NORTHAMPTON — Inside Edwards Church on Sunday, pews filled to capacity as people continued to fill in, almost all of them donned in black clothing. As people continued to stream in, some began standing against the walls while others volunteered to sit in the church choir seats behind the altar. Still more people stood out in the hallway viewing a livestream broadcast as the Rev. Jennifer Geary began to speak.
“It is my opinion that the current immigration enforcement tactics used by the federal government are immoral,” Geary told the group of around 300 people who had gathered that day. “All people, regardless of immigration status, should be treated with kindness, grace, respect and dignity.”
It was one of several speeches made by local religious leaders at the Interfaith Vigil for the Disappeared, an event that brought together clergy from local Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Buddhist groups to condemn in spiritual terms the actions taken by the U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency under the administration of President Donald Trump.
Around 1,500 migrants in Massachusetts were detained by ICE agents in the month of May alone, with about half of those detained having prior criminal records, ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons said in a press conference held in June.
Rev. Jennifer Geary speaks during the Interfaith Vigil for the Disappeared, held at Edwards Church on Sunday, August 3 in Northampton. STAFF PHOTO/ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL 
Rabbi Ariella Rosen, right of Congregation B’Nai Israel reads Hebrew lamentations during the Interfaith Vigil for the Disappeared, held at Edwards Church on Sunday, August 3 in Northampton. Next to her is Rabbi Jacob Fine, also of CBI. STAFF PHOTO/ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL 
Mohammed Salim Bajwa of the Islamic Society of Western Massachusetts speaks during the Interfaith Vigil for the Disappeared, held at Edwards Church on Sunday, August 3 in Northampton. STAFF PHOTO/ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL 
Aram Rubenstein-Gillis leads a musical performance of “Rivers of Babylon” Sarah Kraaz of Northampton holds up a sign of a detained migrant during the Interfaith Vigil for the Disappeared, held August 3 in Northampton. STAFF PHOTO/ALEXANDER MACDOUGALL
The service featured multiple forms of religious prayer and music, including a prayer to St. Michael the Archangel by Deacon John Murray of the St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Belchertown, a recitation of Hebrew Book of Lamentations by Rabbi Ariella Rosen of Congregation B’Nai Israel and a reading from the Quran by Mohammed Salim Bajwa of the Islamic Society of Western Massachusetts.
“They say ‘we are only doing the right things for the country,’ making America great again,” said Bajwa, referring to the Trump administration. “Verily, they are the ones spreading corruption, making mischief, but they realize it not.”
Rabbi Jacob Fine of Congregation B’Nai Israel noted that the day of the vigil, Aug. 3, fell on the day of Tisha B’Av, a day in Judaism commemorating the destruction of the First and Second Temples of Jerusalem.
“In addition to widespread death and suffering, this tragedy marks the forced exiles of many Judeans into Babylonia, the first of many times over the millennia that our people have been forced to flee their homes,” Fine said. “Tragically, the words of [Lamentations] echo so resoundingly today here in our country, on our streets.”
Following the service, those attending participated in a “silent procession” down Northampton’s Main Street, with several holding signs depicting those detained by ICE in Massachusetts such as Marcelo Gomes Da Silva, a high school honors student from Milford whose detention was met with swift public backlash. He was released several days later. The procession went toward the intersection of King Street before turning around and ending in front of the Unitarian Universalist church located next to city hall.
The Rev. Eric Cherry of the Unitarian Society of Northampton and Florence told the Gazette that the larger-than-expected turnout showed there was a deep “care and collective concern for neighbor” in the local area.
“We did not know how many people would embrace this witness,” Cherry said. “There is so much love of neighbor in Northampton, so much that people were willing to come out on a Sunday afternoon and witness on a beautiful summer day.”
The event was cosponsored and organized by congregants and clergy from more than 15 different religious groups and organizations, including Elliot Davey, an administrator for First Churches of Northampton.
“After attending the initial planning meeting, it was clear to me that this was something the community would benefit from and needed at this moment,” Davey said. “When it comes to issues of peace and justice, specifically around immigration, we across the faith communities here in the Pioneer Valley are incredibly aligned. Whether or not we agree on everything else, we know that what our government is doing right now is wrong from all of our faith and moral standards.”
Gathered together after the procession, participants engaged and few minutes of silent reflection, but people were allowed to speak about feelings they were experiencing in the moment, an opportunity several individuals took advantage of.
“If not now, when?” One person said. “If not us, who?”
Alexander MacDougall can be reached at amacdougall@gazettenet.com.
