Believe, Speak, Lead

God’s plan for each of us is mysterious, and the more quiet among us – not those perpetually quiet, but capable of quiet – know that, as you look back on life, you begin to see God’s hand in everything.

Watching the recent memorial to a modern martyr, Charlie Kirk, my thoughts were mixed, emotional, and analytical. My thinking continues to open, like the petals of an incompletely blossomed flower, or the widening of a peacock’s tail. Each week, more occurs to me, and perhaps to all of us.

Yes, Charlie’s martyrdom is a testament to how frayed and lost our society is, and yes, his firm, unblinkingly joyous Christian faith, a fearless faith, is a timeless, almost epic example.  Like many of Christ’s disciples and apostles, Charlie died violently for the truth and with love of Our Savior.

Yes, this whole thing remains hard to process – horrifying, unthinkable, but forced on us, unimaginable but real. At the same time, to see the world’s reaction is spiritually inspiring. Charlie’s wife, Erika, and his friends, one of whom quoted Soren Kierkegaard: “The tyrant dies and his rule is over, the martyr dies and his rule begins.” So true.

Yes, we are called in this unsettling yet fortifying moment to dig deep, to make a conscious choice – right out in the open: Believe and live your faith without fear, or retreat and regret. Courage or fear.

Yes, we are challenged – and maybe this explains the lingering nature of this event – to do what Charlie did, to believe and to speak.  

But there is something else. There is something that swept me today, a step beyond these convictions. Even before the memorial – a testament to how strong we really are – I read a column by Bill Bennett, the old Reagan conservative who, if not quite Kierkegaard, is a modern philosopher.

Trying to put Kirk’s assassination in perspective, Bennett relayed a conversation with his son, a brilliant young man who tried – back in 2016 – to reason with people about his conservative politics.

The younger Bennett did so with all the hope and idealism of Jefferson, Madison, Franklin, and our Founders, sure that minds could be changed, that others were open to persuasion, that truth evolved from an exchange of views – not tolerating differences, glad for them, the American ideal.

But in time, Bill’s own son – a young conservative, son of a vocal, literate conservative – got worn out. Bills’ son retreated from public dialogue, gave up on politics, and went into finance. He chose to stay clear of the hate in the academic world. He gave up on exactly what Alexis De Tocqueville celebrated in 1830, the “uncomfortable face-to-face.” Putting politics aside, he went on with life.

Bill Bennett, author of “The Book of Virtues,” put his personal pain into words:  “This is what we have done to our young people. We have made the cost of conviction so high that capable, principled people retreat from public engagement entirely.”

“We have created a world where it is safer to be silent than to speak, safer to conform than to question, safer to hide than to stand. There is a certain relief in that. But it does not come without a cost.”

“The question before us is not whether we will have more Charlie Kirks – young people willing to brave hostility for their beliefs. We will. The question is whether we will have more like my son – capable people who retreat from public engagement because the cost has become too high.”

So, that was an epiphany, as I sit here. We must encourage all capable young people to again trust persuasion, stay in the arena, stay politically engaged – if we mean for this Republic to survive. We must show them how, and that capable people do not shy when threats abound; they rise.

So, yes, believe and speak your beliefs, but also take it a step further and rise to lead. God’s plan for each of us is mysterious, but we must search for it. Looking back, God’s hand is in everything.

Robert Charles is a former Assistant Secretary of State under Colin Powell, former Reagan and Bush 41 White House staffer, Maine attorney, ten-year naval intelligence officer (USNR), and 25-year businessman. He wrote “Narcotics and Terrorism” (2003), “Eagles and Evergreens” (North Country Press, 2018), and “Cherish America: Stories of Courage, Character, and Kindness” (Tower Publishing, 2024). He is the National Spokesman for AMAC. Today, he is running to be Maine’s next Governor (please visit BobbyforMaine.com to learn more)!