The death of Charlie Kirk has sparked continuing vitriol and anger across the nation these days. To some, he is a charismatic figure who inspired young people to embrace a conservative agenda and refused to back down from controversial stands. To others, he was a firebrand whose racist, misogynistic, confrontational rhetoric fanned the flames of division across the country. In some corners, he is a martyred saint, in others a bigoted sinner. No one should be celebrating his death, recklessly casting blame, or using his death for political purposes – yet there are echoes of all those divisive actions echoing across the country. What is too easily lost in all the political rhetoric, rancor, and spurious allegations is a family grieving the loss of a husband and father. While Charlie loudly derided empathy as weakness, Jesus saw empathy as a virtue, and we who follow Jesus should empathize with his family in their loss – mourning with those who mourn – and holding them in our prayers. We should also seek to offer a faithful alternative to the violence and retribution which so many, including some leaders in our nation, are advocating. Jesus asks us to do some hard things, including loving our neighbors and enemies, and praying for those who persecute us. He calls us to forgive rather than seek retribution or revenge. Yet the loudest voices in our nation are renouncing Jesus’ “weak” way and vowing revenge. We are called to do better, to be better, and to follow the example Jesus offered us. In the current charged political environment, that can be a hard thing to do. Our Christian faith is under attack from the left, among those who deny that it is relevant to our 21st-century world, and from the right, among those who corrupt the Gospel to align with their political agenda (like Christian nationalists) and those who want to impose their judgmental brand of Christianity on the rest of us. Amid those dissonant voices, we are called to stand strong in our faith and in faithfulness – to resist the urge to retaliate, point accusatory fingers, or fan the flames of hate and division. We are called to love one another through and across the great divide which exists in our nation. That does not mean that we should tolerate injustice; in the prophet Micah’s words, we are to “do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with God.” Those are not alternatives from which to select, but actions that are to be integrated so that we do justice while practicing kindness and walking humbly with God each step of the way. It is that path of just, kind, humble, loving action that will lead us through these turbulent days to better days ahead. May God grant us strength on that journey, and may God bless us so that in and through our lives we may be a blessing to one another, to our nation – and to God.
— John Peterson
