{"id":2486372,"date":"2025-09-14T14:13:02","date_gmt":"2025-09-14T18:13:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/josh-hammer-the-martyrdom-of-my-friend-charlie-kirk\/"},"modified":"2025-09-14T14:14:58","modified_gmt":"2025-09-14T18:14:58","slug":"josh-hammer-the-martyrdom-of-my-friend-charlie-kirk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/josh-hammer-the-martyrdom-of-my-friend-charlie-kirk\/","title":{"rendered":"Josh Hammer: The Martyrdom Of My Friend Charlie Kirk"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fjosh-hammer-the-martyrdom-of-my-friend-charlie-kirk%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2486372&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The article is a heartfelt tribute to Charlie Kirk, who was recently assassinated. The author, a personal friend of Kirk, reflects on the profound pain of losing someone close while emphasizing the importance of continuing the fight for free speech and civil discourse, values that Kirk embodied and championed. Kirk died as a martyr for free speech, tragically at a time when a significant portion of <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >university students expressed acceptance<\/a> of violence as a response to speech. The author warns that political violence and the rejection of civil dialog threaten the survival of the republic and civilization itself. He calls for honoring Kirk&#8217;s legacy by committing to principles like the Sabbath and doubling down on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/exclusive-cancel-culture-is-a-barrier-sen-blackburn-gop-senators-introduce-legislation-defending-free-speech\/\" title=\"EXCLUSIVE: \u2018Cancel Culture Is A Barrier\u2019: Sen. Blackburn, GOP Senators Introduce Legislation Defending ...\">defending free speech<\/a> and respectful debate. The piece concludes with prayers for Kirk&#8217;s family and an affirmation of faith that Kirk is now comforted beyond death.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_0)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>It is difficult enough to write about the most high-profile political assassination in this country since the Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy killings of 1968.<\/p>\n<p>It is considerably more difficult to do so when the victim was a personal friend. The pain is profound. Charlie Kirk and I had gotten close, and we had spoken less than 24 hours before the fatal bullet struck to discuss his upcoming campus tour.<\/p>\n<p>But if there is one thing that I know about Charlie, the quintessential public square warrior, it is that he would not have wanted us to sit on the sidelines.<\/p>\n<p>The stakes are too high. We have a nation &mdash;&nbsp;and a civilization &mdash; to save. So, we fight back our tears, and we summon the fortitude to plow ahead. We do so not because it is easy but because it is right. An assassin may have permanently silenced Charlie, but we won&rsquo;t let him silence us too.<\/p>\n<p>As it says in the Book of Psalms, one of Charlie&rsquo;s favorite books of the Bible: &ldquo;Hope for the Lord, be strong and He will give your heart courage, and hope for the Lord.&rdquo; We must all now channel that courage &mdash; Charlie&rsquo;s signature trait.<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadScript(src) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=src; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.async=true; \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.body.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadScript(\"https:\/\/embed.sendtonews.com\/player3\/embedcode.js?fk=s28Az7AY\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #stnvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#stnvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>Charlie Kirk died, as so often seems to happen to the greats, doing what he loved: modeling civil discourse in the public battle of ideas. The living embodiment of the First Amendment in his tragically truncated life, Charlie died as a (literal) martyr for free speech.<\/p>\n<p>He was murdered one day after the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression released a discomfiting survey showing that one-third of university students believe violence is an appropriate response to speech. The celebratory reaction to Charlie&rsquo;s assassination across swaths of left-wing social media was also positively chilling.<\/p>\n<p>Not to put too fine a point on it, but: This is how republics die. A people that loses the ability to engage in civil debate and instead resorts to violence is a people no longer capable of republican self-governance. It is a people that has ceased to be human and has instead become indistinguishable from the animals.<\/p>\n<p>It is a people that has renounced the fundamental uniqueness of mankind, rooted in another one of Charlie&rsquo;s favorite books of the Bible, the Book of Genesis: &ldquo;And God created man in His image; in the image of God He created him.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>There is nothing good down that road. There can only be chaos and anarchy. There can be no civilization or human flourishing.<\/p>\n<p>Is this &mdash;&nbsp;the senseless assassination of a devoted young father and husband &mdash; finally, finally, the turning point after which America will pull itself back from the brink of political violence and willful self-destruction? I&rsquo;d certainly like to think so. But it is hard not to be skeptical.<\/p>\n<p>There was no turning point after James Hodgkinson attempted to assassinate the Republican congressional baseball team in 2017.<\/p>\n<p>There was no turning point after Nicholas Roske attempted to assassinate Justice Brett Kavanaugh in 2022. There was no turning point after the senseless murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson last year. There are too many other examples to count.<\/p>\n<p>There are two easy ways we can all honor Charlie&rsquo;s legacy. At the time of his death, Charlie was putting the finishing touches on a book about the Sabbath &mdash; yet another biblical concept he championed in his personal life.<\/p>\n<p>It would be a fitting tribute to Charlie &mdash; and the Hebrew Bible-rooted form of Christianity &mdash; &nbsp;that he, like the American Founders, so greatly championed for more Christians and Jews alike to honor Charlie by committing to honor the Sabbath just like he did.<\/p>\n<p>We must also double down like never before in our commitment to free speech and the civil exchange of ideas. His martyrdom must galvanize younger conservatives like never before. We must not allow Charlie to have died in vain as a free speech martyr.<\/p>\n<p>Charlie and I held a different conception of the nature of the Divine. But we d a passion for the Judeo-Christian Biblical inheritance that is the backbone of Western civilization and the reason for that civilization&rsquo;s superiority over the forces of darkness.<\/p>\n<p>As a religious Jew and a religious Christian, furthermore, we also both believed in the possibility of eternal life.<\/p>\n<p>To quote the psalmist once more, then: &ldquo;Though I walk in the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff &mdash; they will comfort me.&rdquo; Charlie, always one to not merely talk the talk but also walk the walk, has now himself walked in the valley of the shadow of death. And I have no doubt that the Lord is comforting him at this very moment.<\/p>\n<p>Pray for his beautiful wife, Erika, and the Kirks&rsquo; two young children, who will now grow up without their father. And as for you, Charlie: Thank you for all you did. I hope to see you on the other side, my friend.<\/p>\n<p><em>To find out more about Josh Hammer and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>&nbsp;<\/em><em>COPYRIGHT 2025 CREATORS.COM<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>&nbsp;<\/em><em>The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the Daily Caller News Foundation.<\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\"disclaimer\">\n<p>All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/union-membership-plummets-to-record-low\/\" title=\"Union Membership Plummets to Record Low\">legitimate news publisher<\/a> that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter&rsquo;s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/mailto:licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org\">licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Here is a paraphrased version of the provided text excerpt:<\/p>\n<p>Writing about the most prominent political assassination in this country since the 1968 murders of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy is already challenging. It becomes even harder when the victim was someone personally close to you. The grief runs deep. Charlie Kirk and I had developed a close friendship, speaking less than a day before he was fatally shot as we discussed his upcoming campus tour.<\/p>\n<p>&#8212;<\/p>\n<p>If you want me to paraphrase more or specific sections, please let me know!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2486373,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Michael-Featured-Image-131.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[44291,63318,63099],"class_list":["post-2486372","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-charlie-kirk","tag-josh-hammer","tag-martyrdom"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Michael-Featured-Image-131.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2486372","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2486372"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2486372\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2486376,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2486372\/revisions\/2486376"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2486373"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2486372"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2486372"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2486372"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}