Reactions to the death of conservative podcaster Charlie Kirk have revealed deep divisions in America, especially along racial and religious lines, including among Black church leaders.
Many clergy members have criticized conservative politicians for portraying Kirk as a defender of Christian values while ignoring his history of inflammatory rhetoric targeting Black people, immigrants, women, Muslims, and the LGBTQ+ community.
“How you die does not redeem how you lived,” the Rev. Howard-John Wesley, of Alexandria, Virginia, said in a sermon. The clip, shared to social media, went viral.
Other pastors addressed Kirk’s memorial service, where over 60,000 people gathered at a football stadium in Arizona. Guests included President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and thousands of MAGA supporters.
“It was part memorial service, but another part of it was more like a political rally,” Rev. Joel Bowman, pastor of Temple of Faith Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky told told NBC News “The conflation of Christian symbolism and right-wing conservativism has really been a hallmark of the brand of Christian nationalism we have seen in the last eight, nine, 10 years.”
During Kirk’s memorial, Vance called the radio host an American hero and a martyr for Christianity. Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL), another speaker, compared him to John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr.
Rev. Jamal Bryant, pastor of New Birth Missionary Baptist, an Atlanta area mega-church, strongly rejected Luna’s statements. “How dare you compare him to Martin Luther King,” he said in a sermon posted to his Instagram account.
“The only thing they got in common is that both of them was killed by a white man. After that, they got nothin’ else in common.”
Bryant emphasized that he did not support the violence and maintained that Kirk should not have lost his life.
However, some Black pastors do publicly align with Kirk’s rhetoric.
Bishop Patrick L. Wooden Sr., a pastor in Raleigh, North Carolina, praised Kirk for his promotion of conservative Christian values and offered his condolences to his family. Wooden urged his parishioners to offer grace to the conservative activist.
“The bible says we don’t render evil for evil.”
Wooden echoed Kirk’s stance on eliminating diversity, equity, and inclusion programs and opposing the LGBTQ+ community.
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