RADIOSeptember 23, 2025

Why Erika Kirk’s speech was GAME CHANGING

Glenn Beck recounts hearing Erika Kirk’s incredible speech at Charlie Kirk’s memorial service. Her forgiveness of the assassin, pro-family message, and emphasis on God made it one of the most Christlike moments Glenn has witnessed.

Transcript

Below is a rush transcript that may contain errors

GLENN: If you didn't see the memorial yesterday, I urge you to go back and watch it from the beginning. I urge you!

If you have a young man or a young adult in your family, I urge you to just listen to -- is it Dr. Arnn. How do you say his last name?

I think it's Arnn from Hillsdale College. It was one of the best speeches I have heard for clarity for youth! It was absolutely perfect.

I urge you to go. And you can find it at Blaze TV, at YouTube. So go to YouTube.com/Blaze TV.

And you can watch the entire thing. I urge you, watch it. Start to finish.

At least, you know, the -- I think the political stuff is all really, really good. And, you know, as -- as -- as President Vance said, I have said -- I have talked about Jesus Christ more in the last ten days, than I have in my entire political career.

And on the messages were so spot-on in many, many ways. But that's all going to be covered. What was said before the politicos got on. Is not necessarily going to be covered. And I think that was the heart of all of this. So the barbecue and listen. And I just want to go through some things that Erika Kirk said.

I was flying yesterday. And I was like, what are the odds that this amazing spiritual giant. Who had been prepared, I think his entire life. To do what he did, is smart enough to run a large operation.

Has the Spirit with him. Knows how to argue. Knows how to do everything he does. Marries a woman, who is exactly like that.

I mean, she said to me last week. We had a conversation. She said, "I think Charlie prepared me for this, and I didn't even know it." She said, "He's got stacks of diary. He wrote a diary every day." And she said, "I never read his diaries. I mean, that's not something you do. But after he died, I went in, and I started going through his diaries. And I'm reading the last few pages and everything else."

She said, "I started reading them." She said, "He left me the plans for 2028. He left me the budgets for the future." She said, "He, like, left this for me!"

And she is a force to be reckoned with. I mean, she -- TP USA is in really good hands I think with her. But here she is, in one of the most Christ-like moments yesterday at the memorial service, talking about the shooter of her husband.

VOICE: My husband, Charlie, he wanted to save young men, just like the one who took his life.
(applauding)
That young man. That young man, on the cross our savior said, Father forgive them, for they not know what they do. That man. That young man. I forgive him.
(applauding)
(crying) I forgive him because it's what Christ did. And it's what Charlie would do. The answer to hate is not hate. The answer we know from the gospel is love and always love! Love for our enemies, and love for those who persecute us.

GLENN: Absolutely incredible. Absolutely incredible.

STU: I don't know how she was able to -- I mean, I guess I do know how, but it's an incredible thing to watch. And it seemed like it was so -- I don't think I've ever seen a stadium like that, that quiet.

GLENN: Well, it's 100,000 people in the stadium.

STU: She's whispering.

GLENN: Pin drop. Pin drop.

STU: That's what it seemed like.

GLENN: And what a -- what a great moment. What a great moment.

Now, later on in the program, I will get into, what does that mean to forgive? What does that mean to forgive and move on? Forgive and forget?

What is our duty? Because that is the spiritual requirement for your first citizenship. Your first citizenship is your citizenship into the kingdom of God.

That is a requirement to be able to hold that citizenship. Okay?

Forgive those who hate you, persecute you. Kill you. Forgive them!

But there is a second citizenship that we hold. And as long as it does not -- it can never battle the first citizenship. You cannot lose your first citizenship, passport. Because you're doing something in the second citizenship, that you should not be doing.

Okay?

So are they -- are they diametrically opposed in this.

Some might say, yes. I don't think so.

But I just want to talk to you about that here in just a minute. Here she is, yesterday, as I was driving up to the stadium, and I was driving away from the stadium.

