Michael Knowles Reacts to Charlie Kirk Saying Mary Is the Answer to Toxic Feminism
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Michael Knowles Reacts to Charlie Kirk Saying Mary Is the Answer to Toxic Feminism
Michael Knowles reacts to a clip from Charlie Kirk's show in which Kirk, a prominent Protestant voice, argues that evangelicals and Protestants have overcorrected by under-venerating the Virgin Mary and that a renewed focus on her example could counter what he calls toxic feminism in modern culture. Knowles, a Catholic, backs up Kirk's claim with historical evidence, citing the Rylands Papyrus 470 and the writings of St. Irenaeus to show that early Christians honored Mary as the Mother of God centuries before the Council of Nicaea. He frames Kirk's openness to rediscovering Marian tradition as part of a broader cultural shift, describing a wider return to religious faith across Protestants, Catholics, and even former atheists after decades of confident secularism. Knowles argues this shift reflects a growing recognition that modern society abandoned inherited wisdom too quickly, pointing to declining marriage and birth rates and weakened political order as signs that something in the culture's rejection of tradition has broken down.
Michael Knowles highlights a clip from Charlie Kirk's show in which Kirk, describing himself as a prominent Protestant voice who regularly explores questions of faith with Catholics, atheists, and others, argues that Protestants and evangelicals under-venerate Mary. Kirk says Mary was clearly important to early Christians and that recovering that reverence could serve as an antidote to what he calls toxic feminism, describing Mary as a model of piety, reverence, and faith.
Knowles Confirms the Claim From His Own Conversations
Knowles says he has heard similar arguments before from a prominent evangelical pastor in a private conversation, who told him Christians don't venerate Mary enough. Knowles calls Kirk's instinct correct and backs it up with historical evidence of his own.
Evidence From Early Christianity
Knowles points to the Rylands Papyrus 470, dated to around AD 250 and predating the Council of Nicaea, which contains a prayer referring to Mary as the Mother of God. He also cites Luke chapter 1's "Hail Mary, full of grace" and the second-century writings of St. Irenaeus, a disciple of Polycarp who was himself a disciple of John the Apostle, describing Mary's obedience as undoing the disobedience of Eve and making her a cause of salvation for humanity.
Charlie Kirk as a Sign of the Times
Knowles frames Kirk, a self-taught political figure and Lincoln Fellow at the Claremont Institute, as intellectually curious and representative of a broader cultural shift back toward religious tradition. He describes this shift as happening simultaneously among Protestants, Catholics, Eastern Orthodox Christians, and even former atheists, alongside a movement among conservative Protestants to reclaim mainline denominations and rising interest in more traditional, liturgical forms of worship.
A Broader Cultural Reckoning
Knowles connects this religious revival to a wider recognition that modern society moved too quickly to discard inherited tradition, pointing to declining marriage rates, falling birth rates, and weakening political and social order as evidence that the practical morality underlying a stable society ultimately depends on religious grounding.
