Southern Baptist leaders from across the nation responded to the shooting death of political activist and influencer Charlie Kirk at a Utah student rally Sept. 10. And from Illinois, pro-life leaders pointed to his Illinois origins while mourning his death.
Kirk was shot by a gunman atop an administration building at Utah Valley University, about 100-yards from the tent over the area where the activist was speaking. He was surrounded by large crowd of students as was typical of his campus events. The unidentified gunman fled and is still at large.
Dallas-area pastor Jack Graham called Kirk “a martyr” in a post soon after his death was confirmed by President Trump on social media, and SBC President Clint Pressley retweeted the post.
Later Pressley told Baptist Press, “Charlie Kirk was assassinated in cold blood. We pray God’s manifold mercy for his wife and children and swift justice for the killer. All this savagery must stop. Praying the Lord shows mercy, brings peace and displays justice.”
SBC Executive Committee President Jeff Iorg said, “Our hearts break for Charlie Kirk’s family and friends. We decry senseless violence like this that tears at the fabric of our nation and undermines the freedoms he stood for. May God give us peace in the midst of tragedy.”
Kirk, 31, founded a political action group for students when he was 18. Turning Point USA advocated for “freedom, free markets, and limited government,” as its website states. The organization also works with many churches “empowering Christians to put their faith into action.” President Trump cited Kirk as a significant influence in mobilizing young adults for his support in two elections.
Kirk staged debates on college campuses on political and social issues. He was commended for bringing his Christian faith into his responses to students’ questions and objections.
“I didn’t always agree with everything he said,” stated Richard Ulrich, pastor of Lincoln Avenue Baptist Church in Jacksonville, “but I appreciated that he was having the conversations. I especially appreciated his willingness to integrate his faith into those conversations, instead of just sharing his political ideology.”
Summarizing his championing of conservative Christian ideals, another observer said, “He was a passionate apologist and evangelist for Christianity. He was very bold on sharing that Jesus Christ is the answer.”
Kirk was a native of Arlington Heights and reared in Prospect Heights, both in the Chicago Suburbs. He briefly attended Harper College in Palatine. Kirk was a member of Harvest Bible Chapel in Rolling Meadows. He was married and had two children, ages three and one. Kirk and his family had relocated to Florida.
Illinois Right to Life President Mary Kate Zander pointed out that “Charlie’s political passions were born right here in our home state of Illinois” in an email sent to pro-life supporters. “I am so grateful for Charlie’s witness to truth and this deeply tragic reminder that we are in a spiritual war,” Zander wrote. “This is a reality which cannot be forgotten.”
In the hours after Kirk’s death, news reporters were drawing analogies to the deaths of Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1968, signifying the recognition of a deadly shift in what has become a poisoned political atmosphere.
The immediate past president of the SBC, Bart Barber, posted, “People are not political avatars; they are creations of God, made in his image. Murder is not merely the deprivation of someone’s God-given right to life; it is an offense directly against God himself.”
Barber and other Southern Baptists called for prayer.
Miles Mullin, acting president of the SBC’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission told Baptist Press. “Psalm 34 says the Lord is close to the brokenhearted. We pray that for Charlie’s family and loved ones as they mourn his death. We also pray for our country in this midst of this tragic season of violence. Heal our land, Lord.”
–Illinois Baptist team, with additional reporting by Baptist Press