The one thing that I thought was, there's not a single building on fire.

Not only in this city. But in the country.

STU: Hmm.

GLENN: There was somebody this weekend, that was arrested. Because they were a right-wing. Or I'm sorry.

A left-wing nutjob, that tried to shoot up an ABC. Tried to kill innocent people at a local ABC station. They had nothing to do with Jimmy Kimmel.

None. Nothing. It didn't matter. They just opened fired on an ABC television station. Okay?

Arrested. Also, somebody up I think it was in New Hampshire, goes into a wedding, starts killing people at the wedding, screaming, "Free Palestine." There is evil -- evil. That's the only way to describe this. Irrational evil.

And the only way to fight that, is by doing what she did. And doing what everybody so far has been doing with the Charlie Kirk thing.

And that is fall to your knees in prayer. And follow the teachings of Christ.

Here's what she said, cut two, about riots.

ERIKA: But most of all, God's mercy and God's love has been revealed to me these past ten days, after Charlie's assassination, we didn't see violence. We didn't see rioting.

(applauding)
We saw what my husband always prayed he would see in this country. We saw rival!

This past week, we saw people open a Bible for the first time in a decade. We saw people pray for the first time since they were children. We saw people go to a church service for the first time in their entire lives.
(applauding)

ERIKA: Charlie liked to journal. And I say this because he did it to remember important moments and sayings that affected him.

And one of the things he wrote in his journal was this: Every time you make a decision, it puts a mark on your soul.

To those of you out there, who just made that decision and took the first step toward a spiritual life, I say thank you and welcome.
(applauding)

GLENN: How many people around the world felt this?

I mean, think of South Korea!

There is a Charlie Kirk movement happening in South Korea!

The Tommy Robinson stuff that's happening over in England. 3 million people on the streets of London!

Holding signs about Charlie Kirk. How many of them watched?

I mean, you're talking England. You're talking, you know, just -- just across the water from Europe.

Godless. Absolutely Godless. How many people are finding their faith again?

Now, the secret is going to be finding those preachers and those pastors that will deliver the message. She just delivered.

That it's not about violence.

It's not about authoritarianism. It's not about any of that stuff.

It's interest B fixing you first.

It's about thinking small. You want to fix the world. Fix you, first!

If we can find those pastors, priests, and rabbis, that are actually saying those things, and tying it to -- I mean, have you heard anybody talk about, get married, and have lots of children more than you have in the last ten days? I mean, probably Elon Musk, is the only one I've heard, you know, really going, you've got to have children. You've got to have children. And I'm doing my best. He's got like 400 of them.

But you have to have children. And in the last week, and especially last night, there were several speakers that were like, get married!

Have children. It gives your life meaning. And it is true! It is absolutely true.

Have children. More than you can afford!

I really was very young and very selfish in my 20s. And -- and, you know, I didn't grow up in a -- in a family. You know, my mom was an alcoholic that committed suicide. My dad was, you know, horribly abused as a child.

And so kind of withdrew because he didn't want to be his father. And so I didn't really -- just this bad kind of family. I mean, we all do. We all do.

You know, families that are just not necessarily the best role models. God bless you, if you had one. But most of us haven't.

And, you know, I mean, I didn't -- I didn't know what family really meant, until recently. Until maybe the last 15 years. And the older I get, the more I understand it!

Fame, fortune, success, vacations, whatever it is you're working for. Whatever it is you're working for, I promise you, is meaningless compared to your family. Compared to finding somebody that you truly love and they love you.

And the only way to find that, is to put first principles first.

When you marry somebody, you must have first principles in line. If you don't, you're never going to make it. You're just not.

Find that person that agrees with you on first principles, and that makes you want to be better. The thing about Tania -- now, she stopped saying this long ago, I'm sure. But I used to inspire her to be better, and she inspired me to be better, you know what I mean?

And she still does. I think I stopped inspiring her long ago. But I still want to be a better man, because of her.

