Awakening Through Forgiveness

Guest Opinion by Whitney Scapecchi | Southern Freedom Press

Originally published September 22, 2025

I kept the memorial service for Charlie Kirk on most of the day. Between our usual Sunday tasks around the house, busy boys, and the rhythm of family life, I found tears streaming down my face intermittently. It’s been a heavy twelve days for our nation, but especially for those of us with empathetic hearts who can’t help but feel the weight of loss. I knew watching this service unfold would be hard, but I wanted to see it through. I listened to the gospel between speakers, caught fond memories from those who loved Charlie and had been touched by his life, but it was Erika’s remarks I knew would gut me. From the moment she stepped on stage I felt the heavy sadness — and I felt her strength too.

Last night, Erika Kirk did what few in America seem able to do: she forgave the young man who murdered her husband. Her statement was simple, but not small: “That man, that young man… I forgive him. I forgive him because it was what Christ did, and it’s what Charlie would do.” Those words were as disruptive as they were healing.

Erika is a proud conservative, but what she modeled in that moment transcended politics. It wasn’t left versus right — it was something deeper: a disruption to the system that thrives on keeping us divided, outraged, and blind. Her words broke through the noise and pointed us back to what this great awakening is all about: unity, discernment, accountability — and above all, love.

Forgiveness as Defiance

We live in a culture addicted to retaliation. Politicians fundraise off anger. Media outlets profit off outrage. Division is the commodity of the day. And yet, in a public moment of unimaginable pain, Erika Kirk chose forgiveness. Not as weakness. Not as surrender. But as a radical expression of faith.

Her words stood in direct opposition to the narrative of power: that strength is measured in control, retribution, or force. Forgiveness shattered that illusion. It revealed something those in high places don’t want us to see — that the strongest weapon against their machinery is not more outrage, but grace coupled with truth.

Beyond Partisan Lines

Erika has never hidden her politics, and she didn’t set them aside last night — but her act of forgiveness simply can’t be contained by party lines. Forgiveness like that is bigger than left or right. It points to a deeper battle: one between humanity and the forces that profit from our division.

That’s why her words matter. She didn’t forgive because she excused evil. She forgave because she understood something deeper: that bitterness keeps us captive. Forgiveness sets us free to see clearly.

And yet — forgiveness does not cancel accountability. In fact, it demands it.

The Ledger of Justice

This is where Erika’s other words strike deeply. When asked about the death penalty for the accused, she responded: “I told our lawyer, I want the government to decide this. I do not want that man’s blood on my ledger. Because when I get to heaven, and Jesus is like: ‘Uh, eye for an eye? Is that how we do it?’ And that keeps me from being in heaven, from being with Charlie?”

She isn’t saying justice doesn’t matter. She’s saying that vengeance is not hers to own alone. Forgiveness doesn’t mean bypassing truth. It means holding space for both love and justice — letting the proper institutions decide the legal consequences, while she keeps her spirit clean.

Discernment

We are living in the great awakening. And like any awakening, it begins with seeing. Seeing through the lies. Seeing past the distractions. Seeing the elite for who they are, no matter the letter behind their name.

Discernment is the missing ingredient. Without it, people fold into one camp or another, blind to the fact that both sides are often serving the same masters. With it, we begin to recognize moments like Erika’s for what they are — cracks in the narrative, flashes of light in a manufactured darkness.

Forgiveness is not naïve. It is clear-eyed. It recognizes the evil act for what it is, but refuses to let that act write the final word.

The Prophetic Echo

I know some will roll their eyes when I mention prophecy. And truthfully, I don’t build my faith on modern prophecies — but I also don’t dismiss when history, faith, and timing converge in a way that demands attention.

Back in 2011, Kim Clement spoke of a season coming to America. He said there would be a leader “with absolutely no fear … decisive,” and that in the midst of crisis “a woman shall rise — strong in faith, virtuous, beautiful in eyes.” He declared she would be “crowned … as I crowned Esther,” carrying “the oil of gladness for the pain and the mourning that has taken place.” That oil, he said, would pour out and bring healing across divides — even to those who once opposed her, who would one day say: “We hated her, but now we love her.”

What’s striking is how many pieces of that prophecy felt like they touched last night. A woman rising in a moment of national grief. Speaking healing where there could have been hate. Choosing forgiveness in a time of violence.

Do I say Erika Kirk is that Esther? Not with certainty. But the resonance is undeniable: forgiveness, strength, and a voice that transcends politics. For those who believe, it feels like confirmation. For those who don’t, it still stands as a reminder: discernment matters, and history has always turned on moments when God raised up unexpected voices to change the course of nations.

Love Above All

So what do we do with a moment like this? We don’t idolize it. We don’t romanticize it. We learn from it.

Forgiveness, as Erika modeled, is courage. But courage alone is not enough. It must be paired with accountability. With transparency. With a willingness to shine light into the corners where corruption hides.

This is the awakening: not just seeing, but acting. Not just forgiving, but demanding truth. Not just unity for unity’s sake, but unity forged in discernment. And above all, it is love — the kind of love that dares to forgive, even when it costs everything.

Last night, Erika Kirk stood in the ashes of tragedy and chose forgiveness. America, will we stand in the ashes of darkness and corruption and rise into the awakening that God is already stirring — an awakening of truth, courage, and love?

The above was originally published by Southern Freedom Press, and is reprinted here with the permission of the author.

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