Remembering Falwell
Long before he was known for the Moral Majority, long before he became a face and voice of the Religious Right, I watched him on TV, as a child, sitting next to my grandmother. And because she respected him, so did I.
Of course, as I aged through the standard series of teenage transgressions, my opinion changed. His scolding annoyed me. I was thoroughly enjoying the sins of my youth and I didn't want my parents, much less this preacher from Virginia, telling me not to.
On the more destructive elements of that journey, I later recognized the wisdom behind his cautions. But by that point, the good Reverend had moved well beyond sermons about individual redemption to advocating a virtual return to theocracy. I was more than willing to give him credit where it was due, but I simply couldn't (and still can't) bide threats to the crucial separation of Church and State.
Still, as we look back, I think it's more important now than ever to separate the man from the message and remember that Falwell avoided the hypocrisy of the Jim Bakker's and Ted Haggard's and Jimmy Swaggart's.
That counts for something. Unfortunately, some of the readers of Think Progress feel differently, having apparently lost or misplaced their manuals on basic human decency.
UPDATE: When I first published this post, I did not immediately think about Falwell's prior remarks on homosexuality, but I should have; those comments were certainly no secret and they were remarkably harsh and unfair and wrong. And that makes Dennis Sanders' later post on Falwell all the more remarkable and inspiring.
Of course, as I aged through the standard series of teenage transgressions, my opinion changed. His scolding annoyed me. I was thoroughly enjoying the sins of my youth and I didn't want my parents, much less this preacher from Virginia, telling me not to.
On the more destructive elements of that journey, I later recognized the wisdom behind his cautions. But by that point, the good Reverend had moved well beyond sermons about individual redemption to advocating a virtual return to theocracy. I was more than willing to give him credit where it was due, but I simply couldn't (and still can't) bide threats to the crucial separation of Church and State.
Still, as we look back, I think it's more important now than ever to separate the man from the message and remember that Falwell avoided the hypocrisy of the Jim Bakker's and Ted Haggard's and Jimmy Swaggart's.
That counts for something. Unfortunately, some of the readers of Think Progress feel differently, having apparently lost or misplaced their manuals on basic human decency.
UPDATE: When I first published this post, I did not immediately think about Falwell's prior remarks on homosexuality, but I should have; those comments were certainly no secret and they were remarkably harsh and unfair and wrong. And that makes Dennis Sanders' later post on Falwell all the more remarkable and inspiring.
1 comments:
Jerry Falwell talked the talk, but he also walked the walk. He believed in what he said and he was consistent in his positions. His mouth got away from him at times, but he would smile, apologize and get back on message.
I live in Lynchburg and have known Rev. Falwell since 1965. He knew me by name and in our personal greetings and in speaking with him I never doubted his sincerity.
Whatever else can be said, he was loved by his church and followers. He has left a huge footprint on the landscape of Lynchburg and I will miss him.
Post a Comment