Originally published in Relevant Magazine
More than 90 000 attendees filled State Farm Stadium and overflow venues in Phoenix on Sunday for the memorial service of Charlie Kirk, the Christian conservative activist and founder of Turning Point USA who was assassinated earlier this month during a campus speaking event.
The memorial service, which lasted more than five hours, was broadcast live by six national networks and streamed widely online.
- Advertisement -
On YouTube, Fox News drew 2.4 million views of its livestream by Monday afternoon, and the Associated Press recorded 1.15 million. Kirk’s own YouTube channel reported 6.6 million, while his X account logged 2 million viewers. Those four streams alone surpassed 13 million viewers, and Turning Point USA claims that more than 100 million people viewed the service across all platforms.
In addition to streamers, several major news networks broadcast the event live, including CBS News, CNN, Fox News, ABC News, C-SPAN and NewsNation, though initial Nielsen viewership ratings are not yet available.
Pastor Rob McCoy, a longtime friend and pastor of Kirk’s, opened the service by presenting a Gospel invitation. “Charlie wanted his Saviour to be the guest of honour,” he said, before leading an invitation and urging those in attendance to “give their lives to Jesus”.
The memorial also included extended periods of worship led by Brandon Lake, Chris Tomlin, Phil Wickham, Tiffany Hudson, Kari Jobe and Cody Carnes, who led the audience in songs including How Great Thou Art, Gratitude and The Blessing.
“I can’t think of a better place to draw a line in the sand and say: ‘You know what, I’m going to place my faith and my hope and my trust in this God. I can recognise that God is doing something around the globe, and in our nation, and I want to be a part of it because the Spirit of God is on the move,’” Lake said.
- Advertisement -
“The atmosphere was indescribable,” Andrew Kolvet, executive producer of The Charlie Kirk Show, told Fox & Friends Monday morning. “You could feel God moving.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, a longtime friend, spoke at length about Kirk’s Christian convictions. “His deep belief was that we were all created … by the hands of the God of the universe,” Rubio said. “Because Christ carried that cross, we were freed from the sin that separated us from Him. And when He returns, there will be a new Heaven and a new Earth, and we will all be together. And we are going to have a great reunion there again with Charlie and all the people we love.”
Christian author Frank Turek said Kirk’s hope was grounded in faith, not in accomplishment. “Charlie Kirk is in Heaven not because he was a great husband and father,” he said. “Charlie Kirk is in Heaven because his Saviour sacrificed himself for Charlie Kirk.”
Erika Kirk: “Father, forgive them”
Kirk’s wife, Erika, also addressed the crowd. “Our Saviour said: ‘Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do,’” she told the audience, announcing that she forgave her husband’s alleged killer, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson. “I forgive him because it was what Christ did, and it’s what Charlie would do.”
Erika concluded her speech by saying: “Choose prayer. Choose courage. Choose beauty. Choose adventure. Choose family. Choose a life of faith. Most importantly, choose Christ.”
Watch the performance of The Blessing here:
Please help us to keep on publishing news that brings Hope in Jesus:
>> Donate >> Become a Super Subscriber
VISIT OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL: https://www.youtube.com/gatewaynews100
COMMENTING GUIDELINES
You are welcome to engage with our articles by making comments [in the Comments area below] that add value to a topic or to engage in thoughtful, constructive discussion with fellow readers. Comments that contain vulgar language will be removed. Hostile, demeaning, disrespectful, propagandistic and off-topic comments may also be moved. This is a Christian website and if you wish to vent against Christian beliefs you have probably come to the wrong place and your comments may be removed. Ongoing debates and repetitiveness will not be tolerated. You will also disqualify yourself from commenting if you engage in trolling.