First principles. And somebody that says, that makes you say to yourself, I want to be a better man, for her!

She deserves more than what I am today. You find that person, you will make it through every single storm, you can possibly imagine.

And that's what gives your life meaning.

THE GLENN BECK PODCAST

The TRUTH about Spiritual Warfare & The Battle for America's Soul

Taylor Marshall joins Glenn Beck to sound an urgent alarm that spiritual warfare is NOT a metaphor! It’s real, growing, and demands a response. In this emotional, wide-ranging conversation, they unpack why many Christians are waking up to a cultural and spiritual crisis, how the historic “great awakenings” began outside the institutions, and what true Christian discipleship looks like in a time of moral collapse.

Watch Glenn Beck's FULL Interview with Taylor Marshall HERE

The martyrdom of Charlie Kirk: Pastor reveals the truth

Was Charlie Kirk a Christian martyr? Pastor Josh McPherson tells Glenn Beck that he believes the answer is clear: “They killed Charlie Kirk because he was talking and the next generation was listening. He was pointing them to the glory of Jesus, the good news of the Gospel, anchored in the truth of God’s word.”

Transcript

Below is a rush transcript that may contain errors

GLENN: All right. Josh, welcome to the program. How are you, Pastor?

JOSH: I'm very good. How are you, Glenn?

GLENN: I'm good. I'm good. It's good to talk to you, my friend. And thank you for the kind note this week. I really appreciate all you do.

JOSH: I've been thinking about you, praying for you, and thankful for your voice right now, bro.

GLENN: Feel the same way about you.

I want to talk about what's happening with our churches. But I want to talk about a couple of definitions first. What is the definition of a martyr?

Where do we get that word? What does it come from?

JOSH: So "martyr" is anchored in the original Greek word that means "witness." Like someone who gave clear witness to something.

So when we use the word "martyr," like to a Christian martyr, it's someone who was faithful in their clear and uncompromising witness and explanation of the gospel, and more specifically, Jesus Christ.

GLENN: But you could also make that as a witness of the truth of the American principles. Could you not?

JOSH: Absolutely. Absolutely.

GLENN: Because I think Charlie Kirk was a witness of both -- and I've got to tell you. I told Erika, the other day, when I saw her.

It was hard for me to say this to her. I couldn't imagine a better way to go out, then the way Charlie did.

And I don't mean the way they killed him.

I mean, by witnessing. Having the words coming out of your mouth, just three sentences before witnessing Jesus Christ. And then witnessing to the truth, to a group of people that were starving for it.

And then to be taken out. I mean, if that's not a swift elevator or escalator ride, right up to the top. I don't know what is.

JOSH: Oh, it's remarkable.

And, I mean, we were sitting there and reflecting on this. I'm pretty sure, you haven't slept for days.

You just -- it's all you can think about.

GLENN: Yeah.

JOSH: And the irony. The poeticness -- however you want to say it, the nature of it. He wasn't killed in a car accident. He wasn't attacked.

He was -- he was killed doing the thing he had been doing for 12 years.

GLENN: Witnessing.

JOSH: And that he loved to do.

In spite of the same, in spite of all the responsibilities, sitting in a chair, under a tent with a cheap microphone, talking to anyone who would want to come and listen about the ideas that -- and for Charlie, I heard him say, so many times. He loved America. He loved our nation.

And he loved what made it great, and what made it great, and this is what made him, I think, so different from other people. It's the ability to connect the dots between the greatness of America and the glory of Jesus.

In that, the American ideas that the people connect with around the world, work anywhere around the world. Because they're connected to the timeless truth of the gospel. I mean, Charlie's political theory was anchored in Biblical theology.

GLENN: I know.

JOSH: And he like no one I have ever met, had the ability to connect those dots in all of life. And so as I've been talking to guys, they didn't kill Charlie because he was a big personality.

