Kirk and the K of C

Honestly, I knew nothing more on Charlie Kirk a few weeks ago because I only saw an “under-one-minute” video of him here and there over the years. Please forgive any lack of knowledge or research on him here; a big part of what I’m trying to convey is just that,  a knee-jerk reaction when people discover more about Charlie among those who knew very little on him, just like myself. 

By his emotions man intuits the good and suspects evil (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1771. Emphasis added).

In the few glimpses I had of his work over the years, I surmised him to be an upbeat, Protestant Christian evangelist who set tables up in “hot” areas for heavy questions and topics; you know, the “elephant-in-the-room” stuff that was a favorite and central focal point of people like G.K. Chesterton and Fulton Sheen, both being patriots themselves.  Elephant-in-the-room was Kirk’s forte.

He was a young patriot, leading other young patriots and non-patriots into patriotism – especially in regard to free thinking and speech, aka, one form of “freedom of choice.”  Charlie Kirk was likely a Catholic-in-the-making, and was an example to us fellow Knights, especially based on his avid patriotism.  The Four Principles of the Knights of Columbus are: Charity, Unity, Fraternity and Patriotism.  We can see a glaring patriotism in his life here on earth, among the other Principles listed, “rising to the top like cream,” a paraphrase of the late pro-wrestler “Macho-Man Randy Savage” my friends and I grew up watching in the 80s.  “No-holds barred” Patriotism, tempered with the fruits of the spirit, kindness and understanding. Kirk’s patriotism is something we can aspire to as Catholics and as Knights of Columbus, and his shining patriotism would make Fr. Michael McGiveny, founder of the Knights, proud.

It was a very sad thing when I caught news about a highly-likely fatal injury.  Knowing close to nothing at all of Kirk, the sound of another “good man down” really tugged at the heart strings.  So I had to research him when I got home that day.  Amidst the sea of good and bad regarding him, from the clips of his talks taken out of context (not showing the entire video), painting him to be an awful person, to the many more positive ones, I started to get a better picture of who he was and what his cause was.

He was a young family man, fresh in his 30s with only a semester of college education and he had a high moral values. Above all, he allowed people to engage in open dialogue.  As a former Boy Scout myself, Life Rank (just one lower than Eagle Rank like Charlie), I could see how Kirk learned avid patriotism early on and a strong work ethic.  He would question and was not afraid to interject, especially when he apparently perceived an inquisitive youth was “affirmation lurking,” under the guise of innocently seeking Kirk’s point of view or subtly trying to convert Kirk away from his stances and beliefs as a speaker.  He simply knew (as there were many youth brimming impatiently with questions in his audiences) that to “allow” too much elbow room for him being hammered, or panderingly manipulated back into what others wanted him to become, would simply waste everyone’s time and he gave all who he handed a microphone to quite a bit of time, actually.

I could also see, that his seemingly “curt” responses (cutting through the wheedling baloney) were actually helping the youth he was providing his “class-A” education too from continuing on in their apathetic thinking, which is so-often regurgitated as gospel truth.  He was sort of like a friendly drill sergeant in a very soft society, a sort of epitome of the desire of older and newer generations for the youth.  God gave us more than we bargained and asked for in this man, and that was not enough for us.  It reminds me of the context of Christ complaining to His people that what He brought as Savior over 2,000 years ago was not enough:

But to what shall I compare this generation?  It is like children sitting in the market places and calling to their playmates,“we piped you a tune, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not mourn!” (Matthew 11:16-17). 

Translation, we are sometimes (oftentimes?) “spoiled” by God (like the Israelites in the desert with tons of food, that was not “enough”) and we still are dissatisfied.

This scripture has been explained by biblical scholars as Christ’s people complaining via excuse, the “piping” is likened unto the music at a wedding celebration, and the “wailing” likened unto the mourning at a funeral.

All this great formation and unswerving loyalty and attitude would have made Charlie a “Knight-like-no-other,” had he come fully into the Catholic faith and joined the Knights of Columbus.  The influence of his saintly wife, Erika, as a Roman Catholic certainly was having an impact on him.  I heard/saw “rumors” that he was seen praying the Rosary in Church, although with all the AI imagery today, I’d have to further investigate.  I mean, the man went to a Catholic church with his wife, for Pete’s sake!  Sr. Miriam, an online podcast evangelist of great weight for the Church, stated that he was “apparently” going to become Catholic.  I couldn’t agree more.

So after work and getting the news on his passing, I watched a few informative videos on him.  Then I stopped in a church for some quiet time before The Blessed Sacrament.  As I walked in, a young man around my height quickly walked in before me, and held the door.  He was in khaki shorts and a navy-blue, collard short-sleeve shirt that had the Knights of Columbus logo embroidered on it.  I must say, this man looked a lot, and I mean a lot like Charlie Kirk himself.  Of course, it wasn’t him, but, for a second I thought, “man, if he did eventually become Catholic he would quite possibly be involved in the K of C, especially in their emphasis on patriotism!”  Maybe, just maybe, that person walking into adoration was Kirk?  That would be really neat, wouldn’t it?  I do think, on that eternal day, we shall see many of our Protestant brethren in Heaven, just like Archbishop Sheen anticipated to see Abraham Lincoln one day “upstairs.”