Charlie Kirk’s job was to talk. He was far better at that skill than most people, and thousands upon thousands of people found what he said compelling. He talked mostly about controversial topics—although everything he advocated was mainstream opinion just two decades ago—always in a spirit of charity and constructive debate. He never advocated violence, nor did he ever demean those with whom he disagreed.
Charlie Kirk was shot and killed for that job.
This feels like a watershed moment, a turning point, to use the phrase with which Kirk named his organization.
In late 19th-century Europe many revolutionary forces were percolating and they all had one thing in common: violence. Political assassinations were widespread, culminating in the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, which led to the War to End All Wars. All of Western society was reshaped in the period from the late 1800’s to the early 1900’s, with monarchies being overthrown and liberal democracies often replacing them (although in some cases, totalitarianism filled the void). The sad lesson of history is clear: political violence is effective, if the goal is a radical overthrow and transformation of the existing political order.
The increase in political violence today makes me wonder if we too are in a revolutionary era, at least politically speaking. It’s become obvious to most everyone that our current liberal democratic system doesn’t work; contrary to its promises, we are on a clear path to less freedom, less order, and less respect for the common good. The current system is simply powerless to defend its citizens against the evil forces at work in the world.
So what will replace it?
My fear is that it will be replaced by another round of totalitarianism. Many on the right might even cheer on that development in their understandable desire to crush our enemies. Don’t get me wrong: I believe we must restore order and relentlessly hunt down and punish those who violently oppose the common good. The degenerates and their defenders must be removed from the public square. Doctors who perform abortions or transgender surgeries should be in jail. College professors who attack our Christian culture should be fired. News outlets like CNN and MSNBC pushing lies that undermine our nation should be run out of business. We’re in a fight, and stronger means are needed to defeat our enemies.
And yet, as Christians we must look beyond the here and now, and beyond our desire for revenge. Our Lord told us to pray for our enemies, and so even while we strive for justice we must not forget mercy. A response that’s not built on true justice and mercy and the Christian tradition is doomed to failure and might be worse than our current situation. We cannot become that which we oppose; violence in response to violence just leads to more violence. We must go back to basics; we must go back to Christ.
We like to pretend that America is a Christian country, but in our heart of hearts we know that hasn’t been true in a long time. Our country has become so lost that we need to start from the beginning, and that means bringing souls to Christ, building Christian families, and creating Christian communities.
This must be more than mere pious associations, however. I’m not calling for small groups to get together and sing kumbaya and hope the problems magically fade away. Instead, these souls, families, and communities must be fundamentally ordered to Christ, which means they must be intolerant, the worst sin of liberal democracies. They must be intolerant of evil, of chaos, and of anything that opposes Christ.
Don’t be quiet when the local library has a transgender display in the children’s section. Speak out at work when someone promotes anti-Christian evil, even if it means risking your job. Remove politicians who coddle criminals while criminalizing Christians. Urge your bishop to speak out against anti-Catholicism in our midst. Only by being radically conformed to Christ and building intolerant Christian people, families, and communities can we hope not only to overcome this present evil, but to prevent an even greater evil from replacing it.
The time for talking is over. Charlie Kirk’s whole work was directed toward talking with those on the other side in an attempt to get to the truth. It’s obvious that the other side has no desire for dialogue; in fact, they see it as a sign of weakness. This is something too many Catholic leaders fail to recognize in their veneration of the power of dialogue. Dialogue can be effective if both sides are open-minded and seek the truth, no matter where it leads. But dialogue is worthless when one side wants to destroy the other by any means possible. Charlie’s death shows clearly that dialogue is no longer possible; the Left put a literal bullet in that effort. Now is the time for action—true Christian action based on charity and justice.
Now is the time to build up a new culture, and a new society that puts Christ first and doesn’t tolerate those who oppose Him. Christ is King!
Eternal rest give unto him, O Lord, And let perpetual light shine upon him. May he rest in peace. Amen.
May his soul and all the souls of the faithful departed rest in peace. Amen.
This article was originally published on Crisis Magazine.
