Catholic ministry leaders join people directly impacted by crime and incarceration for the 2025 National Catholic Conference on Restorative Justice, a Jubilee-inspired event dedicated to promoting healing approaches to transforming the US justice system.
By Krisanne Vaillancourt Murphy, Catholic Mobilizing Network*
Drawing inspiration from the 2025 Jubilee Year, Catholic ministry leaders, academic and legal professionals, restorative justice practitioners, and people directly impacted by harm, crime, and incarceration gathered in September for the 2025 National Catholic Conference on Restorative Justice: “Tangible Signs of Hope.”
The conference aimed to build capacity within communities and the Church to advance healing approaches to harm, crime, and injustice.
Hosted this year in Atlanta, Georgia, and organized by Catholic Mobilizing Network, the conference highlighted practical and innovative ways that people of faith collaborate with local communities and criminal legal system actors to build hope-filled justice solutions that transform the US systems of capital punishment and incarceration.
The event, grounded in Catholic social teaching, invited participants to reflect on the collective work of creating conditions for healing, reconciliation, and liberation through the lens of hope.
Conference speakers and presenters included victims and survivors of crime and formerly incarcerated individuals; faith-rooted restorative justice practitioners; as well as legal system professionals, including judges, lawyers, and sheriffs.
Panelists speak at the National Catholic Conference on Restorative Justice
A local witness of hope in action
The Archdiocese of Atlanta and the Aquinas Center of Theology at the Candler School of Theology at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, collaborated in hosting the 2025 National Catholic Conference on Restorative Justice.
These rich collaborations created an opportunity to learn from both local wisdom and the proximate experiences of the community in Atlanta, Georgia.
Atlanta is commonly referred to in the United States as the “cradle of the Civil Rights Movement.” The city’s history is richly woven with the threads of resistance, resilience, and perseverance; yet still today, the legacy of slavery and racism exists.
The state of Georgia remains active in the death penalty and has one of the highest rates of incarceration in the country.
In the midst of these realities, a vibrant Catholic community actively collaborates with a host of interfaith and community groups to animate restorative responses to crime and violence. This local example of hope provided not only rich inspiration for the conference, but a timely and practical witness to tangible signs of hope in our world.
Conference participants began their experience with an encounter of Atlanta’s past and present work toward justice and unity with a tour through the Martin Luther King, Jr. National Park.
The King Center, the tomb of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King, and the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church captivated hearts and minds.
Following the tour, participants engaged in an Ecumenical Prayer Service with the Executive Pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church and the Music Ministry from Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, the mother Church of Black Catholics in Atlanta.
Hope is the extravagant mercy of God
Archbishop Gregory J. Hartmayer, OFM Conv., Archbishop of Atlanta, opened the conference with the celebration of the Mass.
In his homily, Archbishop Hartmayer invited conference attendees to consider how the hope of Christ requires our active participation.
“Hope is not naive optimism,” he said. “Rather, it is the depth of conviction that God’s mercy is stronger than any sin, that reconciliation is possible even when it seems impossible. Our hope rests not in our goodness or our success, but in the extravagant mercy of God. It’s not about us; it’s about God working through us.”
Indeed, hope is not abstract. It is concrete, rooted in action, and realized through the work of each of us.
The Jubilee Year—and this conference—called us to be “Tangible Signs of Hope.” In the words of Archbishop Hartmayer, “hope made flesh.”
Participants saw these fleshy examples of hope in the powerful stories shared at the conference.
Andre Robinson and Fr. Dustin Feddon work together at Joseph House, a community for men returning from incarceration in Florida.
Together, they illuminated the possibilities for healing and transformation when human dignity and proximity are centered and prioritized in the work of justice. This was certainly true for Andre whose life was transformed—with the accompaniment of Fr. Dustin—throughout his own experience of incarceration.
Justice Janine Geske and her granddaughter Patricia Wright shared an intergenerational witness to hope through their personal convictions and experiences in bringing restorative justice to their communities—as a Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice and as a volunteer facilitator in the classrooms of the local high school.
Both demonstrated what it looks like to expand awareness of and access to restorative justice.
And hope was alive and well in the work of local prosecutors and representatives from the Georgia Justice Project, who work together to facilitate restorative justice alternatives to incarceration that prioritize the needs of victims.
Through dialogue, those who are directly impacted by crime come together in a voluntary and safe space in order to understand the impacts of that harm and what is needed to make things right.
In many ways, this collaboration may be surprising. But it is successful because of years of patient perseverance and trust building.
Panelists speak at the National Catholic Conference on Restorative Justice
Integrating the learnings
In addition to traditional conference offerings like large-scale plenary panels and breakout workshops, participants were invited to integrate their learnings through intentionally crafted participatory experiences.
Rooted in synodal approaches, participants were invited into small- and large-group experiences of theological integration, affinity group sharing, and meaningful discussion around the work that lies ahead of attendees—and how they will carry out conference learnings in that work.
These unique, participatory experiences were highly valued as a sacred space to reflect on the meaningful stories, challenging truths, and inspiring wisdom that was shared during panels and workshops throughout the conference. These exchanges were a reminder that restorative justice calls for something different.
Instead of the overly retributive model of incarceration that dominates the US criminal legal system, our faith invites us to embrace approaches more in line with the reconciling vision of justice we learn from the life of Jesus.
The conference was a testament to the tireless and prayerful commitment of pilgrims of hope undertaking initiatives of restoration, reintegration, and liberation for all people impacted by crime and incarceration.
Learn more about restorative justice at catholicsmobilizing.org/learning-about-rj
* Krisanne Vaillancourt Murphy is the Executive Director of Catholic Mobilizing Network, a national organization in the United States that mobilizes Catholics and people of goodwill to end the death penalty, advance justice solutions in alignment with Catholic values and promote healing through restorative justice approaches and practices. For more information and to join the movement, visit catholicsmobilizing.org.