“Pilgrims are persons in motion, passing through territories not their own, seeking completion or clarity; a goal to which only the spirit’s compass points the way”.

-- Richard R. Niebuhr, Pilgrims and Pioneers

Mississippi is a land that has witnessed much pain: from slavery to the ravages of civil war and the struggles of Reconstruction, from the horrors of Jim Crow and the terror of the Klan through the bitterness and grief of the civil rights struggle, and from devastating floods to powerful hurricanes. But through this very same pain and struggle, the people of Mississippi have demonstrated incredible courage and enormous creativity.

Led by honorary co-hosts Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) and Rep. Chip Pickering (R-Miss.), a delegation of members of Congress, congressional staff and friends of the Institute took a three-day journey into a place made sacred through struggle but marked with extraordinary courage and creativity. Through the lives and legacies of
her authors and musicians, and through the testimony of her political, community and religious leaders, the pilgrims entered a land of struggle transformed into a sacred place of hope.

The pilgrimage took place March 28-30, 2008 beginning in Memphis, Tennessee, traveling through Jackson, Clarksdale and other sites, and culminated on the Gulf Coast. Check back for fuller details and pictures from the pilgrimage. You can read Karen Saverino's pilgrimage journal here.

The Faith & Politics Institute’s pilgrimages provide members of Congress and other guests with the opportunity to experience the lessons of history by journeying into what is held as “sacred ground”. These journeys are deeply spiritual in nature as well as educational. The pilgrimages provide members of Congress and others with a genuine experience of bipartisan community and personal transformation.