Television Evangelist Falwell Dies at 73

An euphemistic eulogy, I'm sure.

I am so tempted to say so many things about this man, I truly detested him and what he stood for. But unlike him I will refrain.

Pef,

You are a better person than I am :)

Not really look below, gave into temptation.

Here's a nice quote from September, 2004:

The Rev. Jerry Falwell said yesterday that evangelical Christians, after nearly 25 years of increasing political activism, now control the Republican Party and the fate of President Bush in the November election.

I wonder if Falwell's death will change anything in the future...

I just regret that he didn't live long enough to see President Hillary Clinton.

How about this guy: Mike Gravel?

I think just the thought of that might have killed him.

Gravel is amazing.

Nice link there Keld Bach

I f anyone is wondering what Mr Gravel is talking about here this will explain it.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8653788864462752804

Far Of War by Robert Strange McNamara

KELD LIKES GRAVEL!??!?!

Holy crapola... I thought I was the only one! Glad to hear it... VOTE GRAVEL!!!

ES

I Spy, I just finished that film, and emailed it to everyone on my contacts list. What a perspective. That film should be required viewing in every High School in this country. Wow.

@MartinEZ Thanks I like the part when he had to halt the translation at the 1992 Cuban meeting when Castro said "I told them to". Kinda put things into a different perspective. I will add I dont necessarily believe Castro here either, but who knows ?

Oh and by the way World Movies has a series called 101 movies you should see before you die.

As a spin off there is 25 Doco's you should see before you die. This one is No. 21.

Keld and Spy, here is Gravels You Tube page.

This one is simply jaw dropping. This man has it figured out.

But unlike him I will refrain.
Tue May 15, 2007 2:28 PM EDT

I bet he is burning!
Tue May 15, 2007 2:28 PM EDT

That was a remarkably quick change of heart.

Yes it was, oh well. I guess I will not go to heaven now that I gave into temptation ;)

Hello Im Johnny cash talking to you from the grave,

I would like to dedicate this song to Jerry Falwell

"I fell into that burning ring of fire, I went down,down, down till those flames got higher, and he'll Burn Burn Burn That ............................

such as:

The ACLU's got to take a lot of blame for this. ... And I know that I'll hear from them for this. But, throwing God out successfully with the help of the federal court system, throwing God out of the public square, out of the schools. The abortionists have got to bear some burden for this because God will not be mocked. And when we destroy 40 million little innocent babies, we make God mad. I really believe that the pagans, and the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians who are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU, People For the American Way - all of them who have tried to secularize America - I point the finger in their face and say: "You helped this happen."

the main problem in assuming you pissed off god
it that it bears to assume that you can please god as well

besides for the old testament when god's wrath was easily reconised, the new testament suggests that god only gets mad at you after you die..

and if you could piss off god enough to send a hurricane you way.. or a bolt of lightning, i have to wonder why there are still so many of us still alive

and couldnt he come down and not be such a jerk.. and say "hey I am god and incase you still dont get it, i sent katrina because of the gay pride parade"
whats the purpose of being so vague.. cant the clouds of hurricanes give us a clue
and perhaps god could use some smart weapons to keep from leveling the good peoples homes.

Oh yeah, ... we've come a long way since the enlightenment

I agree.

I am guessing his wife was probably as sick in the head as him. Im not even going to comment on his offspring.

Oluseye, amidst the tons of hate-filled celebrations I've seen in this and the other AP article that was started for it, I really wish I could vote for your comment twice. A perfect balance of expressed disagreement and human sentiment and optimism. Excellent, excellent comment.

Can't you just see him sittin on a brimstone, smokin a cigar readin a Hustler and drinkin a scotch!

By Falwell's own logic, his death must represent a punishment met out by God himself.

Well, that shows a lack of understand of the Bible. Death is the result of sin. Everyone except Jesus have sinned. I doubt Falwell every stated he was perfect.

I know you're the founder of the rationalists, vas, but despite your valid points about Falwell's cause-and-effect morality, that statement doesn't make much sense. For all his hot air, Falwell never argued that all deaths are the result of divine punishment. The man was 73, that's around average for males. So no, by his own logic, he died because he was an old man and old men die.

Steve, you know I was being rhetorical, right?

