Regret – This subject can be viewed at from two different perspectives. The first is the regret that one feels after having committed a crime and accepted the reality that it has happened. The second perspective is actually regretting the action because a moral concern. I can regret something as did Esther Rodgers at first simply because it was a bad thing to do dealing with the situation. However if I regret something because in the end it leads me to feel that I am morally at the bottom of some moral hierarchy then there is a difference.
Acceptance – After receiving her spiritual revelation in prison, Rodgers became content with her state. She was willing to receive the punishment that was equivocal to her sin because it was the right thing to do. Faith played a major role in her life and also plays a major role in the lives of many convicted criminals. As long as a person has something to base their actions on, some relief system that assures them salvation from the uncertainty of death, they are willing to accept their punishment.
Courage – “She retained an invincible courage, and yet manifested nothing that had the least Tincture of a vain glorious Confidence.” (p. 105) Having gotten over her regret for her crime and accepted the punishment justly deserving of her crime, Rodgers found the courage to face it fearlessly. She wasn’t afraid to die for her faith in God allowed her assurance tha as long as she was unwavering in her faith and had truly repented of her sins then her soul was to be saved. After all this remains a major concern with all people in the world, not even just those who are sentenced to die. But having a faith system that gave her assurance, allowed her to muster the courage to take her punishment before those people who had grown to love her through her imprisonment.