The Charleston Church Shooting, a Vic- tim’s Husband, and the Path to Healing and Peace. It tells the story of the 2015 shooting


of nine parishioners at Charleston’s predominantly Black Emanuel Afri- can Methodist Episcopal Church. Anthony’s wife, Myra, was among


those murdered in the shooting by a scrawny, white supremacist killer who had driven 100 miles across the state in the hopes of sparking a race war. Instead, Anthony and other fam-


ily members of “the Charleston Nine” shocked the world with their incred- ible act of forgiveness, and Charleston experienced the transformative power of forgiveness. Love and unity reigned, sparing the


city the violence and destruction often seen after episodes of racial injustice. The words of the victims’ families


carried enormous weight, and even though there was deep anguish in their voices, their message was loud and clear: Hate and vengeance had no place in their hearts. For me, Anthony’s book proved invaluable. It knocks down all the major myths about forgiveness that keep us from practicing it. All too easily, we imagine forgiving


others means downplaying or excus- ing the sin and harm involved. Or that forgiving makes you weak and pas- sive. Or that forgiving means you must let an abuser hurt you again. None of these statements are true. First and foremost, forgiveness is


an act of obedience to God. And even if you don’t believe in God, science proves that forgiveness is a powerful, healing antibiotic for victims around the world.


Forgiveness helps release us from


the emotional and mental cancers of vengeance, insecurity, rage, and fear. It obliterates the power that abus-


ers maintain over us by releasing their control over our minds and hearts. Though we still might suffer bodily, financially, or in other ways, we have begun to steel ourselves against the dangers of self-sabotage.


SHEFFIELD


I needed to forgive everyone in my life (including toxic coworkers, various church leaders, cheating exes, and others) and ask God to forgive me.


Anthony is a symbol of God’s redemptive power for millions of peo- ple. I knew that if he could forgive, then I could also. With his mentoring, along with numerous prayer circles with other Christian friends, I learned to release my visceral hatred of my father, who’d brought me endless shame and regret — the man who spoke curses over me, abandoned me, and likely drove my two sweet brothers to insanity, steal- ing any possibility of a normal life. In my late 30s, after years of not


speaking to him, I visited Dad at home with Mom and my two schizophrenic brothers for a simple meal. It was surprisingly peaceful. Battling dementia, Dad


was still coherent and able to hold a conversation, though there were moments when he seemed to drift off and his sky-blue eyes glazed over. There were no recrimina-


tions, no fire and brimstone accusa- tions, no hateful sermons. We often get our view of God from


our earthly fathers. That’s one reason our crisis of fatherlessness hits society so hard.


Numerous studies show father-


lessness and paternal child abuse are crucial factors in whether a child drops out of high school, falls into drugs and gangs, commits crimes, or becomes a single teenage mother. Whether we suffer the trauma of


abuse or abandonment, this often leads us to forget who our real father is — God, our infinite source of love, joy, and purpose. Billy Graham said, “A child who


is allowed to be disrespectful to his parents will not have true respect for anyone.” He’s right. My rage against my father man-


ifested itself in how I disrespected myself, my romantic partners, and others in my life. I needed to forgive everyone in


my life (including toxic coworkers, various church leaders, cheating exes, and others) and ask God to forgive me. For me, Father’s Day now means reflecting on the good my father gave me while forgiving the rest. Though I thought my father was


the villain, I now see how he had suf- fered himself. He had been crushed by severe religious zealotry born of mental illness, the result of enduring sexual assault as a toddler followed by isolation, as well as the death of his best childhood friend. He’s no more or less deserving of


God’s mercy and compassion than I am. I pray for his life, especially dur- ing his struggles at age 87 with Alzheimer’s disease. Happy Father’s Day, Dad.


Carrie Sheffield is author of Motorhome Prophecies: A Journey of Healing and Forgiveness and program manager of Healthy Faith at United Charitable.


JUNE 2025 | NEWSMAX 49


SHEFFIELD/ JASON DAVIS/GETTY IMAGES


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