They didn't kill Charlie because he was merely a big conservative voice. They killed Charlie Kirk because he was talking, and the next generation was listening.

He was pointing them to the glory of Jesus. The goodness of the gospel. Anchored in the truth of God's word.

And that's why they had to kill him. So he is absolutely in every sense, I believe, a Christian martyr.

And mainly -- the first public figure, Christian martyr on American soil.

GLENN: Joseph Smith. I know we disagree on theology and something. But I would to have throw in. Because I thought about this. Joseph Smith and Charlie Kirk are probably the only Christian martyrs in American history.

JOSH: Yep. Because we have Christian martyrs. In like Jim Elliot, you know, those kinds of.

GLENN: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

JOSH: But on American soil, at an American university, captured by 3,000 cell phones from every possible angle, this one was just different.

GLENN: Yes. Yeah, it was. It was.

And it -- you know, I think if Charlie would have been asked, the night before, hey. Listen, Charlie. Tomorrow, you have a choice.

You can live a little while longer, and you can continue to do these things. Or tomorrow, you could be taken out, while testifying, and millions of people will be affected by your testimony of Christ.

I -- I'll -- from what I know of Charlie, and I knew him fairly well, there's not a question.

He would have said, oh, the second one. Right now. Let's do it.

JOSH: That's right. That's right. And I think people know that, Glenn. And that's what makes the story so compelling. This wasn't like a shock or surprise. Even though, it was horrific. He had been getting death threats for years. And, you know, the Bible says, count the cost, right?

He is one that counted the cost. And the question was, do I want to take the road of safety, and act like cowardice, or walk the road of danger as an act of faith?

And often, a counterpart of cowardice is courage. The counterpart of -- of cowardice is faith. And Charlie has faith in the risen Christ, which gave him courage -- I mean, you watched that video of him walking up to the chair at Utah. It's haunting.

You're like, turn around. Don't go out there. Someone stop. Why isn't there bulletproof glass?

And, Glenn, he could have been wearing a kit. He could have been behind bullet -- he didn't want to. He wanted to stay accessible to the people. And demonstrate a measure of courage that, quite frankly, many of us pastors sometimes lack. And it was a stunning display of courage that I think we're now seeing a ripple cross the country.

GLENN: So what is happening in our churches?

Josh, what is happening in our churches? I was lucky enough to attend one of my services in my faith, in a town where the bishop got up, and he spoke boldly about Charlie Kirk, and what was happening.

And I don't know how many churches, even in my own faith, I don't know how many awards or churches that actually spoke about Charlie Kirk. And that is -- was so important to me.

Is that happening, in most churches, or are they dropping the ball again?

JOSH: Well, actually, I can't speak for every church out there. So I'm on these text threads with over 60 pastors. And so, you know, across the country, in Florida, New York, Wisconsin, Michigan, Texas, California, red states, blue states.

Big churches, small churches, some of the biggest churches in the country, down to ten-month-old baby church plants, and so we're all talking.

And Wednesday, it happens. You're like, my gosh, what's happened?

And Thursday, Friday, you're processing, and grieving. And it's just too much to take in.

And by Friday, it feels like, this thing feels different.

Something is moving here, stirring here. Not only because of how he was killed.

But because of who he was and how he lived. All of a sudden, you can't go on the internet with just clip after clip after clip.

And I don't think even Charlie knew how big a deal he was.

GLENN: He didn't.

JOSH: I mean, bro, from missing man formations in the Blue Angels to the Dallas Cowboys to the New York Yankees, to Coldplay, to the Polish Parliament.

GLENN: I know. He had no idea.

JOSH: You're watching this. You're like, what the in the world is happening? You know, 250,000 people is reported by CNN in London, turned out to be 3 million. It's like, this is wild.

And so Saturday, I filmed this quick video. I was like, hey, pastors, if you're out there, I think there's a tidal wave coming. And the tidal wave is in the form of people who are hurting and are hungry.

