I have found when it comes to my entrées into the blogosphere that sometimes these come in thick and fast and sometimes it is a matter of biding my time and finding the right subject to write about when it comes to what I see when I venture outside the camp. When I came home last night, I learned Charlie Kirk had been shot. Shortly before turning in I found he had been killed by an assassin’s bullet and already tributes were coming in. This became even more evident when checking out my social and other media feeds this morning, often coming from unexpected places. For such was this man’s impact that people were affected by someone they esteemed highly.

Besides picking up on one news headline “Conservative activist Charlie Kirk was shot and killed at an event he was hosting at Utah Valley University”, I feel no need to recount the story as the media (left, right and alternative) is awash with accounts about his death and my understanding is that the killers have not yet been found. While there has been speculation that this had been something initiated by the “Far Left” or some powerful group he had upset, we cannot say for sure. Some who are reading this may ask the question “Who is Charlie Kirk?” – I turn to Wikipedia to give the answer, despite offering a view that does not entirely align with my own, e.g. the truth concerning COVID-19 …

“Charles James Kirk (October 14, 1993 – September 10, 2025) was an American right-wing political activist, author, and media personality. He co-founded the conservative organization Turning Point USA (TPUSA) in 2012 and was its executive director. He was the chief executive officer (CEO) of Turning Point Action (TPAction) and a member of the Council for National Policy (CNP). The Washington Post described him as “one of the most prominent voices on the right” in his later years.

Kirk was born and raised in the Chicago suburbs of Arlington Heights and Prospect Heights, Illinois. In high school, Kirk actively engaged in politics, supporting Republican candidate Mark Kirk (no relation) and his U.S. Senate campaign, as well as campaigning against a price increase in his school’s cafeteria. He briefly attended Harper College before dropping out to pursue political activism full-time, influenced by Tea Party member Bill Montgomery. In 2012, Kirk founded TPUSA, a conservative student organization that quickly grew with backing from donors like Foster Friess.

Kirk expanded the organization’s influence through initiatives like the Professor Watchlist and School Board Watchlist, which sought to fire or silence professors for sharing opinions opposed by Turning Point. Critics called this a form of modern day McCarthyism. In 2019, Kirk founded Turning Point Action, a political advocacy arm, and later, with Pentecostal pastor Rob McCoy, formed Turning Point Faith—aimed at mobilizing religious communities on conservative issues. Kirk hosted The Charlie Kirk Show, a conservative talk radio program. A key ally of Donald Trump, Kirk promoted conservative and Trump-aligned causes. He received criticism for a variety of controversial statements, especially regarding his opposition to gun control, abortion, LGBTQ rights, his criticism of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Martin Luther King Jr., and his promotion of Christian nationalism, COVID-19 misinformation, false claims of electoral fraud in 2020, and the Great Replacement conspiracy theory.

In September 2025, Kirk was shot and killed at the age of 31 while speaking at a TPUSA event on the campus of Utah Valley University (UVU), as part of his long-running public debate events at higher education institutions across the United States. The shooting received international attention and condemnation”.  

There will be those reading this who while deploring his murder will not align with his views and would even accuse him of spreading hate and lies. Others, and some have stated their position, some which surprised me, saw him as a hero and said so. He has, after all, gone into the Devil’s den, trying to expose the Devil’s lies that has resulted in many screwed up lives, notably among young people who have been influenced by the very ideas Kirk sought to expose. This caused a hateful reaction (indicated for example when some on the Democrat side of the US House of Congress interrupted a call for a minute’s silence upon news of his death), which went as far as to include those who were prepared to and did murder him. But many others have offered wonderful tributes and here I offer my own …

Before turning in last night, I posted a link to news of Kirk’s passing along with the following comment: “Charlie Kirk has been a wonderful exemplar of one pursuing truth, contending for the faith, speaking out on issues that matter given the ruinous attempts by nefarious elements at ruining the culture, spreading hate and deceiving humanity”.  In my endeavours as a watchman on the wall and one who seeks to expound biblical truth and apply it to what is going on right now in the world, I check out all sorts of people covering a wide range of knowledge, insights, opinions and perspectives. One of these is Charlie Kirk, although I confess not to a great extent as there are many others saying stuff I need to hear. But more recently, perchance, I have found myself checking him out on his tours of university campuses, such as those in Oxford and Cambridge in the UK. I was often pleasantly taken aback by his willingness and ability to tackle some of the big issues of the day, including the way he could deal with able detractors. I liked the way he respectfully engaged, even with those who vehemently opposed him. I confess to being tempted to envy in finding someone who is so young who could attract such large audiences and skillfully do so with remarkable acumen. He has done what most have failed to do – inspire and enthuse today’s young people to resist tyranny. Then I realised the Lord has something significant to be done by any who are prepared to obey Him. It is His prerogative to raise up who He wants, including people like Charlie Kirk, and also for you and me.

I can imagine some good folk (including among earnest Christians) who would argue that Kirk had been barking up the wrong tree and had overlooked some of the big “social justice” issues of our day – and maybe they have a point. Some will call him a divisive figure but then he was only articulating common sense and what some of us see in plain site and in the present climate in the UK are penalised for saying what he is saying. My writing is not to apologise for Kirkism or any other ism come to that. Some of the concerns of the “Left” such as the rights of “the other”, the dispossessed and the poor are valid and in arguing as I do what is often seen among my detractors as a “Right”, even “Far Right” position I am ever aware of these and is why a good part of my endeavours in recent years is to do with homeless activism. But Charlie Kirk has left a wonderful legacy. While some argue it is overstating it to call him a martyr, there is little doubt in my mind that he has done what martyrs invariably do – standing up for what is right and being prepared to pay the ultimate price by doing so, which by His death He has done.

We remember those close to him, especially his wife and two young children. There is a lot about the killers and their motives, yet to come out. But the Battle, ever since the days of the Garden of Eden, remains between that of good and evil, light and darkness, God and Satan. If anything, this has been even more intensified in recent days as we approach the end of days. The choice facing all of us is which side are we going to be on. My plea to those good people who would have opposed Kirk’s views on many subjects, is to NOT be taken in by the rhetoric of this world, including regarding Kirk and those who agreed with him as hateful and the enemy. As for Kirk supporters – mourn his tragic death while rejoicing in his life and legacy, remembering your obligation is to the Truth and doing what is right – including caring for the poor. As for martyrs – the history of Christian martyrdom is that, when people die in this way, others are then raised up to take their place. May it be so in Charlie’s case.