My Thoughts on the Assassination of Charlie Kirk

Charlie Kirk has been shot!

I didn’t see it (thank God), but I was in my car and heard about it in real time. The news anchor interrupted her interview to say that Charlie had been shot. Then, a couple of hours later, the news of his death was announced. And I was in shock. I saw a post asking why we Republicans, conservatives, and/or Christians weren’t as horrified by Iryna’s death or the school shooting. And that’s insane. Of course, we were horrified by those senseless killings.

But Charlie’s death felt different. It felt personal and anything but senseless. It felt like a pointed attack on me and my beliefs. As a Christian author, I put my beliefs out there for public consumption. And while Charlie’s platform was different, that’s what he was doing too.

When they aren’t calling me a Nazi or fascist or threatening to punch me in the face, many who disagree with me like to call for public discourse. Well, Charlie Kirk was the epitome of public discourse. So, that obviously isn’t what those people genuinely want. When they say, “public discourse,” they mean only if it agrees with them. What they really want is to silence those of us who disagree with them—permanently.

I’ve heard no one cheer over the death of an innocent young woman killed by a madman with a knife or school children killed by a madman with a gun. That’s another reason Charlie’s death felt different. Because when I heard of his assassination, I feared there would be people cheering. And I was right. As horrible as Charlie’s death was, that was a single madman carrying out his belief that Charlie had to be silenced. Now, what drove him to that belief is a topic for another time, perhaps. Read my previous paragraph, though, for a hint. But the fact that thousands of my fellow countrymen, sometimes even my fellow Christians, celebrated his death . . . Let that sink in. They were rejoicing because a fellow human being had died. Not for espousing violent ideology but for simply expressing opinions they didn’t agree with. I’m literally gritting my teeth right now as I write this because it is so unbelievable to me. But I’m going to call it out for what it is. Pure evil.

Charlie should not have been handed a death sentence because of his opinions. I saw a video where a woman was crying because she lost her job over a social media post that celebrated Charlie’s death. She thought it was “unfair” to lose her job over something she said. That’s unfair? But you think it’s fair for a man to lose his life for the same reason—something he said? Shame on you.

I know I’m later than some with posting my feelings, but I was in shock for the first few days. I couldn’t even cry and had trouble finding the words to pray. But when a group of fellow authors took time out of our writing time to pray for Charlie’s family and the state of our nation, I was finally able to cry and to find the words, not only to say to my Heavenly Father but to you.

I’m going to be honest. If you are one of those who celebrated the death of this man, I believe God still loves the you He created you to be, the you He knew before you were born, the you He wants you to return to. And He wants you to repent, so He can welcome you home. But I’m having a hard time right now, even though I know that’s what my savior Jesus Christ and, frankly, Charlie would want me to do. But . . .

and this is important . . .

I don’t want to see you dead.