks. Nearly 20 of us/you are committing to supporting our immigrant neighbors who've recently been released from ICE detention — people who need practical help, presence, and solidarity. Maybe you’ve been considering joining the interest meeting today after the service. If you're not heading to Community Lunch, I want to invite you to come. This is one of the ways we fast together — we empty ourselves of comfort and convenience and we show up for the vulnerable. That's not an add-on to the spiritual life. According to Zechariah, according to Isaiah, it is the spiritual life."
Excerpt from "The Way of Life: Fasting and Feasting" | June 28, 2026
Full sermon available on our YouTube page.
#christianity #inclusivechurch #immigration #washingtondc #supremecourt
In Zechariah 7, God speaks to a people who have been fasting regularly and are proud of it. And God's response is essentially: who was that for? "When you fasted…was it really for me that you fasted? And when you eat and drink, do you not do it for yourselves?" And then, almost in the same breath, God says: "Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor." The connection isn't incidental. God is saying that the fasting that is truly for him will show up in how you treat the vulnerable. A fast that leaves you more spiritually self-satisfied but no more attentive to the suffering of your neighbor is, by God's own reckoning, a fast for yourself.
This week the Supreme Court upheld the revocation of Temporary Protected Status for Haitian and Syrian immigrants — people who came here fleeing violence, persecution, and devastation, who have built lives, raised children, put down roots. They are now unlawfully present. They are eligible for immediate deportation. They are the foreigner Zechariah was talking about. They are the ones whose hunger is not metaphorical.
We cannot fast to placate our own individual spiritual ambitions while remaining unmoved by this. The fast that God chooses — the one Isaiah 58 and Zechariah 7 both point toward — is the one that opens our hands, loosens the bonds of injustice, and sees the face of God in the face of the stranger.
As a church, we’re mobilizing to practically stand with our immigrant neighbors through our Migrant Solidarity group. You’ve been hearing about the interest meeting for a few weeks. Nearly 20 of us/you are committing to supporting our immigrant neighbors who've recently been released from ICE detention — people who need practical help, presence, and solidarity. Maybe you’ve been considering joining the interest meeting today after the service. If you're not heading to Community Lunch, I want to invite you to come. This is one of the ways we fast together — we empty ourselves of comfort and convenience and we show up for the vulnerable. That's not an add-on to the spiritual life. According to Zechariah, according to Isaiah, it is the spiritual life."
Excerpt from "The Way of Life: Fasting and Feasting" | June 28, 2026
Full sermon available on our YouTube page.
#christianity #inclusivechurch #immigration #washingtondc #supremecourt
