Introduction: What does this level of violence reveal about a people? Like many others, I am aghast at the assassination (on video) of Charlie Kirk. He was a model of open debate. He traveled to colleges and universities, supposedly institutions grounded in the free and open exchange of ideas, and welcomed Q & A times with students and faculty. He made a huge cultural impact. The POTUS is even to bestow the nation’s highest honor upon Charlie soon. It’s a posthumous award, of course, but it speaks to Charlie’s testimony as a Christian, husband, dad, and kind warrior for open debate. But I again ask the question: What does this level of violence reveal about a people?

Just weeks ago, a ‘trans’-identifying person (Hale), murdered three children, three adults, and injured scores more at the Covenant School in Nashville, TN. And on 27 August 2025, Robert Westman, another ‘trans’-identifying person, murdered two children and injured twenty-one adults at Annunciation Catholic School, a Roman Catholic school in Minneapolis, MN. And this week, Charlie Kirk bled out on camera for all to see. It was horrifying to watch. He bled out because it appears he was shot by a young man whose shell casings are stamped with Leftist slogans. There’s even video of people cheering the public assassination of Kirk. Regardless of one’s politics, that ought to break our hearts, that folks can be that cold-hearted and blinded by ideology. But Charlie’s legacy will endure because he was an open book. He, contrary to his haters, welcomed open dialogue and debate. In fact, a theme that recurred through his ministry was that if we stop talking to one another, violence is next. And he was proven, yet again, to be correct. He has now been made a cultural martyr for conservatism and open debate and dialogue.

Scripture: Solomon wrote “No one is established by wickedness, but the root of the righteous will never be moved” (Pr 12:3, ESV). Charlie has been murdered by one, it appears for now, anyway, to be yet another bitter Leftist bent upon destruction. I’m sure he’ll be caught soon. But we’ll see how it all plays out. What is clear, however, is that Charlie was right: if and when courteous dialogue and rigorous honest debate are squashed, violence is creeping at the door.

Encouragement: The “root of the righteous will never be moved,” however, just as Scripture teaches. You can murder truth and truth-tellers, but both abideth still.