Charlie Kirk was assassinated. At his funeral, his widow, Erika, the mother of their two small children, said that she forgave the assassin. A remarkable statement, and one I'm not sure I could have made, under similar circumstances. President Trump, who also spoke at the funeral, made clear that he believes in retribution, and not in forgiveness. (He ran partly on promising retribution.)
See here and here on the events above.
The Bible teaches forgiveness. Here are some scriptures that show that:
From the Lord's Prayer: Matthew 6:12b Forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors....14 “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you don’t forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. (all scripture from the World English Bible) This section is the only part of the Lord's Prayer that Jesus expounded on, apparently.)
Acts 7:59 They stoned Stephen as he called out, saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!” 60 He kneeled down and cried with a loud voice, “Lord, don’t hold this sin against them!” When he had said this, he fell asleep.
Luke 23:33 When they came to the place that is called “The Skull”, they crucified him there with the criminals, one on the right and the other on the left. 34 Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they don’t know what they are doing.”
Matthew 5:43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I tell you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who mistreat you and persecute you, 45a that you may be children of your Father who is in heaven.
Romans 12:19 Don’t seek revenge yourselves, beloved, but give place to God’s wrath. For it is written, “Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay, says the Lord.”
Thanis for reading.
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