Emanuel (The Movie) Review
June 25, 2019
The movie “Emanuel” was going shown last week on two nights in select theaters. I tried to go on Monday night, but some church had completely bought out the entire theater. At first I was mad, but I guess a sold out theater for a Christian movie is a good thing. So I bought a ticket for Wednesday night and went home. When I came back on Wednesday, there were only about 10 people in the theater, which was disappointing. I wanted as many people as possible to support these Christian movies. But the good news was that I could sit wherever I wanted!
The movie recounted the story of the shooting at the Mother Emanuel AME (African Methodist Episcopal) Church in Charleston, SC on June 17, 2015. A 21-year old white supremacist named Dylann Roof entered the church to attend a Wednesday night Bible study. This is a picture of his entrance from the church’s surveillance camera.
After he sat through the Bible study, Roof pulled out a gun that he had concealed in his knapsack, and opened fire on the people in the church. Less than an hour later, Roof stuck his head out of the church door, looked in both directions and then calmly walked out the door still holding the gun.
Nine people were killed in the shooting, including the pastor of the church, Clementa Pinckney, who was also a South Carolina State Senator. The day after the shooting, Roof was captured. One of Roof’s relatives saw the surveillance photo above and tipped police. Once arrested, Roof admitted to the crimes.
Two things struck me about the movie that I won’t forget. The first is the reaction of the families of the victim’s. Roof appeared at his arraignment by video rather than in person, just two days after the shooting. The judge surprisingly allowed the families to address Roof. While Roof stood stone-faced in front of the camera, several family members very emotionally told him that he had destroyed their lives and their families, but that they forgave Roof, and prayed that God would have mercy on his soul. I don’t know if I would have been able to do it. When interviewed though, these family members said that they didn’t intend to forgive him. When it was their turn to speak, forgiveness just poured out of them. It reminded me of the verse that Jesus spoke to His disciples, “But when they hand you over, do not worry about what you are going to say, for it will be given to you in that hour what you are to say, for it is not you who speak, but it is the Holy Spirit.”
One of the family members whose mother was killed was a college baseball player who had been in a severe slump for several weeks before the shooting. He said that God had given him Proverbs 24:10: “If you falter in a time of trouble, how small is your strength”, to help him during those weeks. After the shooting, he realized that God had not given him that verse for the slump, but so that he might find the strength to forgive Roof. It was a powerful part of the movie.
Jesus said in Luke 7:47: “Her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little.” We will only be able to forgive others if we contemplate the multitude and magnitude of our sins, and that it cost God the death of His Son to forgive us. We should be able to “pay forward” the blessing of forgiveness to others, because of God’s forgiveness of our sins. It has been rightly said that, forgiveness releases the forgiver even if the offender does not ask for, or even want forgiveness. Someone said, forgiveness isn’t just a blessing you give to another. It’s also a gift to yourself. Forgiving others gives us the power and strength to move on with life, rather than being crushed by the weight of the offense. If you are harboring bitterness or resentment against someone, I pray that you will forgive them. Roof didn’t ask for or want their forgiveness, but forgiveness released them from bondage to the pain they had suffered. It can be the same for us.
The second thing in the movie that stood out to me was Roof’s utter lack of compassion both during and after the shooting. It’s beyond belief that after being welcomed by this church, and after sitting through the Bible study, that he could still go through with it. Roof asked one woman on the way out if he had shot her yet. She said no, though Roof had already killed her son. He said, “I’m not going to shoot you. I’m going to leave you alive to tell the story.” At his sentencing hearing, prosecutors introduced an entry from his journal written 6 weeks after the shooting. He wrote, “I would like to make it crystal clear, I do not regret what I did. I am not sorry. I have not shed a tear for the innocent people I killed.” Roof was sentenced to death on January 17, 2017.
In contrast to the Holy Spirit indwelt family members who forgave, Roof showed the complete absence of any kind of moral compass first in committing the crime, and then after 6 weeks of reflection, to show absolutely no remorse for what he did. It’s horrifying to me what atrocities human beings are capable of committing. If anyone says that there is not evil in the world, I could not disagree more. Evil exists in the world, but God is greater still. He is sovereign even over the evil events that He allows. He used this shooting for His glory by exposing the ugly evil of racism and hatred which is still very prevalent in the world. He used it for His glory by showing that because Jesus died for our sins, and Has given us His Holy Spirit, forgiveness is possible. Memorials have been built for the victims that glorify God. The legacy of these shootings will live on.
One final thing: As I watched the movie, I couldn’t help realizing yet again that every day is precious. We don’t know if today will be our last. We should live each day to the glory of God to the best of our ability. Forgiving others is a powerful way to begin.
