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I suppose I must add, so the letter writers don't work themselves into fits, that I am not equating U.S. Christian fundamentalists with Islamic terrorists. Neither am I equating Islamic fundamentalists, or for that matter Jewish fundamentalists, with terrorists. I am saying that Christian fundamentalists see things much as other fundamentalists do. Terrorism arises not from fundamentalism but from extreme fundamentalists, who take it upon themselves to fight for the only order that makes sense to them. Holy warriors.

"Religious leaders have an opportunity to nourish souls starved for hope with a dose of community and faith," writes Mike Thomas of the Orlando Sentinel. "But not Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson, two men who have found a different kind of opportunity. The death of thousands has provided them an opportunity to promote even more hatred. If God is the terrorist they portray him to be, then Middle Eastern zealots are the least of our worries. … Religion is the best and worst thing to happen to this planet. That is evident as we now watch it kill and divide, but also heal and unite."

Similarly, in a Salon.com article arguing that Friday's displays of public religion were justifiable, Joan Walsh calls Robertson and Falwell "America's counterpart to the Taliban. … The only silver lining of this tragedy is that it's bringing out the invidious agenda of the Christian right, where it can be repudiated."

A Pittsburgh Post-Gazette editorial calls Falwell's remarks "obscene" and "blasphemous." The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has a similar denunciation. Want more? There's more. Lots more.

And it's not just the media on the offensive. The Los Angeles Times reports that Ed Bacon, rector of All Saints Episcopalian Church, spent at least some of his sermon yesterday criticizing Falwell and Robertson. "If we expect Islamic leaders to condemn the evil of terrorism … we Christians will, in turn, have to speak out to those who spew the bile of hate speech and hate crime," he said.

Yikes. Fortunately, there's also the sermon of Nathan D. Baxter, dean of Washington National Cathedral, quoted in The Washington Post: "We must remember that evil does not wear a turban, a tunic, a yarmulke or a cross. Evil wears the garment of a human heart, a garment woven from the threads of hate and fear."

"In no way has any guest on my program suggested that anyone other than the Middle East terrorists were responsible for the tragic events that took place on Tuesday," says Robertson, who claims Falwell was quoted out of context. Falwell makes a similar argument. "I sincerely regret that comments I made during a theological discussion on a Christian television program were taken out of their context and reported, and that my thoughts—reduced to sound bites—have detracted from the spirit of this time of mourning," he says on Falwell.com. "My mistake on the 700 Club was doing this at the time I did it, on television, where a secular media and audience were also listening. And as I enumerated the sins of an unbelieving culture, because of very limited time on the 700 Club, I failed to point the finger at a sleeping, prayerless and carnal church. We believers must also acknowledge our sins, repent, and fast and pray for national revival."

But as Dick Meyer notes on CBS News, "These aren't quotes taken out of context. Falwell and Robertson did not misspeak. These are their considered beliefs. It almost seems in poor taste even to respond to these offensive pronouncements. They are profoundly disrespectful of tragic losses and they are insulting."

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September (Web-only) 2001, Vol. 45