Coordinated ringing of bells sends message of unity, healing

CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — For several minutes Sunday, the sweltering skies above this grieving city were alive with the sound of bells: high in steeples and in the hands of toddlers, all ringing and tinkling in unison to honor the nine people cut down during a Bible study at the historic Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church.

"It's about grace, hearing the bells and being part of a community that we love," she said, tears rolling down her cheeks as her twin girls, Lana and Margeaux, who will turn 2 on Friday, ran around in their matching white dresses.

[...] searching for grace and faith in a time when you think of unthinkable things.

Police say a white man named Dylann Storm Roof, 21, sat with the Bible study group for an hour Wednesday before pulling out a handgun and opening fire.

Authorities have called the shooting a hate crime and are investigating whether a racist screed posted on the Internet was written by the suspect.

Under a blazing sun, the throng held an interdenominational service, sitting on blankets and folding chairs beneath umbrellas and tents.

Shortly before 10 a.m., Pastor Mike Seaver of Sovereign Grace Church in nearby Summerville read a passage from the book of Psalms.

On the sidewalk outside St. John's Lutheran, a crowd of about 40 parishioners and bystanders listened as the church's 18-bell carillon — which replaced a bell melted down for gun metal during the Civil War — pealed in the steeple above.

With the bells still tolling, Pastor Brandon Bowers of Awaken Church told the crowd that they were all one congregation this day, and that they were "gathered here to make a statement that what the enemy intended for evil, God is using for good."

Sitting on a Snoopy blanket with his wife, Kristin, and their five young daughters, Seaver said the bells were a sobering reminder that there were nine families "that don't have their moms and grandmas and dads today."