What do I do about Charlie Kirk?
Part 1 of 2:
It’s been one week since political activist and evangelist Charlie Kirk was murdered in Orem, Utah. When we think about the event of Charlie Kirk’s death, there are really two events that we can be referring to.
The first is the personal event. A man, a husband, a father, was killed. It is an event that has been mourned by millions on both sides of the political and religious isles. It is a tragedy, it is heartbreaking, and it is a thousand other things. It is an event that happened.
But Charlie Kirk’s death has also quickly become a collective event for much of the country. While the personal event is something we heard about on the news, the aftermath is something we are still collectively experiencing. For those who learned from him and appreciated his work, there is grief and a deep sense of loss.
For those who opposed him, there is something far more complex. There is sorrow-particularly for his wife and two children, but also the possibility of a very difficult kind of guilty relief, as the voice of opposition is silenced in the worst way possible.
For all of us, there is turmoil and worry-not the least of which concerning the idea of living in a world…living in an America, where murder is a solution to disagreement.
It’s hard to know what to do in such situations. There is so much anger and hate boiling and festering, what good can one do?
For the Christian, as always, we begin in the Word.
Proverbs 6:16-19 “There are six things that the Lord hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty (prideful) eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers.”
You’ll notice that nowhere in this particular list does the writer express God’s hatred of the entire person. He hates the tongue that lies, but does not hate the liar. So it is okay, and in fact Godly, to hate the actions that took the life of Charlie Kirk. It’s okay to be angry with the tragic loss of life and the brokenness left behind. It’s okay to hate the premeditation that led to this assassination and be broken over the state of humanity that leads us to do this to one another. Be wary of a hatred of the shooter.
But God hates more than that. He hates feet that make haste to run to evil. If your reaction to this tragedy was to immediately post on your social media, I pray that God was in it. Often, our quickest reactions, the place our “feet” try to run to first, is to the way of the enemy. If God hates it when our feet “make haste to run to evil”, perhaps we should try to slowly, carefully, and steadily move towards the God of wisdom and peace.
Finally, the seventh. The only item listed that is an abomination (that which is disgusting) but not hated. The “one who sows discord among brothers”. You know what really breaks the heart of the father? His creation, designed to build one another up, tearing one another down. You should talk about what happened. You should converse and discuss it with people you disagree with. But don’t insult, abuse, demean, misrepresent, or otherwise harm a person who God created. Do not mock, ridicule, or publicly shame. Connect, speak privately, give others the benefit of the doubt.
When you speak about another human being, you are speaking of one loved by God. Please, choose your words carefully, and accordingly. Seek truth, embrace compassion, and in all things, seek restoration, peace, and healing.
It’s been one week since political activist and evangelist Charlie Kirk was murdered in Orem, Utah. When we think about the event of Charlie Kirk’s death, there are really two events that we can be referring to.
The first is the personal event. A man, a husband, a father, was killed. It is an event that has been mourned by millions on both sides of the political and religious isles. It is a tragedy, it is heartbreaking, and it is a thousand other things. It is an event that happened.
But Charlie Kirk’s death has also quickly become a collective event for much of the country. While the personal event is something we heard about on the news, the aftermath is something we are still collectively experiencing. For those who learned from him and appreciated his work, there is grief and a deep sense of loss.
For those who opposed him, there is something far more complex. There is sorrow-particularly for his wife and two children, but also the possibility of a very difficult kind of guilty relief, as the voice of opposition is silenced in the worst way possible.
For all of us, there is turmoil and worry-not the least of which concerning the idea of living in a world…living in an America, where murder is a solution to disagreement.
It’s hard to know what to do in such situations. There is so much anger and hate boiling and festering, what good can one do?
For the Christian, as always, we begin in the Word.
Proverbs 6:16-19 “There are six things that the Lord hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty (prideful) eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers.”
You’ll notice that nowhere in this particular list does the writer express God’s hatred of the entire person. He hates the tongue that lies, but does not hate the liar. So it is okay, and in fact Godly, to hate the actions that took the life of Charlie Kirk. It’s okay to be angry with the tragic loss of life and the brokenness left behind. It’s okay to hate the premeditation that led to this assassination and be broken over the state of humanity that leads us to do this to one another. Be wary of a hatred of the shooter.
But God hates more than that. He hates feet that make haste to run to evil. If your reaction to this tragedy was to immediately post on your social media, I pray that God was in it. Often, our quickest reactions, the place our “feet” try to run to first, is to the way of the enemy. If God hates it when our feet “make haste to run to evil”, perhaps we should try to slowly, carefully, and steadily move towards the God of wisdom and peace.
Finally, the seventh. The only item listed that is an abomination (that which is disgusting) but not hated. The “one who sows discord among brothers”. You know what really breaks the heart of the father? His creation, designed to build one another up, tearing one another down. You should talk about what happened. You should converse and discuss it with people you disagree with. But don’t insult, abuse, demean, misrepresent, or otherwise harm a person who God created. Do not mock, ridicule, or publicly shame. Connect, speak privately, give others the benefit of the doubt.
When you speak about another human being, you are speaking of one loved by God. Please, choose your words carefully, and accordingly. Seek truth, embrace compassion, and in all things, seek restoration, peace, and healing.
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