Op-ed: Politics and religion – they still matter!
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Politics and religion.
Americans should never discuss them.
Charlie Kirk certainly did not share this belief. He lived to converse about politics and religion.
Perhaps one of the dumbest ideas ever conceived in the minds of man is this notion that we shouldn't talk about politics or religion.
Politics and religion are topics in which Americans invest great passion, making them excellent subjects for thought and conversation. These freedoms were also treasured by our Founders, who wisely and specifically protected these two extraordinary topics with the Constitution's First Amendment.
If we don't converse about politics and religion, it pretty well leaves us with nothing more than weather and sports.
Charlie knew this.
September Tenth, one year ago.
Like many of you, I was shocked to my very core when the news was announced that Charlie Kirk had been struck down by an assassin's bullet.
How could this happen?
Charlie wasn't a president of the United States. Why would anyone want to assassinate him?
Kirk wasn't a provocateur; he wasn't a man of violence. Charlie was simply a man of faith and conviction. He kindly and cheerfully debated political issues with all comers, on college campuses, in arenas or town halls, anywhere Charlie could assemble an audience.
And we all marveled at the magnitude of the young people that Charlie could assemble.
I feel like an assassin's bullet didn't only take one good man's life; it snatched away something precious from us. All of us.
Much too soon.
Charlie's assassination robbed a nation of our ability to feel safe during a cordial debate of competing opinions. It deprived us of a fleeting innocence, leaving our general dialogue much coarser in its wake.
We often bemoan the fact that kind, principled, and decent men are indeed rare in today's society. Moreover, we already know that America is suffering from a surplus of politicians and a deficit of statesmen.
Charlie was both a statesman and a pleasant soul.
Whether you liked him or not, Charlie was also an American original.
Charlie believed in America. He loved it. While you may have disagreed with some of his opinions, nobody could ever doubt that Kirk was doing everything in his power to ensure that his vision prevailed in the marketplace of ideals.
Charlie's knowledge made him a formidable opponent in the pro-life movement, engaging his political opponents in both the realm of science and of faith. Not surprisingly, Charlie was well-versed on both.
Like a paladin of old, Charlie defended the weak and the voiceless, fighting for their most basic human right, the right to live.
Politics and religion, Charlie Kirk lived every single day to debate those precious and life-changing topics.
Ultimately, Charlie was martyred for them as well.