South Carolina S 864: St. James the Greater Catholic Church

Bill Text

2025-2026 Bill 864 Text of Previous Version (Jan. 29, 2026) - South Carolina Legislature Online 

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026

Bill 864

Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter

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A senate RESOLUTION

TO CONGRATULATE St. James the Greater Catholic mission 
UPON THE OCCASION OF ITS two hundredth ANNIVERSARY AND TO COMMEND the church 
FOR ITS Legacy of Faith and Resilience and its MANY YEARS OF DEDICATED SERVICE 
TO THE colleton county COMMUNITY AND THE PEOPLE AND THE STATE OF SOUTH 
CAROLINA.

Whereas, the members of 
the South Carolina Senate are pleased to recognize St. James the Greater 
Catholic Mission as it celebrates this important milestone; and

Whereas, St. James the 
Greater Catholic Mission's origins began in 1826. The church constitutes a rare 
example of a rural, southern, African American Roman Catholic parish in 
continuous existence from its antebellum origins to today. The site is 
remarkable for possessing a complete, historically intact campus containing a 
church, a school, and a cemetery; and

Whereas, constructed by 
Irish plantation owners to worship with enslaved African Americans, the first 
church building of the mission was dedicated in 1833 by the first Bishop of Charleston, 
Bishop John England. When slavery was abolished near the end of the Civil War, 
many planters abandoned their land and fled. Vincent de Paul Davis, a formerly 
enslaved man, served as the local catechist and played a vital role in teaching 
and guiding the community in their faith. The parishioners often think of the 
many ancestors of faithful Catholics who preserved their faith without a priest 
or sanctuary for forty years; and

Whereas, in 1897, word 
reached a traveling preacher, Father Daniel Berberich, who came to the area to 
help re-establish the congregation. A new church was built in 1909 with the 
help of Father Berberich, but a tornado tragically destroyed the building in 
the early 1930s. The current structure was built in 1935 with leftover 
materials from the previously ravaged church; and

Whereas, in 1901, a 
schoolhouse was constructed next to the church, where over a hundred African 
American students were educated regardless of religious affiliation. Classes 
were taught at the schoolhouse until the 1960s, when schools in South Carolina became 
integrated; and

Whereas, members of St. 
James still use the church and schoolhouse, lovingly referred to by locals as 
"The Hill." Throughout the years, after the confinement of slavery, through the 
trials and tribulations of natural disasters and life, the members of this 
congregation held strong to their faith and persevered; and

Whereas, the Saint 
James African Americans are particularly extraordinary. Parishioners today 
trace their roots to ancestors who were enslaved by Irish Catholic planters in 
the 1820s and 1830s. A graveyard adjoins the churchyard and contains the loved 
ones of the congregation's past and Irish settlers alike, with the earliest 
decipherable headstone dating to 1835; and

Whereas, the rich story 
of Saint James the Greater Catholic Mission, its numerous hardships, and the 
resilience of the parishioners' faith are hereby congratulated. The members of 
the South Carolina Senate greatly appreciate the dedication and commitment of St. 
James the Greater Catholic Mission to serving the people and the State of South 
Carolina. Now, therefore,

Be it resolved by the Senate:

That the members of the 
South Carolina Senate, by this resolution, 
congratulate St. James the Greater Catholic Mission upon the occasion of its two 
hundredth anniversary and commend the church for its legacy of faith and 
resilience and its many years of dedicated service to the Colleton County community 
and the people and the State of South Carolina.

Be it further resolved 
that a copy of this resolution be presented to the pastor of St. James the 
Greater Catholic Mission, Reverend Bruce C. Barnett.

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This web page was last updated on January 29, 2026 at 11:10 AM