September 12, 2025

Against Political Violence

The 1960s were some of the most politically polarizing times in our nation since the Civil War. Americans opened their newspapers to read about the gruesome public assassination of a president. Robert F. Kennedy was shot and killed. So were Martin Luther King Jr. and others who championed civil rights. You’ve probably read in history books that the decade was marked by significant legislative progress. But it also contained challenges brought on by the Vietnam War and the Cuban Missile Crisis, as well as riots and protests across major cities and college campuses.

In many ways, it seems like past is prologue. In the 1960s, the proliferation of television had a profound impact on how people (sometimes for good) formed their worldview. Decades later, TV has lost its influence. Meanwhile, smart phones and social media are ubiquitous, helping us make new connections while also providing us with more access to polarizing words and ideas.

I started thinking about this after the senseless assassination of Charlie Kirk earlier this week. I’m writing in response to that incident, but I don’t intend for this to be a treatise about the activist. Outside of seeing brief clips of Kirk on social media, I never engaged with his work nor had the desire to do so. I mostly knew him through the filter of people’s opinions, whether praiseworthy or condemnatory.

After Kirk’s death, I heard many people say “words and ideas should not be met with violence.” I agree with that statement.

But it also discounts the reality that due to our sinful hearts, words and ideas do and have led to violence. Scripture and history have shown us they always have, and I personally believe they always will.

No one—no matter their perspective—should be silenced by violence. Christians, of all people, can and should understand this. Jesus was crucified after Jewish religious leaders felt threatened by the influence of his teachings. And when they couldn’t convince him to stay silent through theological discussions, they plotted to kill him. Conversely, Satan’s deceptive words led to the fall, and the violent eternal death that continues to plague humanity.

Unfortunately, plenty of nonviolent activists have been attacked for their words and ideas. Someone doesn’t have to promote violence to be met with violence.

And America, like many other nations, was built on political violence. We fought a Revolutionary War against the British; forcibly removed many Native Americans from their land; and enslaved Africans for personal, political and economic gain.

When our demands don’t succeed by voting and debate, we who fashion ourselves as an “enlightened and sophisticated people” return to our Cain-like instincts and pursue violence. But of course, Satan’s work on our hearts doesn’t start there.

The Bible teaches us that our tongue (words) has power (Proverbs 18:21; James 3:7). Words become an idea. That idea becomes an ideology. That ideology becomes a policy or action. Those actions have opponents and naysayers. And when we can’t handle our disagreements through civil debate, some turn to violence to resolve disputes.

Just as I found the killings of countless unarmed Black men to be senseless in spite of some of their criminal records, I find Kirk’s death to be senseless despite his views on diversity policies, his disdain for the Civil Rights Act, his racist comments about Black women, and the tone he took towards his dissenters in general.

We can condemn his words and ideas and do so without violence. Christians should promote the use of rebuke rather than rifles. Like Jesus, we can teach others how to live peaceably in a world where they don’t have political power.

As a nation on thin ice, let’s remember that words are important. The bully pulpit comes with responsibilities. And according to James, those who pose as teachers within the church come under stricter judgment.

But days after Kirk’s assassination, the fact that news outlets and politicians are calling on leaders and influencers to condemn political violence is an indictment on the moral compass of our nation. If we were a healthy country, this should have been an instant and universal reaction. But unfortunately, we know in the hearts of many is a ravenous animal they hope to unleash on their enemies.

I’m not shocked by how we celebrate the fall of our enemies, whom we are called to love. At the same time, I’m not surprised by those who lionize controversial victims for political posturing.

There will be many of us who call for peace and civility. But what happens when our words and ideas are ignored? Solely saying an action is “just wrong” will not be sufficient. When people ignore real medicine for placebos, the sickness of hate will never truly subside.

We need to preach a gospel that snatches the throne in our hearts back from politics, and gives it back to Christ and his body. A gospel full of truth and grace. We need a gospel of love, not of acquiring and expanding power. We need a gospel of hope, not of rage.

As we look at a world that is welcoming violence and increasingly eschewing civility, we need to hold firm to a message that operates beyond a decaying world that Jesus plans to redeem. We need a gospel that shows us how to conduct an exit strategy as the ship sinks. We need tender hearts, not attempting to eliminate our enemies, but aggressively inviting them into God’s family, in this life and the life to come.

Sho Baraka

Editorial Director

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Against Political Violence

Charlie Kirk Rallied Young Christians into a Political Movement

Died: Charlie Kirk, Activist Who Championed ‘MAGA Doctrine’

Charlie Kirk Is Not a Scapegoat

Suspect in Charlie Kirk Assassination Arrested