Faithwire
  • Watch
  • Go!
  • Podcasts
  • Newsletter
  • Contact Us
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • SCOTUS
  • Life
  • Religious Liberty
  • News
  • Politics
  • Faith
  • Opinion

A Year of Grief and Grace for Charleston Church

Share Tweet
By Dan Andros
Managing Editor

June 17, 2016

It’s been one year since members of Mother Emmanuel AME Church in Charleston, S.C. were gathered together for a Wednesday evening Bible study that suddenly turned to terror as gunman Dylann Roof opened fire, killing nine parishioners within minutes.

It was just two days later that family members of the victims shocked the nation by speaking words of forgiveness to Roof via closed-circuit television. Possibly the most unbelievable display of mercy came in the form of the now-famous words of Nadine Collier, daughter of slain AME member Ethel Lance:

I forgive you. You took something very precious away from me. I will never get to talk to her ever again—but I forgive you, and have mercy on your soul. . . . You hurt me. You hurt a lot of people. If God forgives you, I forgive you.

For survivors and family members, it has been a year of seeking to live out that mercy and forgiveness even as grief remains. Felicia Sanders, who lost both her 26-year old son Tywanza Sanders and her 87-year old aunt Susie Jackson, has been attending Wednesday night Bible studies at the nearby, mostly white Second Presbyterian Church for the last nine months. TIME spoke to Sanders about her decision to forge bonds with those Roof wanted her to hate:

“I wanted to do this for Tywanza. I want to prove that boy wrong. I wanted to show forgiveness and love between the races,” Sanders said last September at her first Bible study at Second Presbyterian. That night, her hands gripped the chair when a young white man entered the room. But she forced herself to embrace this church and these people and unite with them in worshipping the same Jesus.

And then there’s Chris Singleton, the 19-year old whose mother, Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, was shot and killed during the Bible study last June. A piece in The Undefeated about Singleton, who now plays baseball at Charleston Southern University, quotes a former teammate of his saying, “You can tell God is way more in his life through all this. You can definitely see it coming out in him.”

Singleton credits his mother’s example for his ability to extend forgiveness to Roof just one day after he took his mother’s life. At a vigil for the victims, Singleton told a BBC reporter, “We already forgive him for what he’s done. And there’s nothing but love from our side of the family. Love is stronger than hate.”

Now, one year later, Mother Emmanuel Church, in an effort to continue showing the kindness exhibited by the family members of the Emmanuel Nine, is marking June 21 as “Acts of Amazing Grace Day.” The idea is to have as many people around the globe taking part in acts that respond to hate with kindness. As per Mother Emmanuel’s website:

“With thousands of acts of grace being performed around the world, we will surely make the world a better place. No act of kindness or grace, no matter how small, is ever wasted.”

Latest

  • News

    World Athletics Bans Transgender Athletes From Competing in Female Sports

  • News

    Christian Ex-Cop Fired For Refusing Pandemic Mandate Doubles Down: ‘Get It or Be Fired’

  • News

    Chicago Blackhawks Won’t Wear Pride Jerseys, Citing Security Concerns

  • News

    ‘We are Devastated but Not Defeated’: Massive 8-Alarm Fire Destroys Church in New Jersey, Cause of Fire Under Investigation

  • News

    Wild Footage Shows Brave Good Samaritan Purportedly Tackling, Thwarting Gun-Wielding Man Fleeing Police in Busy NYC Neighborhood


Sponsored
Sponsored

Newsletter
Signup

Sidebar

Recent Posts

  • World Athletics Bans Transgender Athletes From Competing in Female Sports
  • Christian Ex-Cop Fired For Refusing Pandemic Mandate Doubles Down: ‘Get It or Be Fired’
  • Chicago Blackhawks Won’t Wear Pride Jerseys, Citing Security Concerns
  • ‘We are Devastated but Not Defeated’: Massive 8-Alarm Fire Destroys Church in New Jersey, Cause of Fire Under Investigation
  • Wild Footage Shows Brave Good Samaritan Purportedly Tackling, Thwarting Gun-Wielding Man Fleeing Police in Busy NYC Neighborhood

Archives

  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016

Categories

  • Christian Persecution
  • Coronavirus
  • culture
  • Culture
  • Entertainment
  • Faith
  • Faith
  • Family
  • George Floyd
  • Go!
  • Israel
  • Life
  • Life
  • Lifestyle
  • Media
  • Men
  • Mission Haiti
  • News
  • News
  • Opinion
  • P.O.V
  • Politics
  • Politics
  • Roe
  • Sponsored
  • Sports
  • Virtue
  • Women

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

Navigation

  • Watch
  • Go!
  • Podcasts
  • Newsletter
  • Contact Us
  • Staff
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram

Subscribe to the Newsletter

Sign up to get our newsletter your inbox every day.

Newsletter Signup

Do you want to read
more articles like this?