With Vice President JD Vance calling Charlie Kirk 鈥渁 martyr for Christianity,鈥 and a Catholic cardinal calling him 鈥渁 modern-day St. Paul,鈥 some Kirk admirers suggest his assassination will galvanize throngs of people 鈥 notably young conservatives 鈥 to become more engaged in evangelical and Catholic churches.
Evocations of Kirk-inspired religious fervor surfaced almost immediately after his death on Sept. 10, and continued to swell as much of Sunday’s VIP-studded for the conservative activist resembled a massive megachurch service. There have been widespread reports of attendance surging at some evangelical churches.
鈥淐harlie had big plans, but God had even bigger plans,鈥 Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said at the service in Arizona. 鈥淐harlie started a political movement but unleashed a spiritual revival.鈥
The Rev. Robert Jeffress, a longtime ally of who leads a Southern Baptist megachurch in Dallas, said via email, 鈥淭he short-term impact of Kirk鈥檚 murder is astounding.鈥
鈥淭he outpouring of emotion rivals that of September 11 and President Kennedy鈥檚 assassination,鈥 Jeffress added. 鈥淲hether this genuine emotion translates into long-term change is yet to be determined, but I pray that it does.鈥
What the trends tell us about revival
A sustained surge would run counter to trends. Political scientist Ryan Burge of Washington University in St. Louis, a leading researcher into and a pastor, said recent history shows no examples of an enduring religious revival after a civic trauma.
Attendance only briefly spiked after the 9/11 attacks before settling back into typical levels, and neither the pandemic nor its aftermath saw any long-term increases as a whole.
鈥淔or there to be a noticeable impact on church attendance, this would require a massive shift in behavior of millions of Americans,鈥 Burge said. 鈥淚n a country of 340 million people, even a 5% increase would mean 17 million more people going to church on a weekly basis.鈥
Even if a long-term upswing occurred, 鈥渨e鈥檇 need at least 18 months of data to demonstrate a lasting effect,鈥 Burge said.
Some individuals and churches may indeed undergo spiritual revivals, but 鈥渢he plural of anecdote is not data,鈥 he added.
Reports of new faces and crowded pews
Whether it’s a blip or not, conservative Christian congregations say they are are seeing new faces among their ranks.
Gina Gleason, director of the political engagement team at Calvary Chapel Chino Hills, said she is already seeing more people coming back to church in the wake of Kirk’s death and expects the wave of engagement to grow.
The Southern California megachurch鈥檚 pastor, Jack Hibbs, was a friend of Kirk鈥檚 and a well-known Trump supporter. Kirk has spoken at Calvary Chapel at least 10 times and each time, thousands attended, packing the sanctuary as well as overflow rooms, Gleason said.
鈥淚 think we鈥檙e going to see an increase particularly in youth engagement because they listened to Charlie,鈥 Gleason said. 鈥淗e talked about politics and issues, but at the heart of his message was the Gospel, the truth about eternal salvation in Jesus Christ.鈥
Mark Francey, lead pastor of Oceans Church, a 4,500-strong congregation based in Irvine, California, said Kirk鈥檚 death is having a 鈥9/11 type effect.鈥 He said his congregation saw up to 30% attendance increases the weekend after the assassination.
鈥淎fter such trauma or tragedy, people who normally don鈥檛 pray begin to pray,鈥 he said. 鈥淒eath awakens people to what is really important about life and funerals remind all of us about our own mortality.鈥
Testimonies shared by 鈥楾he Charlie Kirk Show鈥
The possibility of a revival was conveyed in a widely circulated montage that appeared on 鈥淭he 鈥 on Sept. 17, showing several TikTok users saying they went to church for the first time in years after the assassination.
In it, one man said he bought a suit to go to church and will 鈥渢ry to be a better father, husband and leader for my family.鈥 A woman says she and her husband returned to church after 20 years and wants their three boys to grow 鈥渁s strong in their convictions as Charlie Kirk was.鈥
That was the message stressed by Andrew Kolvet, executive producer of 鈥淭he Charlie Kirk Show,鈥 in an after Kirk’s death.
鈥淚f you want to honor Charlie ... go back to church. Open your Bible; pray. Ask God to lead you. That鈥檚 what he wanted,鈥 Kolvet said.
What the local church can do
The founder of Communio, an evangelism ministry working with nearly 400 U.S. churches on marriage programs, said he had received reports of increased worship attendance at evangelical and Catholic services in Colorado, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and elsewhere since Kirk’s death.
鈥淧astors need to see this as an authentic move of the Holy Spirit,鈥 said J.P. De Gance said. 鈥淭he Holy Spirit鈥檚 moving in the hearts and minds of men and women, causing them to want to seek something and they鈥檙e showing back up.鈥
De Gance encouraged Christians to make a special effort to introduce themselves to new faces at church or those who鈥檝e returned after a long lapse. Building trust is key.
鈥淥nce someone knows that you care, at that point, they鈥檙e going to care about what you know,鈥 he said.
Catholics and critics join the conversation
Though Kirk identified as a Protestant evangelical, his admirers included prominent Catholic clergy.
鈥淭his guy is a modern day St. Paul,鈥 said Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the archbishop of New York, on 鈥淔ox & Friends.鈥 鈥淗e was a missionary, he鈥檚 an evangelist, he鈥檚 a hero. He鈥檚 one I think that knows what Jesus meant when he said, 鈥楾he truth will set you free.鈥欌
Dolan’s comment was criticized by some left-of-center Catholics.
鈥淎ny reflection on the legacy of Kirk cannot gloss over the pain and suffering that Kirk inflicted on innumerable people through his harsh, divisive and combative rhetoric,鈥 wrote John Grosso, digital editor for The National Catholic Reporter.
David Gibson of the Center on Religion and Culture at Fordham University, a Catholic school in New York, noted that some people suggest that the response to Kirk’s death could presage a religious revival in the U.S 鈥渁kin to one of the previous 鈥楪reat Awakenings鈥 that have periodically stirred the national soul.鈥
鈥淧ast and current data show that revival is not really happening, and if there is any uptick it likely will not last,鈥 Gibson added in an email.
鈥淲hat the response to Kirk鈥檚 killing and memorial will likely do is to continue to change the nature of American Christianity by making it more conservative politically and more friendly to the kind of brash young men who Kirk inspired, and who his followers are increasingly trying to mobilize with martial images and crusader rhetoric.鈥
Pastor Frederick Brown, who leads a mostly Black congregation at The Faith Center Church in Bluefield, West Virginia, also questioned the staying power of any short-term, Kirk-inspired revival.
鈥淚t would appear that this is causing conservative younger people to become more conservative,鈥 Brown said. 鈥淏ut that鈥檚 not the way of the world today. That鈥檚 going to die out. ... And it鈥檚 going shift to a place of rebellion among teenagers against the evangelical church.鈥
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AP religion reporter Luis Andres Henao contributed to this report.
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Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP鈥檚 with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
