Prompted by a request from a prominent Jan. 6 defense attorney, Catholic Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò has called for three days of fasting for the protection of more than 950 people arrested for alleged crimes at the U.S. Capitol, including dozens jailed for nearly two years in pretrial detention.
In a Dec. 31 letter, Viganò called on the faithful to fast on Jan. 3, 4, and 5 for the Jan. 6 defendants against “the subversive attack of the Deep State.”
“I hope that this initiative will find many adherents in a spirit of true reparation of the innumerable sins and grave betrayals committed,” Viganò wrote in a letter to attorney Joseph D. McBride, who represents a half-dozen Jan. 6 defendants and others subpoenaed by the House Jan. 6 Select Committee.
“May these three days of fasting in union with the Passion of Our Lord obtain from the Divine Majesty the victory of the children of light over the workers of iniquity,” Viganò wrote. “And may Mary Most Holy, terrible defeater of the infernal serpent, be able to accompany and protect us in this spiritual battle.”
McBride said he was inspired to write to Viganò because the 81-year-old prelate understands spiritual battle. Viganò is the titular archbishop of Ulpiana. He has been living in exile since 2018.
“I wrote the archbishop because he embodies the outspoken protective spirit of St. Michael the Archangel and is renowned for his condemnation of both the Deep State and the Deep Church,” McBride told The Epoch Times.
“And because his true devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Sacred Heart of Jesus profoundly inspires me,” McBride said. “It is, therefore, no surprise that his response brought me to my knees in gratitude and prayer—especially considering my sinfulness.”
McBride said the term “January Sixer” has been expanded “from those criminally charged for actually being at the Capitol on Jan. 6 to include those whose lives are being torn apart by the [House Select] Committee and now the DOJ for any connection to Jan. 6.”
Fasting is an ancient practice that typically involves the foregoing of food or drink for a period of time. It is a penitential practice where the goals include mortification of the body and temperance.
A fast can involve skipping meals or abstaining from a pleasure such as television or internet use. A fast can be offered to God as penance for sin or as an act for the good of others. During fast days of Lent, for instance, Catholics limit themselves to one full meal per day.
Letters to Trump
In August 2018, Viganò wrote an explosive 11-page letter exposing serial homosexual predator Theodore McCarrick—the former cardinal archbishop of Washington D.C.—alleging a widespread coverup of McCarrick’s sexual abuse of children and adult seminarians.Viganò also wrote widely publicized letters to President Donald Trump in which he warned the 45th American president that the Antifa and Black Lives Matter riots as well as the extreme COVID-19 restrictions were part of a spiritual battle between what he called the children of light versus the children of darkness.
Viganò encouraged participants in the fast for Jan. 6 defendants also to increase their prayer lives.
“I can only encourage and bless this commendable gesture of penance,” Viganò wrote, “to be accompanied by prayer—above all the Holy Rosary—for the beloved nation which I had the privilege of knowing during my office as apostolic nuncio.”
Viganò said fasting will be good preparation for Jan. 6, which in addition to being the two-year anniversary of the unrest at the Capitol, is the Solemnity of the Epiphany in the Christian world. The Epiphany celebrates the manifestation of Jesus Christ’s glory and divinity to the Gentiles through the visit of the Magi.
McBride said the widespread criminal prosecution of those who were at the Capitol on Jan. 6 is an act of Deep State persecution.
“This is a war of liberation fought by a nation struggling for its freedom against the imperialistic power of the Deep State,” McBride said. “Our insurgency is both spiritual and constitutional. Our mission is to liberate January Sixers and every American citizen from the oppressive power of the Deep State.
“Until now, our fight has run concurrent to the great spiritual war led by the Catholic Church’s bishops,” McBride said. “However, a great sign of hope appeared as Pope Benedict XVI passed from this life into eternity. Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, God’s warrior bishop on earth, has joined us in our battle against the infernal dragon.”
McBride said he hopes for widespread participation in the three-day fast.
“Catholics, Christians, and other people of great faith—join us in our fight,” he said.
