Mother Emmanuel and Lessons of Forgiveness
Forgiveness does not mean condoning wrong. Forgiveness is release to God. At first it may not be a feeling but an act
of the will. I will forgive. I pray God to give me the grace. Jesus prayed, “Father, forgive them. They do
not know what they do.”
The people of Mother
Emmanuel Church in Charleston are an example for our nation as they
demonstrated how powerful is forgiveness.
They told Dylann Roof they forgave him and prayed for his soul. The music,
and the speeches of the four hour funeral of Rev. Pinkney were inspiring and
uplifting, revealing how God can bring good out of tragedy. “God works in mysterious ways,” President
Obama said. He spoke of God’s grace—something we don’t deserve or earn—it is
just given. He sang, “Amazing Grace”, the church joining
him. If you did not see this, I pray you will.
(C-Span, June 26, 2015)
What if we, as a nation, had responded this way to 9/11? Some of
the victims said, “Not in our name will you wage endless war, invade countries,
bomb civilians, kill more children.”
With such methods have we not recruited more terrorists? As a nation, we need forgiveness and God’s
grace.
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