WASHINGTON (JTA) — Ruth Messinger is asking the Jewish community to join her in fasting to express solidarity with the people of Darfur.
Messinger, president of the American Jewish World Service, will fast on June 15 and 16 and is asking the community to join her for at least one of the two days. Her fast is part of the Darfur Fast for Life "fasting chain" involving activists, members of Congress and entertainers fasting in successive two-day blocks.
In a news release, Messinger said she is fasting so she can try to appreciate how it feels to be hungry and how difficult it is to function in such a circumstance. AJWS is circulating a petition encouraging supporters to sign a pledge to fast.
"For those of us fasting for Darfur, our hunger is a choice and a temporary state," Messinger said. "But there are hundreds of millions worldwide — in Darfur and elsewhere — who feel powerless. They are crying, and we must hear them. Fast with me and let our hunger instruct us to listen. Fast with me and let our hunger instruct us to act.”
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