ELCA Bishop Eaton issues statement on death of Charlie Kirk
Published 9/11/2025 1:03:00 PM CST
A message from Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton:
As presiding bishop of this church, I want to address yesterday’s shooting in Utah. Charlie Kirk, known by millions for his views and videos supporting right-wing ideas, died by another senseless act of political violence. He was exercising his First Amendment right of free speech when he was shot and killed. This continues a long streak of political violence that shows no sign of subsiding. We’ve witnessed an attack on the husband of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, two attempts to assassinate President Donald Trump during last year’s campaign, the murder of two Minnesota state lawmakers, an arson attack on the home of Pennsylvania’s governor, a plot to kidnap Michigan’s governor, and too many more.
As I wrote last year, after the attempt on President Trump’s life in Butler, Pa., “God calls this church to say a definitive ‘no’ to political violence now and in the future. Political violence has a long history but no place in democracy. This church belongs to God, and our unity in Christ is a grace-filled and healing gift in a fractured society.”
This church teaches that disagreement is healthy and can lead to greater understanding and cooperation. But we have lost that sense of respectful debate and have degenerated into a society that treats differing opinions as personal attacks, erasing the humanity of some and abandoning the gospel of Jesus Christ. We must recommit ourselves to reflecting what Christ taught us through acts of forgiveness, healing and new life. I continue to hold that “God’s resolve for peace in human communities is unshakable.”
In this moment, I urge all of us in this church to embrace God’s call, to hear and embody the good news of Jesus Christ and to fulfill our roles as peacemakers through active civic engagement.
The Rev. Elizabeth A. Eaton
Presiding Bishop
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
If you are looking for brief centering prayer in this time surrounding our national election, consider “Seven Prayers with Seven Scriptures” from the Wisconsin Council of Churches. See the link below in the comments. This link and many other suggestions for prayers, scriptures, and song are provided in Worship Resources for A National Election.
A prayer from Worship Resources for a National Election
Holy God,
out of your great love for the world,
your Word became flesh to live among us
and to reconcile us to you and to one another.
Rekindle among us the gift of your Spirit
that we might live as one new humanity in Christ,
dismantling the walls that divide,
ending the hostility between us,
and proclaiming peace to those who are near
and to those who are far away;
through Christ Jesus, in whom we all have access,
in the one Spirit to you,
both now and forever. Amen.
(Holden Prayer around the Cross, p. 132-33)
Resources:
ELCA social statement For Peace in God's World
ELCA social message Government and Civic Engagement in the United States: Discipleship in a Democracy
ELCA social message Gun-related Violence and Trauma
Draft social statement on Civic Life and Faith
ELCA Civic Engagement Guide
Service of Prayer in Times of Violence (2016)