Billions around the world are influenced by the Bible. I’ve read it in its entirety 3.5 times — it says much about many things, but what about the Bible on compassion & influence?
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
— Ephesians 4:29, NIV
“If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk, and if you spend yourselves on behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday.”
—Isaiah 58:9-10
What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.
— James 2:14-17, NIV
“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’”
— Matthew 25:44-45, NIV
Whoever shuts their ears to the cry of the poor will also cry out and not be answered.
— Proverbs 21:13, NIV
Millions have been influenced by Charlie Kirk.
So, what about Kirk?
While Kirk has been branded as a hero for free speech, he created the Turning Point USA’s “Professor Watchlist,” in which students were asked to list professors with leftist positions. This has led to threats of violence and harassment against many minority professors and educators across the country. Suppression is certainly not freedom.
During a broadcast following violence against Paul Pelosi, Kirk: Called for the attacker, David DePape, to be bailed out of jail. Referred to the hypothetical person who would bail him out as an “amazing patriot” and a “midterm hero” with a smile on his face.
During an episode of his podcast, Kirk said “Death penalties should be public, should be quick. It should be televised,” He went on to add after suggesting children should be able to watch, “at a certain age, it’s an initiation” and referred to the practice as “holy.”
In a world desperate for compassion…
…he was a fervent critic of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. In 2024, he said, “If I see a Black pilot, I’m going to be like, ‘Boy, I hope he’s qualified.’” Kirk thought “the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was a destructive force in American politics, calling its passage a “mistake” that he said has been turned into “an anti-white weapon.” In 2021, he called George Floyd “a “scumbag” who wasn’t worthy of the attention.”
In a July 2023 episode of is podcast, he said “Joy Reid, former First Lady Michelle Obama, the late Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee and Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson did not have the intelligence to achieve what they did without affirmative action. “You had to go steal a white person’s slot to be taken somewhat seriously,” he said.”
Throughout his time as an influencer of youth, he said “The philosophical foundation of anti-whiteness has been largely financed by Jewish donors in the country,” in 2023. Kirk was a “proponent of “replacement theory,” a once-fringe conspiracy theory positing that Jews are trying to replace white Americans with nonwhite immigrants.” This same ideology prompted the shooter who killed 11 worshipers at a Pittsburgh synagogue in 2018.
Following his death…
…there were groups of folks online suggesting that Kirk may rise after three days – a modern-day Lazarus. Others provoking more violence — that *this* death deserves retribution, that we are “at war,” the left are the enemy and they should be eliminated. This on the same day students were shot at our local high school by a student who had been radicalized by far-right, white supremacist dark-web groups since this past December. Only months ago.
These are fringe groups. I don’t believe (& hope) that most folks who were inspired by Kirk would wish death on those who disagree. But the reality is that Kirk’s influence spanned far and deep — into the trenches where people are now so narrow-sighted that they see violence as the only answer to the problems we face.
We are plagued by a mindset that stokes violence.
This mindset is fostered by our highest office and media. On June 14th, Democratic representatives and their families from Minnesota were targeted and assassinated at their homes. These elected officials received little in the way of compassion from the highest office with Trump saying,
“I think the governor of Minnesota is so whacked out. I’m not calling him,” Trump said. “Why would I call him? I could call and say, ‘Hi, how you doing?’ Uh, the guy doesn’t have a clue. He’s a mess. I could be nice and call, but why waste time?”
Following the death of Kirk, the President blamed the “radical left,” ordered flags to be flown at half-staff, said he would award him with the Medal Of Freedom, and that he would lie in state. Kirk’s body was flown to his home state of Arizona on Air Force 2. Kirk was not an elected official — he was an influencer.
Recently, Fox News host Brian Kilmeade suggested “Or, involuntary lethal injection—or something. Just kill them” in response to Lawrence Jones suggested that mentally ill, unhoused people should either accept help or be jailed. Kilmeade has since apologized saying he didn’t mean “all” unhoused. The point? We are dangerously accepting violence as a remedy for our problems.
Empathy and compassion are central in Jesus’ teachings.
On empathy, Kirk once said, “I can’t stand the word empathy, actually. I think empathy is a made-up, new age term that — it does a lot of damage.” Kirk went on to say that he preferred sympathy. But, we know that sympathy is surface-level. Empathy allows us the ability to grasp another human’s perspective and feelings on a deeper level. When we empathize, we are far less likely to commit acts of violence against one another. It is not dangerous. It is vital.
The world is not black and white. Several things can be true at once. We can (and should) be outraged at the violence against Kirk. We should recoil at the video of him being brutally shot (remembering that children time and time again are subjected to that same scene in their classrooms).
We can also denounce the idea that he was a martyr for Christ — that he somehow upheld and championed what it means to live in a way that showed love, compassion, humility, and relentless care for the oppressed. Instead admitting that he often projected harmful ideology to his millions of followers.
Yes.
We.
Need. Compassion.
A few days ago, I bawled into my phone — begging for a world filled with empathy — begging that we look to leaders who champion empathy in the face of violence. Some say I “feel too deeply,” that I cannot possibly feel for all the pain of the world.
But, I do. I ache for the loss of this father to two kids — for the parents of those who grieve the loss of children — for the trauma experienced over and over again in our schools — for the families ripped apart by ICE — for the forced hunger and genocide in Gaza — for antisemitism and racism — for the kid that feels alone in the world — for the trans community who face endless hate in a world in which they simply want to exist — for those made to feel ‘less than,’
I ache. Do you?
This mom aches and pleads for compassion. This is all about influence in a world that needs compassion and I plead that we all look to be influenced by those who open our eyes to the diversity of life, the beauty of that diversity, and the need for empathy. Our lives depend on it.
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