The shocking assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk on September 10, 2025 has exposed deep rifts in America’s struggle over faith, politics, and identity.
Charlie Kirk, the American conservative commentator and activist, has been shot dead at the age of 31. The married father of two was speaking at Utah Valley University at the launch of his “American Comeback Tour” when a single bullet struck him in the neck before a crowd of students. His sudden death has shocked supporters and critics alike, cutting short the life of a figure who played an outsized role in shaping America’s political conversation.
Many outside the United States will not have heard of Charlie Kirk, but he was a significant figure. With millions of followers across YouTube, TikTok, X, and Instagram, his digital footprint reached more than 100 million people each month. Former President Donald Trump recognised Kirk’s influence, especially among younger Americans, and cultivated a close political relationship with him over many years.
Kirk was an outspoken conservative Christian. For him, politics and religion were never separate — he cast himself as a culture warrior for Christ, rallying conservatives with fiery calls to defend America’s “Judeo-Christian foundations.” Through his organisation, Turning Point Faith, he recruited pastors into the political fight, urging churches to see progressive policies on abortion, sexuality, and gender as existential threats to Christianity itself. His convictions were not an accessory to his activism — they were its beating heart.
That determination to fuse Christianity with politics drew both fervent support and sharp opposition. On one side, groups like the Freedom From Religion Foundation and leaders in some mainline churches accused him of eroding the line between church and state. Even some evangelicals, including writers at Christianity Today, warned that tying the gospel too tightly to partisan causes risked distorting its message.
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Yet among many conservative believers, Kirk was celebrated for precisely the same reason. Organizations such as the Family Research Council and Alliance Defending Freedom applauded his efforts to embolden Christians to speak publicly about abortion, gender, and religious liberty. To them, he was safeguarding the moral foundations of the nation, not politicizing the faith. In this way, Kirk embodied a distinctly American tension: where appeals to Scripture can be a rallying cry in political campaigns — embraced by some as a democratic right, denounced by others as dangerous.
As an outsider looking on America, I share the concern of many in the aftermath of this tragedy. America is the most powerful nation on earth, and whether we like it or not, its condition affects the entire world. It feels as though the nation is climbing its own DEFCON scale — not in terms of nuclear warfare, but in terms of the internal threat posed by an unwillingness to tolerate opposing belief systems, and the growing temptation to enforce one’s worldview on others. Kirk himself was part of that debate, supporting Louisiana’s directive to display the Ten Commandments in every classroom.
For some, this was a bold stand for faith; for others, it crossed the line from persuasion to enforcement. However one views it, his legacy forces us to wrestle with how belief and power interact in modern America.
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For now, the immediate need is not for retribution but for calm. I pray for those who loved Charlie Kirk to resist the pull of retaliatory justice and instead follow Christ’s example of loving our enemies. Like Kirk, remain committed to changing hearts and minds — but without trampling those who oppose you.
My heart breaks for the Kirk family. I take solace in knowing he trusted in Jesus Christ, and I pray that his family will experience something of that hope and peace in this horrendous time. Americans regularly declare ‘God Bless America’ but today I pray ‘God Heal America’, and on this September 11, a day already marked by grief, the call for healing feels more urgent than ever.
Drew Cordell is a business consultant who has worked alongside some of the world’s most successful businesses and their leaders in an extensive corporate career in both London and Australia. His new book Honest Christianity: Why People Choose to Believe is available on Amazon and all good bookstores.
