I’ve lived long enough to witness a tragic procession of shootings and assassinations—some driven by hatred, others by madness. Of them all, only one stands out as truly senseless: Charles Whitman, the University of Texas shooter, whose actions were later attributed to a brain tumor. The rest—John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr., Pope John Paul II, Ronald Reagan, and Donald Trump—were targeted because of what they represented. Hatred was the motive.

Now, another name joins that sorrowful list. Charlie Kirk—a young man known for his respect toward others and unwavering commitment to American ideals—was murdered at a peaceful public gathering. His crime? Articulating conservative Christian values with such clarity and conviction that they became difficult to refute.

I’ve watched countless videos of Charlie Kirk engaging with critics. Time and again, he dismantled emotional tirades with calm, factual reasoning. His opponents often found themselves speechless—not because they were silenced, but because their own words had unraveled under the weight of truth.

This tragedy is not a call for fewer guns—it’s a cry for more Jesus. The absence of a firearm would not have saved Charlie. A person bent on destruction will find a weapon, be it a knife, a rock, or a club. What we lack is not legislation, but transformation. Only the love of Christ and His redeeming grace can teach us to truly love our neighbors, even when we disagree.