Did Churches Talk About Charlie Kirk Last Sunday?

A sample of 60 churches in Boulder were examined to understand how and if they addressed the Charlie Kirk violence on Sunday, Sept 14th. Their sermon transcripts were analyzed for mentions of Charlie Kirk, or violence in general.

Summary

  • Most churches acknowledged the recent violence, emphasizing prayer, lament, and community healing.
  • Most did not explicitly cite Charlie Kirk. When his name was specifically mentioned, the evangelical-leaning churches generally honored him and sometimes even framed his death in martyr-like terms.
  • Mainline denominations focused more on communal grief and calls for unity, with some highlighting the divisiveness of Charlie Kirk's rhetoric

What we asked

Using public-facing church chatbots from churches in Boulder, two questions were asked last Sunday’s service:

  1. Did last Sunday’s sermon acknowledge recent violence?
  2. Was Charlie Kirk explicitly mentioned in last Sunday’s sermon?

Responses were collected across a mix of congregations in and around Boulder, CO.

What we found

1) Violence was widely acknowledged

From our sample, the large majority reported that last Sunday’s sermon addressed the week’s violence with calls to prayer, lament, unity, and peacemaking.

Chat screenshot acknowledging recent violence with a call to prayer and healing.

2) Charlie Kirk was rarely named

Only a minority indicated that Charlie Kirk was explicitly mentioned by name. When he was referenced, leaders tended to honor him personally and, in some cases, describe his death in terms consistent with martyrdom. But most congregations focused on communal grief and Christian peacemaking rather than political specifics.

Chat screenshot explicitly mentioning Charlie Kirk and inviting prayer.

How churches framed the moment

Lament & prayer Peacemaking Hope & resurrection Community solidarity

Examples from church chat responses

These screenshots illustrate the range of pastoral approaches. We’ve added short narrative notes between them rather than captions beneath each image.

Sermon that addresses the incident without naming Charlie Kirk.

Many churches acknowledged the week’s violence without invoking specific political figures. In these responses, the tone is pastoral rather than political—lamenting the brokenness of the world, inviting prayer, and urging the congregation to care for neighbors who are grieving or anxious.

Sermon calling for reconciliation and unity.
Sermon explicitly mentions Charlie Kirk by name.

In a smaller subset, pastors named Charlie Kirk directly. These mentions typically paired the reference with specific prayers for his family, the congregation’s emotions, and for communities navigating heightened tensions.

Sermon honors Kirk with martyr-like language.

We also observed a minority of responses that took a contrasting, more liberal-leaning stance—cautioning against partisan valorization and highlighting how Kirk’s rhetoric contributed to civic division. These sought healing through repentance and bridge-building while warning against political idolatry.

Sermon highlighting division associated with Charlie Kirk.

Why this matters

Sermons function as weekly barometers of what faith communities feel compelled to say out loud. This snapshot suggests many pastors met the moment pastorally rather than politically—prioritizing grief, prayer, and peacemaking—while a minority chose to name Kirk directly and offer personal honor.

The numbers at a glance

Acknowledged recent violence: 83.9% Yes · 16.1% No
Explicitly mentioned Charlie Kirk: 28.0% Yes · 72.0% No

Notes on method & limits

These results reflect answers provided by church chat experiences, not full sermon transcripts. Mentions may have occurred outside the sermon (e.g., prayers or announcements). The analysis uses binary yes/no tallies for clarity; a deeper qualitative read of the full messages would add nuance.