This week's "I Don't Have Enough Faith to be an Atheist” podcast is about host Frank Turek's close relationship with slain Christian influencer Charlie Kirk. Reposting the episode on X, he talks about being five feet from Charlie when the assassin's bullet crashed through his neck, the frantic drive to the hospital to save his life, the future of Charlie's ministry and more.
One of the many things Turek talks about was his close, personal friendship with Charlie, beginning with how they met.
“I didn't reach out to him, Charlie actually reached out to me. Here's what he said, 'I've watched countless videos of his [Turek]. His work has impacted my teaching to the many millions of followers who look to our platform for guidance’,” recounts Turek.
According to Turek, Charlie asked him to be a mentor.
“We did his podcast, and he asked me to mentor him, particularly in Christian apologetics. Now, it could be very hard to mentor someone who's smarter than you, but it wasn't hard to mentor Charlie because his intellect was only surpassed by his humility,” states Turek.
Turek says the two would take walks, talk about how to respond to tough questions, and fine tune his debating skills. They often texted back and forth, and he says one of the last texts he received from Charlie was an eerie premonition.
“Charlie had courage. A few months ago, there was some violent act in the news, and I texted him and said, 'I hope you've increased your security detail.' He texted me back. He said, 'I have. I know they want me dead’,” says Turek.
Turek mentions that what impressed him the most about Charlie was his integrity.
“I love the fact that he was a 24/7/365 Christian in every area of his life,” states Turek.
