Jerry Falwell

Thoughts on the life of the Reverend Jerry Falwell.



Jerry Falwell, powerhouse of America's christian conservative movement, passed on last week, aged 73. I wanted to write a post on my own feelings about the man and his life's work.



For many, Falwell was a fundamentalist preacher of the old-school, divisive and intolerant, scapegoating minority groups for the ills of the nation. Certainly this perception was not helped by his infamous comments regarding the 9/11 terrorist attacks where he implied that the pagans, abortionists, gays and lesbions had 'allowed' the attacks to happen, through their sinful ways.



Yet I think there was much more to Dr Falwell than this fiery public persona. I believe there is much evidence to suggest that, as with Ian Paisley, beneath Falwell's austere exterior lay a genuine man of faith and spirituality - a servant of mankind.



Whilst his public sentiments appeared rather spiteful, Jerry Falwell's ministry was not one of hate. He built church agencies for unwed mothers and alcoholics. I saw today a clip of an African-American graduate of Liberty University, (the conservative higher educational establishment Falwell founded) who refered to Falwell, in the most gracious and sincere way, as his 'mentor'. Tributes of love and appreciation pouring in from students who knew him, or had been touched by his life.

What struck me about them was their sincerity; they were not self-righteous words designed to promote partisanship or to put down non-believers. They reflected the fact that Falwell must have had a human side rarely considered by his critics.



One only has to peruse a Falwell sermon or book to realise that the man's faith was much deeper than merely the great fear of otherness. Although not a believer in his theology, I do believe that he was able to impart to some degree the true spirit of Christ, a peaceful, loving presence, a universal, rather than dividing, force.



Jerry Falwell may be remembered by many more as a political figure than a religious one, due to the great influence he wielded, along with Pat Robertson, in galvinising christian support for certain social causes from the 1970s onwards. The debate over his politics lies in another post. Yet whether one agrees with everything he said in the political realm, there is room for appreciating he did good for mankind.

I think this is the reason he has recieved tributes and kind remarks from President Bush, Senator John McCain and perhaps most interestingly, Jim Wallis, an evangelical Christian with slightly different political persuasions.

I would be interested to hear people's thoughts and perspectives on the life of Jerry Falwell.