Every true Christian should be able to thank God for Charlie Kirk. Watch just ten minutes of that winsome 31-year-old sharing his Christian faith with crowds of students, and it will put a smile on your face. Whatever you think of his politics, those ten minutes alone will show you that Kirk was bright, articulate, courageous, and deeply Jesus-loving.
Then, if you can face it, go and watch the reactions to his recent murder. I am talking about the gleeful TikTokers, the podcasters giving their cold approval, and the memes: a mock figurine of Kirk himself, for example, white T-shirt and microphone in hand, frozen in the moment of death. For some of us, the last few weeks have been truly eye-opening.
Mainstream media has not reassured me. I struggle to click on yet another ‘Who was Charlie Kirk?’ article. Most of these amount to little more than strings of quotations from Kirk on matters such as race, sexuality and transgenderism. All are out-of-context and selected to depict the deceased as no more than a far-right provocateur.
Kirk wasn’t a racist. But for us Christians, loving our neighbour does mean understanding our enemy.
