Charlie Kirk and rabbi pal talked hours before his death: ‘He was in a combative mood’

Charlie Kirk was in high spirits and “in a combative mood” just before kicking off his American Comeback Tour at Utah Valley University, said a rabbi friend who spoke to him for an hour the night before his death.

Rabbi Pesach Wolicki, 55, an American-born cleric who lives in Israel, met with Kirk via Zoom on Tuesday night.

“He was excited to get back out on the campus tour,” said Wolicki, who said he often spoke to Kirk before public appearances to advise him on how to “defend Israel effectively.”

“We became good friends,” Wolicki told The Post, calling the 31-year-old activist “unbelievably courageous” in the face of so many Gen Z conservatives who “were turning on Israel.”

That “worried the heck out of him,” said the rabbi. “He held fast and it wasn’t easy.”

Often the people who challenged Kirk at events “bombarded him with questions about Israel,” according to Wolicki.

“Charlie was always seeking true information,” said the rabbi of his evangelical Christian friend.

Hours before the firebrand was assassinated in Utah, the two met online to prepare for the “smears against Israel” he would inevitably face during his tour of college campuses.

“He was working out talking points, playing the role of devil’s advocate, pushing us on these issues, trying to sharpen the iron,” said Wolicki, who specializes in Jewish-Christian relations.

“He was in a combative mood,” recalled the rabbi, “which is good. He was preparing for debates and attacks.”

“Charlie stood alone to a great extent in that whole Gen Z conservative world as far as being pro-Israel,” the rabbi said. “And his life would have been a whole lot easier if he wasn’t.

“There were prominent people . . . actively working to [get him to] drop his support for Israel on a daily basis. And he resisted.”

The two men first met in December 2023 when Kirk joined a 12-person Shabbat dinner during a Turning Point AmericaFest event. That’s when Wolicki learned Kirk was interested in observing Sabbath.

“Every Friday night at sundown, Charlie would turn off his smartphone and put it in a drawer until Saturday sundown,” recounted the rabbi. “I found that to be fascinating that this guy, one of the busiest people you’ll ever see, do Shabbat.

“He said it enhanced his family,” said the rabbi.

Kirk even wrote a forthcoming book on the subject, “Stop, in the Name of God: Why Honoring the Sabbath Will Transform Your Life,” which is already a bestseller.

Wolicki said, “It was part of Charlie’s desire to really understand what are the ingredients of a strong family that has biblical values. Isn’t it fascinating that his death will spur even greater popularity for that book?”

In their last conversation, the two discussed plans to start a new WhatsApp channel for any questions that would arise on tour.

“There was no farewell, because we weren’t saying goodbye,” said Wolicki.