By Ryan Helfenbein, Op-ed contributor Monday, December 15, 2025 | PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images
This past week, Erika Kirk broke her silence. For eight weeks, she endured relentless accusations, conspiracy theories, and public attacks from Candace Owens and others while grieving her husband and raising two children who lost their father. Candace has spun theories about Egyptian planes, French assassins, and Calvary Chapel espionage — a full-time psyop that has bewildered, angered, and confused many, all while making millions of dollars.
But here’s what we know: Tyler Robinson’s own family turned him in, Tyler confessed to the crime, Tyler appeared in court this week and showed no signs of being falsely accused.
Meanwhile, there’s a capital murder trial set for May 2026 that will take a considerable amount of time. Is that unprecedented or new? No, that’s exactly how it works.
And the FBI, Utah Valley Police, and Erika Kirk owe the public nothing right now except to pursue justice through proper legal channels. No one is being naïve about what happened — except for those who think social media and podcasts determine guilt or innocence in the court of public opinion. They don’t.
So, how should we think about this past week with Candace Owens, Erika Kirk, and Turning Point USA?
First, murder trials take time — and that’s built into our justice system on purpose. Remember Lee Harvey Oswald? He was shot just two days after JFK’s assassination and never took the witness stand. The entire nation was left wondering if he truly acted alone or if, in fact, he was the assassin. We will never really know. He famously said, “I’m just a patsy.” The Warren Commission took almost a year to investigate this assassination. And the case was classified and sealed from public view, and more than 60 years later, it is one of the most examined cases in history.
This is not that. We have a confession. We have the shooter’s family cooperating with authorities. We have eyewitnesses. But justice still requires due process — forensic analysis, witness testimony, proper legal proceedings. That takes time. It’s one of the most important elements of our constitutional system. We don’t rush to judgment because feelings don’t demand immediate resolution. We pursue truth through established legal processes that protect both the accused and also the victims. That’s how our constitutional system works.
Second, we must recognize how social media has created a hyperbolic simulacrum of reality. We’re living in hyperreality — a digital world where nothing is normal or normative about how information gets disseminated. Good information and bad information spread faster than at any point in human history. Social media can be informative, constructive, and even life-giving. It can also be destructive, divisive, and even debilitating.
Candace Owens is running a masterclass in grift and mass psychology. Whether its Egyptian planes, French assassins, or Calvary Chapel paramilitary operatives, she has monetized Charlie’s death.
One day this too shall pass, and when it does, people will study this moment and how mass psychology worked on those who were obsessed by social media and podcasting. Make no mistake: This is digital manipulation at its worst, exploiting grief for gain. And it’s evil.
Third, your memory of September 10, 2025, and September 21, 2025, depends on your ability to focus on what’s true. Remember what actually happened on September 10. Charlie Kirk was assassinated while speaking at Utah Valley University. Frank Turek and Mikey McCoy witnessed the shooting in person. Erika saw her husband dead in the hospital. Tyler Robinson confessed to the crime; his family turned him in.
Remember Sunday, September 21, when the whole world stopped and in a stunning moment saw the culmination of what Charlie’s life was all about, and that is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He brought together major leaders in the conservative movement — not all of them are Christian, but every single one of them acknowledged Jesus Christ. This was not a mistake. People sang Christian hymns. People opened their Bibles. People prayed. People gave their hearts to Jesus. They went to church for the first time. And many were baptized.
Remember when we were talking about revival sweeping the nation. That was true then, and it can still be true today. Focus on those facts. Walk away from clickbait. The constant stream of speculation isn’t informing you — it’s consuming you. We need rest from it.
Fourth, Erika’s response this week was both godly and fierce — a masterclass in patience and strength. Erika Kirk has every right to defend her husband’s honor, every right to defend Turning Point USA and those who suffered the loss of Charlie and lived through that horrific day. She’s a woman grieving the loss of her husband. She’s raising two children without their father. She’s defending the team that supported Charlie.
Anyone who knows half of what she’s endured can only marvel at the supernatural strength shown in her and through her. Do not forget: Erika forgave the shooter publicly. She did not attack Candace. She simply told Candace to stop.
Finally, it’s time to give it a rest. So, stop, in the name of God. As we’ve said on this podcast before, some people never once slowed down in the wake of Charlie’s murder. They never reflected nor were they introspective. Godly grief is also a rest. It is resting in the acknowledgment of God’s perfect grace, His perfect will, and His care for us in the midst of great loss.
True Sabbath rest acknowledges something fundamental: There is a Savior, and no, you are not Him. We rest because we acknowledge there is only one Savior, and His name is Jesus Christ. We rest because there is only one work that saves us, and that is the work of Christ on the cross at Cavalry’s hill. We rest because God commanded it. We rest because restless work is disobedience to God.
It’s time to give endless conspiracies a rest — literally, figuratively, and spiritually. It’s time to move on from the grift. Time for onlookers who aren’t a part of this fatal collision to stop slowing down traffic and just drive on. The major capital murder trial will unfold. Justice will be pursued. Due process will run its course. The Scripture says in Hebrews 4:11-13, ESV:
“Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.”
After this past week, those who can see it, see it all, and those who are blind have no rest at all. Above all, take heed, lest you fall.
Pray for Erika Kirk. Pray for Turning Point USA. Admire her courage. Honor her strength. And by God’s grace, the Lord will give her and Turning Point USA the peace they deserve while they wait for justice for Charlie Kirk.
Originally published at the Standing for Freedom Center.
Ryan Helfenbein is the Executive Director of the Standing for Freedom Center and the Vice President of Communications and Public Engagement at Liberty University. Ryan hosts “The Give Me Liberty” weekly podcast and is also a weekly contributor on “In Focus with Alison Steinberg.”If you’re interested in having Ryan as a guest on your show or speak at your next event, contact us at freedom@liberty.edu.Follow Ryan on Twitter at @RHelfenbein.
