Let Us Lay Down Our Arms

Gunfire erupted again today. Its harsh bark is part of the gruesome dialect we speak today. This time the bark and the bite were felt in Utah where the life of a young conservative activist was violently taken from him. There was not much that I agreed with in the positions of Charlie Kirk. Indeed, one could say we are polar opposites.

But in truth, beyond the ideological chasm I feel, I am saddened, even sickened that this has taken place.

My heart goes out to Mr. Kirk’s family. My spirit aches for the ripples of pain and anger that even now are spreading from this vile act.

Charlie Kirk is dead. His name is now on a list that is not only too long; it is a list that should not exist.

So it is that I write today to scream in the face of this storm. Friends and adversaries, this violence will consume us all if we do not check our anger at the door of our politics.

The drift of our national life into ever deeper division and anger is not a foregone conclusion. It is not even our destiny. A change in direction is not only possible, it is time now to turn a new page and begin a new chapter in our shared American experience.

Is it time to abandon anger, judgment and hatred? I think the rise of political violence in our nation provides an answer in the affirmative.

I come to this place, not as one who has done this. I confess that I loiter too much in my own strong feelings on a host of topics. I confess, too, that my anger and grief are close by and in reach.

But my promise to you is that I will leave it there. My hope for us all is that we will awaken to the truth that we are traveling on the same highway, and it’s time to take up some new rules of the road.

Here are a few possibles..

Let’s not harm one another…for any reason.

Let’s keep judgment and hatred out of our speech.

And….let’s give our beloved guns a rest.

Rest in Peace Charlie Kirk.

— Schuyler Rhodes