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Christianity Today, July, 2007 |

Tidings

The Quest for the Historical Jerry

You can tell a lot about someone by what he says about Falwell.

Ted Olsen | posted 6/13/2007 08:20AM

The penultimate item in U.S. News & World Report's list of "10 Things You Didn't Know About Jerry Falwell" explained that "Falwell had been controversial throughout the years." The article then quoted ...

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Bob	Posted: June 14, 2007 9:12 PM

Fallwell had a national stage, and instead of using it to talk about grace, the cross, our need for a substitute, and God’s offer of forgiveness (Graham is a good counter-example), he chose instead to blame left-leaning Americans for the 911 attacks and rant angrily about the evils of Tinky-winky. Sigh. We give them stuff like this and then wonder why people aren’t interested in Christianity. It’s not just that his priorities were foolish and trivial; they were actually counter-productive. For those of us interested in engaging and perhaps even reaching the people of our lost culture, he was an obstacle and a barrier, and will likely continue to be for many years. I’m disappointed that Warren didn’t tell it like it is. Our response to his legacy should be to learn from his mistakes and move in a new direction; not talk about what a “great leader” he was.

arnold turner

Posted: June 14, 2007 4:14 PM

I never met Dr Falwell but his vision for ministry has been a blessing for countles people. When I began to be burdened about the need for a pro-life crisis pregnancy clinic, I made one phone call and he sent an experienced minister that advised in setting up the first such clinic in the state of Kentucky. No quesions asked. No request for money. Just, "what can we do to help?". Lives were saved and many families blessed by the adoption of a wonderful child.Later, as I was called into ministry late in life, his innovative ideas allowed me to obtain a quaity and fully accredited Masters Degree in Religion without leaving my law practice and evangelism ministry. I now pastor a growing church and much of what I am is due to Liberty Theological Seminary and Dr. Falwell. I was often pained as I watched him wound himself and hurt others needlessly but will forever be thankful for what God made possible through him in my life. He was a great man of God. A doer of great things.

Robert

Posted: June 14, 2007 10:44 AM

Sharon -I confess my ego is way too big, but like Falwell I just can't help it. I just can't seem to find the self control to reign in my appetite. Every time I try to refrain from allowing my ego to inflate further, I simply take another healthy portion of ego to go, following which I focus on the sins of others, such as Falwell's sin of obesity or his inability to keep his mouth shut. In fact, I generally find myself asking "What would Jerry do?" before I act, with the result that every time I think about being nice, kind or helpful, I find some other sin on the raise in Christian America and work myself into a frenzy of self righteous judgmentalism about. I never claimed to be free of addiction. In fact, I confess that I am addicted to sin in various forms, including arrogance, pride, selfishness, lust, etc. This list goes on, but I don't want to bore you with the details of my short comings. I am just grateful that being addiction free is not a requirement for forgiveness.

Alison

Posted: June 13, 2007 2:56 PM


I'm with Robert on this one, because I, too, am overweight. And knowing that I shouldn't eat that hot fudge sundae just isn't enough to stop me from the sin of gluttony. We see sin in others so much more than we see sin in ourselves, and maybe that was Falwell's problem. I know that my particular sin of gluttony does make me more sympathetic with others who struggle with any sin of the flesh.

Neil Gussman

Posted: June 13, 2007 2:35 PM

I am glad to know more about Dr. Falwell than the sound bites I avoided over the last three decades. I had the weird experience of becoming a Christian in 1974 when Evangelicals were still averse to politics. In 1976 shipped out for a three year assignment in Germany, a tank commander on the East-West border. In 1980, I returned to find the Moral Majority. I had just come to seriously accept that we are all sinners and Jerry Falwell, who seemed to be the paradigm of a Hellfire Baptist, implied there were many moral millions, not just a remnant. The contradictions just in the name Moral Majority convinced me to stay away from politics--especially power politics with Christian labels. Even though I disagree with Dr. Falwell, I am glad he was so forthright. Without him, I might have seen hope in Christian politics, but he remained a flashing warning sign of the dangers of politics from the day I returned to the US until his death.

http://pbandj7.wordpress.com

Posted: June 13, 2007 1:56 PM

i am sorry, but i tend to be more inclined with robert on this one. falwell may have done some wonderful things for the LORD. i personally never saw that side of him because it wasnt his public side. i will not judge him, because i dont know his heart. however, i dont think his tactics were very helpful for the kingdom. instead of publically condemning homosexuals, we should be proclaiming God's love for them. that's right, God loves homosexuals. i know that falwell probably felt this way too. but what the media portrayed of him was otherwise. so as christians we must be wise as serpents and gentle as doves. we must understand that the media will post anything for a headline. therefore, let our speech be edifying and filled with Christ's love. we are not to judge those outside of the Church, but a brother who is living in sin. so let us worry more about loving our neighbor, and by this demonstrate that we all can be freed from sin through Christ. peter

sb	Posted: June 13, 2007 1:20 PM

"I could never be a Christian; I'm a Democrat.” Thus said a friend of mine when I shared Christ with her recently. Much of her understanding of Xy came from Fallwell and other “evangelical leaders,” who consistently preach that Xy is about re-orienting one’s politics, or taking up the banner of the Culture Wars, or becoming a (mindless and automatic) supporter of Cheney & Delay. It’d be easy to throw stones at his weight; but this is trivial—which of us doesn't struggle w/self-control? Where he failed was in his _theology_: While this may come as a surprise to some CT readers, the offer of reconciliation with God that Jesus makes to all of us has nothing to with one’s opinion about Tinky-winky or the ACLU. Nothing. In my conversations with people, I have had to work hard to try to unravel the caricature of Xy created every time CNN trotted him out in front of a camera. And he has made my efforts a lot harder than they would have been otherwise. Sadly, this is his legacy.

Jim Coons

Posted: June 13, 2007 1:08 PM


Like the man says, you can tell a lot about a person by what they say about Jerry. It seems sooner or later we come to learn that every great leader has at least a single dark shadow in their life...it is almost as though God wanted us to be sure that there was only one perfect man...Jesus. Good night Jerry but not good bye.

sharon

Posted: June 13, 2007 11:48 AM


And how much does your ego way, Robert? Arrogance is an indiscriminate virus that infects folks on either side of the political aisle. You didn't like Jerry Falwell. Say it as it is. Do not presume to speak for others, and pray, do not presume to be free from addiction.

Robert

Posted: June 13, 2007 11:06 AM

All one needs to know about Falwell is that he was close to 400 pounds! Falwell did't know how to discipline himself so as to keep his mouth shut, whether shoveling in food while millions go without or claiming that AIDs and 9/11 were punishments from God. Basically, Falwell gave into "his" temptation at every turn. I heard Falwell speak in person more than once, and acknowledge his rhetorical skills, but in his wake (Warren aside) he left a disaster that has became known as the "Religious Right", which put the values of Jesus on the back burner, while replacing them with a civil religion known as "American Evangelicalism". Falwell's ego matched his weight, which he threw around with careless abandonment, saying whatever came to mind without regard for truth. The truth is this, Falwell's enjoyment of food is not different than Flint's enjoyment of pornography. I trust Flint was right in his judgment about Falwell, since from a public perspective you would never have guessed.

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