So no, by his own logic, he died because he was an old man and old men die.

What logic of his are you referring to? Hurricanes and viruses are no less natural than death. And frankly, terrorists are just as natural too, given human nature and conditions that bring out the worst in us.

My reasoning is no less fallacious than his — both of our statements are equally irrational, equally ridiculous.

Death is the result of sin.

I don't even know where to begin.

Let's just put that one down under "natural causes," shall we?

I didn't catch that it was rhetorical, vas, and now I feel a bit more foolish for it.

And I do agree that his reasoning is fallacious, but I have to beg to differ on the point that his fallacious reasoning could be applied to explain his own death. Since, as I pointed out, he never claimed that all death is the result of divine punishment. Unless he argued that all death is directly tied to wrongdoing, you can't claim to use that basis as a logical jumping point for his own death.

This is all just a logical runaround, though; what we're really discussing is whether or not faulty logic can be logically applied to a different situation. Sort of a funny loop.

You're right. I shouldn't have included "By Falwell's own logic" in my original statement.

I think we agree that my original statement is just as ridiculous as Falwell's. That's what I was going for :)

You're also right that expressing hate isn't he best way to counter people like Falwell. Not to mention that I've contradicted my own column's current masthead: I got no time for Haters. Life is too short.

Steve, I just wrote No Moment of Silence for Jerry Falwell in response to all the criticism leveled against people voicing their disdain for the man. I respect your opinion and would like to hear your thoughts.

That was beautifully said.

Jordan,

That may be the classiest thing I have ever read here. Well written.

Thank you for writing it.

Dear Jordan, if you are a christian, than you admittedly confess to rejoicing in death. Do you not sing praise and thank-you to Jesus for dying for you on the cross.
Too bad you don't feel as strongly about gleefully rejoicing in the death of a human , when it comes to your Savior as you do to a self promoting hate and brainwashing monger.

Andrea,

Neither I nor any civilized human being is going to rejoice over the death of someone, simply because they are dead. As a Christian I recognize and praise Jesus because of his sacrifice and what it means for all mankind, not simply because he was dead. I do not believe praising someone for a selfless sacrifice is a notion that is exclusively religious. I do believe, however, that rejoicing over the death of someone, simply because you wanted them to die, is a notion that belongs exclusively to the sadistic.

You know, both Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson have done more for a lot of needy, hurting people than most. How many other people do you know that has raised $500 MILLION for charities?? Or that start up centers for pregnant teens and houses for addicts?? I am sorry you feel that they are hateful. They are only giving their opinions as we are allowed to do in America. You don't agree, that is completely within your rights. If you don't agree, you don't have to listen to them. At least they are willing to help others, which is more than I can say for some.

Were they centers to take care of people or convert them?

Sadly, it goes beyond tuning them out and turning them off, when religious hatemongers such as Falwell have the attention and support of the president and influence countless millions.

He may have done some good, but to gain what? And any good is balanced against the ugliness he brought to the world with his teachings.

Were they centers to take care of people or convert them?

This is really uncalled for. JonesGirl, I know you are enjoying the rant you are on. But your comments are both uneducated, untasteful, and frankly, just uncalled for. Annasmum's comment is an appropriate one, as they have done a lot of good. I wasn't the biggest fan of Falwell (and I am a Christian), but to get on this large of a hate-filled rant over the guys death is about the equivelant of the Godhatesfags.com people, protesting Soldier's funerals. Why is there so much hate?

What rant? I asked a question, as there is a difference between genuinely helping people and helping people due to an agenda.

I stand by everything I have said about Falwell, and I am plenty educated and tasteful.

I will report you for attacking me, while I was discussing a public figure. I mean, if you wish to discuss distasteful.

Were they centers to take care of people or convert them?

In my experience, convert them. During my brief stint of homelessness in the Fall and Winter of 1991, I was in the homeless shelter over Thanksgiving. A local church sent a bus to the shelter to pick up people for dinner. Once the homeless got their, they found out that they were required to attend service in order to eat. At least one person did not get dinner because they went out to go to the restroom. And there was no way, on a holiday with deep snow all around, for the people to get back to the shelter until everyone else had eaten.

Time after time I have seen "charity" is only a bribe to get people to convert. It sickens me.

