Calvary Chapel Chino Hills Pastor Jack Hibbs told Fox and Friends First this week that Charlie Kirk, the founder of Turning Point USA, gave countless young Americans a sense of direction.
And, even in death, his influence is still being felt.
“People are coming to us, and they are saying, ‘I want to know the meaning of life, the purpose. Why am I here?’” Hibbs recounted.
Across the country, many agree that Kirk’s tragic assassination in Utah on Sept. 10, after years of preaching faith, family, values, and country, has sparked what some are calling a modern revival. Non-believers are picking up Bibles. Dormant churchgoers are filling pews.
The ripple has been dubbed the “Charlie Kirk Effect.”
Matt Zerrusen, co-founder of Newman Ministry, which supports more than 200 campus ministries, told Catholic News Agency he’s never seen anything like it.
“I have not talked to anyone who has not seen an increase in Mass attendance,” he said. “Some schools are reporting increases of 15%.”
On social media, testimonies of rediscovered faith are going viral. And beyond the anecdotal, the numbers bear it out: Bible sales through August 2025 hit 10 million copies — over one million more than the same period last year, according to BookScan.
Kirk himself, just weeks before his death, seemed to sense the tide turning: “There is revival in the Christian church. Churches are growing. Young people are flocking to faith in God.”
William Wolfe, executive director of the Center for Baptist Leadership, echoed that sentiment to Fox News Digital, recalling remarks by War Secretary Pete Hegseth at Kirk’s Glendale memorial.
“Charlie Kirk started a political movement, but he ended it as a Christian movement,” Wolfe said. “That’s been so evident here today with the worship that we’ve seen.”
For Wolfe, Kirk’s legacy was larger than politics.
“I think Charlie Kirk made it cool to be Christian again,” he said. “That’s not our goal, but Charlie Kirk made it reasonable. He defended the faith.”
It was a defense Kirk lived as much as he preached. In an interview with actor Russell Brand last year, Kirk confessed: “I’m nothing without Jesus. I’m a sinner. I fall incredibly short of the glory of God. We all do.” He added, “I gave my life to the Lord in fifth grade, and it’s the most important decision I’ve ever made, and everything I do incorporates Jesus Christ.”
Kirk’s message was not only about faith but about family — the roots and the branches that carry it forward. “Get married. Have children. Build a legacy. Pass down your values. Pursue the eternal. Seek true joy,” he often said.
On his daughter’s third birthday, he wrote on Instagram: “Having a family will change your life in the best ways, so get married and have kids. You won’t regret it.”
He summed up his life’s purpose simply: “I want to be remembered for courage for my faith. That would be the most important thing. The most important thing is my faith.”
'THE CHARLIE KIRK EFFECT': Faith leaders report a 15% rise in church attendance as young people inspired by Charlie Kirk turn to Christianity — with Bible sales surpassing 10 million through August 2025. pic.twitter.com/nbcGErP4cf
— Fox News (@FoxNews) September 28, 2025
