“Be diligent in serving the poor. Love the poor, honor them, my children, as you would honor Christ Himself.”
St. Louise de Marillac
Journey to Justice
By Associate Nancy Bick Clark
In June, S. Donna Steffen and Associates Karen Martin and Nancy Bick Clark took part in a five-day pilgrimage to Charleston, South Carolina, sponsored by the Bellarmine Chapel Dismantling Racism Team.
In June 2025, forty-four pilgrims from Cincinnati and beyond – including Sister of Charity Donna Steffen and SC Associates Karen Martin and Nancy Bick Clark – traveled to Charleston, South Carolina, for a five-day journey of memory, lament, and hope. Sponsored by the Bellarmine Chapel Dismantling Racism Team, the pilgrimage, which was rooted in prayer and learning, marked the 10th anniversary of the Emanuel Nine massacre. The group, representing parishes, universities, and the Sisters of Charity Community, set out to better understand the legacy of racism in our country, to honor those lost, and to discern how we are called to continue the work of racial justice.
Encounter at Mother Emanuel
The heart of the pilgrimage came on June 17, the anniversary of the 2015 hate crime at Mother Emanuel AME Church. Ten years earlier, nine parishioners were murdered during Bible study by a white supremacist. We arrived for an ecumenical service remembering their lives and recommitting to the work of justice.
The sanctuary was lined with banners bearing the faces of the Emanuel Nine. After the service, pilgrims placed candles, each bearing the image of one of the Emanuel Nine members, beneath the nine banners. Rev. Eric Manning, current pastor of the church, welcomed us and invited interfaith voices into the space. Rabbi Jeffrey Myers of Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life Synagogue shared his own community’s grief after the 2018 massacre that killed 11 of his congregants. The lifelong bond between Rabbi Myers and Rev. Manning – born of shared tragedy – testified to resilience across lines of race and faith. Immediately following the tragedy, Rev. Manning had come to Pittsburgh to help, as did many of the Mother Emanuel parishioners.
Then Chris Singleton, son of victim Rev. Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, spoke powerfully about forgiveness, resilience, and love. Only 18 when his mother was killed, Singleton forgave the shooter within days and has since made it his mission to spread unity. During the service, he invited us to stand, find someone who looked different from us, and embrace them. I hugged Carla, a Mother Emanuel parishioner. In her eyes I saw both grief and profound love. That moment of shared humanity embodied the pilgrimage’s purpose: to encounter Christ in one another across difference.
Former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, herself a survivor of gun violence, also addressed us, urging courage and persistence in the fight to end hate-fueled violence. Her presence, alongside clergy, survivors, and civic leaders, underscored the urgency of transforming grief into action. As we exited the church, we received white bracelets inscribed with the names of the Emanuel Nine – reminders to carry their memory into our daily lives.
Donna
(From left) S. Donna Steffen, Associate Karen Martin, and Associate Nancy Bick Clark attended an ecumenical service on June 17 remembering the lives of the Emanuel Nine.
Candles
Memorial candles were placed by the banners honoring the nine parishioners who were murdered during Bible study at Emanuel AME Church.
Giffords
Senator Mark Kelly and former congresswoman Gabby Giffords addressed those at Emanuel AME Church, urging courage and persistence in the fight to end hate-fueled violence.
Learning Charleston’s Stories
The days that followed immersed us in Charleston’s layered history of slavery, resilience, and cultural contribution.
At Waterfront Park, we gathered for prayer near the wharf where enslaved Africans first disembarked. One of our youngest pilgrims, Quinn, shared the story of Robert Smalls, who escaped slavery in 1862 by commandeering a Confederate ship and sailing it to freedom. Standing near the very waters of his daring escape, we reflected on the courage of those who risked everything for liberty.
We visited the International African American Museum (IAAM), built on Gadsden’s Wharf, where nearly half of all enslaved Africans had entered North America. The museum’s exhibits told stories of suffering and survival, but also of music, foodways, and spirituality that continue to shape American culture. Outside, the “Tide Tribute” sculpture by MacArthur Fellow Walter Hood evoked the cramped conditions of the Middle Passage, water flowing through outlines of bodies from the infamous Brookes diagram. Standing there on Juneteenth, surrounded by music and dancing on the museum’s grounds, we felt both the weight of history and the vibrancy of a living culture.
At McLeod Plantation, we walked beneath moss-draped oaks, past rows of slave cabins, the Praise House, and the garden where they still grow limited supply of Sea Island cotton. Our guide, Georgette, challenged us to confront the harsh realities of plantation life while recognizing the resilience and faith of the enslaved people who lived there. Her perspective reminded us that telling history truthfully is itself an act of justice.
Tide Tribute
The “Tide Tribute” sculpture by MacArthur Fellow Walter Hood.
Praise House
The “Tide Tribute” sculpture by MacArthur Fellow Walter Hood.
McLeod
The pilgrims visited McLeod Plantation and viewed rows of cabins where the enslaved people lived and worshipped.
The Gift of Hospitality
Arthur C. McFarland, retired chief judge of Charleston’s Municipal Court and parishioner of St. Patrick’s Church, speaks to the guests at the church.
Our group was warmly welcomed at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church, a historically Black parish in Charleston. Parishioners shared stories of their community and treated us to a Gullah dinner of fried chicken, tilapia, collard greens, cornbread, and sweet potato bread pudding. Over food and conversation, we experienced what the pilgrimage was all about: relationships that transcend barriers and expand our understanding of God’s family.
We also heard from retired Judge Arthur McFarland, one of the first Black students to integrate Bishop England High School in Charleston , and then to go on and graduate from Notre Dame and later get his law degree from the University of Virginia. His witness reminded us how recently many of these struggles unfolded – and how deeply they continue to shape present realities.
Pilgrimage as Transformation
Throughout the week, we prayed, reflected, and asked hard questions. How do we live differently after such an encounter? How do we resist despair and move forward with hope?
For me, the answer came in faces and stories: in Carla’s embrace at Mother Emanuel, in Queen’s joyful hospitality at St. Patrick’s, in a little girl’s hand reaching for mine at the Juneteenth celebration, in the resilience of guides, parishioners, and survivors who chose love over hate.
The pilgrimage made racial justice not an abstract issue, but a lived reality written into the lives of people we met. It revealed both the deep wounds of racism and the possibility of healing when communities choose mercy, forgiveness, and action.
Carrying It Forward
On our final day, Rev. Manning’s words echoed in my heart: “How many are ready to do the good work?” The pilgrimage was not an ending, but a beginning. We returned home with new commitments: to name injustice, to act with courage, to embrace those who are different from us as sisters and brothers.
Charleston’s stories reminded us that the struggle for justice is long, often painful, and far from finished. Yet it also showed us the resilience of communities who, in the face of hate, choose love.
As civil rights leader Septima Poinsette Clark, a Charleston native, once said: “Whenever there is chaos, it creates wonderful thinking.” May our pilgrimage, and the memory of the Emanuel Nine, continue to call forth that wonderful thinking, and even more, courageous action for mercy, peace, and justice.
Contact Us
The post Journey to Justice first appeared on Sisters of Charity.