Thank you Gwenny...I had a feeling there was ill behind Falwell's "good deeds."

But I guess I am uneducated for daring to discuss him in any but glowing terms, grrrr.

I don't want to thread jack here--but look into Pat Robertson's "charities", especially Operation Blessing.

I expect Mr. Falwell did some kind of good on this earth. I don't agree with his methods or his politics, though.

Angel

You know, both Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson have done more for a lot of needy

What, precisely, have they done? I mean, substantially. Evangelizing doesn't count.

jazz, why the personal attacks on what could have been a well-written post?

Of course most of those who foam at the mouth about this issue on the Internet have never lifted a finger to ever personally help a poor or homeless person in their lives.

I'd second the motion that we should be careful to paint with too broad a brush. It's clear that Gwenny had a bad experience with such a center, but we're mindlessly applying it to Falwell's centers with no evidence that (a) she actually attended one of Falwell's centers or (b) that her experience is indicative of the church outreaches as a whole. It may have been either, but some who dislike Falwell seem a tad too eager to slap that label onto his centers with very little evidence, which is incredibly illogical.

I've had a couple of experiences in similar outreaches, on the side of helping. The ones I attended required no visit to a church service. The most intrusive any one got was at one church where a pastor gave a short (10 minute or so) prayer and sermon while the homeless were enjoying their meals.

I'm not so arrogant as to claim that my isolated experiences show the entire picture of church outreaches, but we should take a look at the entire picture of them, rather than clinging to one sad story and labeling a political enemy with it.

And don;t forget he called the pruple Teletubby gay because of it's color.

No, he didn't. An editor of his magazine said that Tinky Winky had become an icon of the gay community. Which he had. Falwell himself said that he had no problems with the Tinky Winky and in fact gave the Tinky Winky dolls sent to him to his grandchildren.

Gwenny and TheJonesGirl, I am so sorry you have had bad experiences with things like that and it left a bad taste in your mouth. Not all good has a hidden agenda, though. Maybe he was trying to convert people, but the fact remains that he did help people. A person cannot be converted with out their permission. It is a choice. Like jazzman & Steve Watts, the outreach programs I work at help people with no pressure to get saved. Yes, there is prayer and a short message. But people are free to leave (usually with a bag a groceries). It is their choice to stay for the church service.

If the poor, homeless, and destitute waited for Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson's critics to feed/help them, there would be a lot more starving. We would all do better to spend our time helping than criticizing. And I am not saying people here don't help. I have no idea and wouldn't assume otherwise.

I didn't agree with how he spoke to and about people. I think it is sad that he has given a lot of people a bad taste in their mouth because of what he has said. My point is he did do some good and we should focus on that, not the negative. The negativity is what is wrong with this world today and it is running rampant in this thread.

For Jerry's sake, God better be a white man.

What does race have anything to do with this?

Well just read for yourself:

Born and raised in America's segregated South, Falwell preached that racial segregation was the Lord's will, but dropped such overt racism from his perspective when it became unpopular to say such things aloud. Still, from his pulpit Falwell supported South African apartheid, and opposed Nelson Mandela's release from prison.

The page also references Falwell's belief that the antichrist will be a Jewish man, as well as his comments about Islam and the prophet Muhammad.

For Jerry's sake, God better be a white man.

What does race have anything to do with this?

well for the most part jerry didn't give a rats ass about people who were not white and baptist.

he was pretty much a class "A" racist.

The older I get the more I realize that Jesus' commandment to turn the other cheek is so important.

So important most of his followers don't even follow it.

Then they're not really followers, are they?

from the ones i have met, it seems that they are really interested in the notion that others might believe that they are followers.. a little social game.

brings to mind the old adage, why should you never just take just one mormon along on a fishing trip?

because he'll drink all your beer.

apologies to the real mormons out there..

Then they're not really followers, are they?

Bad choice of words, I apologize.

Sectim42 The reason the USA is in so much trouble now is because the Abandoned the Catholic Faith and flung themselves into the Arms of the Messianic Pentecostal Protestant Loonies. And the King of these vicious brutal dictatorial Sunbeams for Jesus is G.W.Bush. There will be no purgatory for them to buy their way out of, its straight to the flames, do not pass go, do not collect 200$ from some corrupt Pentecostal drug/gun money laundering bank.