And they're going to show up at your church. And it's our job to open the Bible and don't miss the moment. And then we all went into Sunday. Going, what is going to happen?

And this is why I texted you yesterday. This is what I want the American people to hear. Because in moments of tragedy like this, we're instantly looking for meaning. Like, why is this happening?

Why could this have been allowed by a good and loving God? And we know we have problems in the word of God, that what faith intends for evil, God intends to use for good.

And all of us, including me myself, were probably going, yeah, not this kind.

You know what I mean?

STU: Oh, I'm seeing it. I'm seeing it happen.

PAT: Yeah. There's no way -- and so Saturday, we're all like, how can this -- Sunday, we get to church, and I walk in. And I'm like, what in the world is happening?

And this is what I want to tell you. What I want the American people to hear. Universally, across-the-board. With every pastor I know. And who I'm talking to.

Easter level, record attendance on a random Sunday in September.

I mean, I'm talking to churches are at 30 percent, 40 percent.

Some guy is texting me. 70 percent. 80 percent, and not even eastern-level attendance.

Eastern-level response to the goodness of the Gospel. You know, Charlie used to get up. And he was really famous for saying, the Gospel is in four words, Jesus took my place.

The Gospel in three words, him for me. The Gospel in two words, substitution fulfillment. The gospel in one word: Grace. What is grace?

It's not getting what you deserve, getting what you don't deserve. What is (inaudible) for Christ? In Christ, you can have grace by eternal life. Thanks you so much. And he dropped the mic and walked off.

I think Charlie's life and death has awakened, again, in this moment, a spiritual hunger.

I've never seen at levels across-the-board. So I wanted the American people to hear, that when Jesus says, unless a grain of wheat goes into the ground and dies, it cannot produce more seeds. Charlie's life went into the ground, like that grain of wheat. It died.

And it's producing millions of seeds. And this isn't just pastor's hyperbole. Preacher hyperbole. This is reality. We are seeing not just a Sunday revival.

I believe we're moving into a season of revival. And it's staggering. It's a stunning thing to behold.

GLENN: So I was thinking the other day, that our work has got to be -- all of us has to be, get out into the fields, the harvest is ripe.

But one of the things -- one of the things that I wanted to ask you about is, you know, I have to grow my own alfalfa. And when I say, I grow it, I have people who grow it for me.

SALENA: Other people grow it.

GLENN: Yeah. Right. Other people grow it for my cows.

But I know the planting and everything else. But the harvest comes in three or four times a summer. You have to go out and just cut the field. And then grow some more. And then cut the field.

This is the first cutting, if you will. The harvest is right. But more is coming after this.

Do bad things have to come, each time, before the harvest?

JASON: That's a really good question. You know, C.S. Lewis said, "Pain is God's megaphone to a dead world." And sometimes it takes something painful in our personal life, or out in the public square, that causes us to reflect on our life.

I mean, here's why this is landing on people: Have you asked yourself, what makes this different?

GLENN: Yes.

JOSH: And not just Democrats or mercenary, but people die every day. Right?

And it's horrible. And it's tragic. And it's part of the fall. And it's terrible.

But this has stopped and shocked the world. And it's like, what is different?

And I think, Glenn, one of the things that has made a difference. Well, there's lots of Texas. And there's, of course, the sovereign hand of God, I believe.

But in Charlie, we saw a champion. Our champion. He was a gladiator. He would go into places that none of us would want to go. And do what we wish we could say.

It's like, that guy is on our team! Yeah, that's exciting. And then he was taken off the field, in a devastating injury.

And we're all asking ourself, is the team still going to win? The second thing that makes it personal, I think, all of us saw ourselves in Charlie. He was a normal guy.

He could connect to the normal -- he was saying -- we have people saying, including our former president. That Charlie's views were extreme. He was an extremist. You know what his views were?

You should read the Bible, obey the Bible, and teach people about the Bible. You should get married, have kids, hold down a job, and be a good member of society.

