Pastor Zhang Boli Pens Memorial Essay for Charlie Kirk: "Truth Cannot Be Silenced by Gunfire"
October 14 marked what would have been the 33rd birthday of Charlie Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA. Pastor Zhang Boli, founder of Harvest Chinese Christian Church, marked the day with a lengthy memorial essay, "In Memory of Charlie Kirk," written in Corona, California, and published through the church's public platform, remembering the young leader assassinated last year at Utah Valley University.
The same day, the White House posted a tribute honoring Kirk as "a father, husband, Christian martyr, & titan of the conservative movement," renewing its resolve to defend the principles of truth, faith and the open exchange of ideas. In his essay, Zhang wrote that the White House's description of Kirk as a "Christian martyr" was, in his words, "accurate — and it is what I believe as well."
Zhang recalled that Kirk was born on October 14, 1993, in Illinois and co-founded Turning Point USA in 2012 at just 18 years old. He traveled to college campuses and became known for his speeches, debates and youth organizing, often facing students who disagreed with him completely to discuss religion, morality, politics, economics and social issues in the open. On September 10, 2025, Kirk was shot and killed during a public event at Utah Valley University at age 31, leaving behind his wife, Erika, and their two young children.
The essay opens with 2 Timothy 4:7: "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith." Zhang wrote that in just 31 years Kirk "fought the good fight for the Lord," adding: "It puts this white-haired man to shame." He said Kirk was unwilling to confine his faith within church walls and believed Christians should also take part in social life and speak up for the values they hold, citing John 8:32: "You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
On the violence that took Kirk's life, Zhang wrote: "If a society allows gunfire to replace debate, intimidation to replace persuasion, and hatred to replace reason, what is harmed is not just one political camp, but the free order on which the whole society depends." He prayed for Kirk's wife and children, wished that America would no longer shed blood over political hatred and that people of different views could still talk in peace, and cited Romans 12:15 and Psalm 34:18 to comfort the brokenhearted.
With the U.S. midterm elections approaching, Zhang urged Christians in the essay to follow Kirk's example, stand up bravely and exercise their civic right to "cast a courageous vote." He closed with 1 Corinthians 16:13-14, urging believers to be watchful and stand firm in the faith, and wrote: "Life can be taken away, but truth cannot be silenced by gunfire; a person's voice can stop, but the pursuit of faith, conscience and freedom can continue in the lives of those who come after." The essay is dated October 14, 2026, in Corona, California.
(GSM, based on Pastor Zhang Boli's memorial essay published by Harvest Chinese Christian Church)
Related:
Pastor Boli Zhang to Headline Gospel Music Concert in Southlake on Nov. 7
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图片来源：丰收华夏教会（张伯笠牧师纪念文配图）。Image: Harvest Chinese Christian Church (poster from Pastor Zhang Boli's memorial essay).
