In August of 2017, a father became childless. On a beautiful Saturday afternoon, Mark Heyer received a call saying his daughter had been killed by a driver speeding into a group of people protesting white supremacists. He, somehow, has found in his heart the ability to forgive this man for his awful sin. Many find his story shocking, but why? America falls severely behind in the area of forgiveness. People like Mr. Heyer, who forgive the “unforgivable”, come off as saints because the rest of the community does not hold the same capacity. The rarity of forgiveness in today’s world can also be seen through the Puritans in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s psychiatric novel The Scarlet Letter, but just as Mr. Heyer saw it fit to forgive, the reader sees …show more content…
Pearl, deeming to be the only one able to truly forgive, has a beautiful redemption. In Matthew 6:14, Jesus preaches “For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.” The only way to experience true and full redemption proves to be by forgiving others. Sin enslaves everyone, so no one has the right to judge another for sinning. Pearl can testify to that. Just as Dimmesdale finally admits his sin to the town, Pearl forgives him. Once she forgives him, “a spell is broken” (Hawthorne 175). Pearl, since birth, has had an extremely enraged temper. Explanations of this temper are plentiful, but a likely possibility proves to be punishment for the nature of her conception. After the “spell” has been undone, she leads a completely normal life because she has become fully “human”. Pearl responds correctly to the sin of others and reaps rewards accordingly. God honors Pearl for her Christ-like reaction. Redemption, for Pearl, came only as she forgave her distant father for not being involved in her life, unlike Hester who forgives Dimmesdale the night before. For both Dimmesdale and herself, Pearl was the final piece of redemption. Pearl’s admirable reaction to others sin causes her healing