Tim Allen has forgiven the man responsible for the death of his father after Erika Kirk forgave her husband Charlie’s assassin at his memorial service Sunday.
Allen’s father, real estate agent Gerald Dick, died in a car accident caused by a drunk driver in 1964, when Allen was 11 years old.
“When Erika Kirk spoke the words on the man who killed her husband: ‘That man… that young man… I forgive him.’ That moment deeply affected me,” Allen wrote on X on Thursday. “I have struggled for over 60 years to forgive the man who killed my Dad. I will say those words now as I type: ‘I forgive the man who killed my father.’”
The comedian concluded his note, “Peace be with you all.”
Conservative activist and Turning Point USA founder, Charlie, was assassinated on the campus of Utah Valley University in Orem on September 10 in front of a crowd of students.
Tim Allen said he was inspired by Erika Kirk’s forgiveness (Getty)
Charlie’s accused killer, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson of Utah, has been charged with murder as prosecutors announced they intend to seek the death penalty.
At Charlie’s public memorial service at the State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, his 36-year-old widow said she forgave his killer.
“My husband, he wanted to save young men, just like the one who took his life,” she began. “That man, that young man, I forgive him. I forgive him because it was what Christ did and it is what Charlie would do.”
“The answer to hate is not hate,” Erika said. “The answer we know from the gospel is love and always love, love for our enemies and love for those who persecute us.”
Erika claimed that her husband’s death had not prompted “revolution” but had instead sparked “revival” in the U.S.
“We didn’t see rioting. We didn’t see revolution,” she said. “Instead, we saw what my husband always prayed he would see in this country. We saw revival.”
Erika’s speech was followed by President Donald Trump, who declared his “hate” for his opponents in a contrasting, politically-charged speech.
Like the Kirks, Allen has been open about his Christian faith in the past; however, he has described his faith as complex due to the death of his father.
In a 2012 interview, per Preaching Today, Allen said, “Part of me still doesn’t trust that everything will work out all right. I knew my father was dead, but I was never satisfied with why he was dead. I wanted answers that minute from God. ‘Do you think this is funny? Do you think this is necessary?’
“And I’ve had a tumultuous relationship with my creator ever since.”