Charlie Kirk. AP Yonhap News. 

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), citing the book sales tracking service Circana BookScan, reported on the 20th (local time) that Bible sales surged across the United States in September, the month right-wing youth activist Charlie Kirk died.

Approximately 2.4 million Bibles were sold in the U.S. last month, a 36% increase from the same month last year, making September the best-selling month for Bibles this year. Bible sales from January to September increased by 11%, contrasting with a 1% decrease in overall print book sales in the U.S. during the same period.

Kirk founded Turning Point USA, which promotes conservative Christian values, particularly among young people, and wielded national influence. This movement formed the core of the MAGA (Make America Great Again) base, which played a crucial role in President Donald Trump's re-election bid.

Kirk died at the age of 31 on the 10th of last month, after being shot by Tyler Robinson during a Q&A session with the audience at a Turning Point USA-hosted debate at Utah Valley University in Utah. His memorial service, held on the 21st of the same month, was filled with Christian narratives, so much so that President Trump described it as feeling like a "revival meeting."

At the service, Kirk's wife, Erica, said, "In the week following Charlie's death, some people opened their Bibles for the first time in ten years, some prayed for the first time since childhood, and some attended church for the first time in their lives."

While there is no objective way to prove a correlation between Kirk's death and the surge in Bible sales, it can be inferred that his death, portrayed as that of a "martyr," led to an increase in Bible sales as a result of impacting Americans' religious awakening.

Mark Schoenwald, president and CEO of HarperCollins Christian Publishing, told WSJ that Kirk's death "woke a lot of people up," adding, "They started to think about what they believe and why they believe it."

Attendee carrying a cross at Charlie Kirk's memorial service. AP Yonhap News. 

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