That is now counted as extreme, and all of us are listening this and watching this and going, wait a minute, that's what I believe. That's how I live.

I'm just a boring Christian that's married to one woman. Got a couple kids. And working hard in my community. Do they all feel that way about me.

It's carrying something different in it.

It's caused something to shift. To your question, does something valid have to happen for there to be a harvest? Well, it is, it is the cycle of life.

Death is a prerequisite for the resurrection. It's true with a grain of wheat that goes into the ground. And it's true, I think of how God works in the heavenly realm. And so this one tragic event, I believe, is going to roll out, not just for a few days. Not just for a few weeks.

I believe for decades.

Because, look at the example.

I got a call -- keep coming from me on Monday. Gosh, I just had to tell you. I've been wanting to reach out to some of my friends in high school that don't know Jesus. And I'm just not sure how to do it. After Charlie's assassination, I thought, my gosh, why am I wasting time? So I texted ten of my old high school buddies. These are secular, pagan, atheistic, non-churchgoing college freshmen.

I texted ten of them. And they're all away at school. All ten came to church with me on Sunday.

GLENN: Wow. Josh, hang on. 60 seconds. Hang on. Hang on just a second. Because I want to continue in just a second.

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(music)

GLENN: Pastor Josh McPherson, his website is GraceCityChurch.com on Instagram. @PastorJoshMcPherson.

Josh, tell me the difference between a revival and the awakening. Is there?

JOSH: Well, I think when I think of what a rifle is. We see examples in history. And I see examples in church.

I think most fundamentally, if you really define rival, it is -- it's an unexplainable, supernaturally born increase in spiritual hunger, desire, and intensity.

And so when I think about what's happening now, obviously, it's probably premature to go, "We're in a revival."

STU: Yes.

PAT: But I'm suspicious, that we'll look back on this moment in history.

And here's the thing, the revivals aren't sustainable. They don't last for hundreds and hundreds of years.

They're moments this time. Where God through his grace, opens a portal and see people are -- their eyes are opened.

Because most people who don't -- aren't interested in God, aren't working throughout their day, thinking about eternal judgment and eternity and the things of God. They're just kind of busy with Netflix and life, right?

Mercy of God. When he opens people's eyes to actually care about those things that actually matter. Like eternity. Like sin. Like the grace. Like the gospel.

And so right now, what we're seeing, and this is what I want America to hear.

I am hearing and seeing, universally testified across-the-board from every pastor I know, increased levels of spiritual hunger, intensity, and curiosity in ways that I have never seen it. So it makes me think, I wonder if we're on the brink of a revival. And it would make sense to me, Glenn.

Because the palmist said, precious is the death of his face in the eyes of God. And I think Charlie was loved by the father.

And he was like, you know what, Charlie was faithful in life. And faithful in death. I'm going to honor his life and death.

And this is crazy. God is accomplishing more in days, than Charlie Kirk accomplished in a lifetime with his mission.

GLENN: Yeah. I know.

THE GLENN BECK PODCAST

Charlie Kirk WARNED: The Right CANNOT Give Into THIS Temptation | The Glenn Beck Podcast REPLAY

This podcast originally aired on Jan. 22, 2020, as a crossover episode between "The Glenn Beck Podcast" and "The Charlie Kirk Show." Today’s youth are not the lazy socialists they’re seen as — and Charlie Kirk is proof. At just 26 years old, he’s the founder and president of Turning Point USA, the fastest-growing youth organization in America. A fresh conservative voice acclaimed by President Trump, he and TPUSA promote the principles of freedom, free markets, and limited government on over 1,500 campuses nationwide. Glenn Beck and Charlie sit down for a crossover interview covering the biggest questions in conservatism: Should the Right support bans? Are we still “one nation under God?” And can freedom still accomplish miracles? The Declaration said it best: “All men are created equal.” But we must be free to fail, free to progress, and free to succeed.