Jerry Falwell, Founder of the Moral Majority, Dead at 73

Jerry Falwell, Chancellor and founder of Liberty University and The Moral Majority has passed away today. Falwell had a major impact upon American Christianity and politics in the 1970's and 1980's by encouraging Evangelical Christians to get involved in the political process and elect conservative candidates who shared their moral values. He was very effective in reminding Christians of their political responsibilty and was instrumental in leading Evangelical Christians out of the Fundamentalist Retreat that had characterized their existence on the national scene since the Scopes Monkey Trial of 1925. The primary result was the election of Ronald Reagan in 1980 and a resurgence of conservative political power led by Evangelicals.

Dr. Falwell will be honored by many for his accomplishments over the next few days and he certainly did accomplish a great deal. I was never a very big fan of his activities, however. I believe that he was the leader of a movement that capitalized on a great deal of selfishness in American Christianity. What I mean by that is, the Christian conservative political movement led by men like Pat Robertson, D. James Kennedy, James Dobson, and Jerry Falwell was primarily interested in reclaiming America for God and protecting conservative Christian values. The gist of the movement seemed to be that we keep America nice for us so that we can have a nice country and live happy lives. At least that is how I took it. The main issues surrounded moral values, and while I agreed heartily with many of the positions of the conservative Chrisitan movement, over time, I found them to be hollow and self serving. Abortion, for example, is something that I absolutely disagree with. Therefore, I favor the movement against it led by these men. However, the movement never gained much traction because it was never able to mobilize grass roots action to stem the tide of teen pregnancy and it's incubator, urban poverty among minorities and the lower classes. It seemed that we were against abortion in theory and we voted that way, but there was little movement beyond protest to really do something about invtervening with young girls who were most at risk BEFORE they got pregnant, or after to save the baby's life by providing options. Some of that occurred, but not nearly enough.

The problem with the conservative Christian political movement can also be shown by the timing of it's birth. In the 1960's, Falwell was asked his opinion of liberal ministers who were marching against segregation in the South. His response was essentially that he was too busy carrying out the pastoral duties of his church and doing evangelism. He had no time for political activity. This was the consensus belief of Evangelicals during this time period, especially Southern Baptists. We were either silent or we opposed reform regarding the biggest domestic moral issue of the 20th Century, the repeal of segregation in the South and equal treatment for Blacks. However, when Roe V. Wade came down in 1973, Falwell became engaged with transforming the moral and political landscape of our country. Why the change? Why were politics below him in the 1960's when human beings were being denied civil rights and were being beaten and blasted with fire hoses, but were his tool when abortion was legalized? If he had awoken to his responsibility then and helped stand against inequality and abortion, he would have been consistent and much more effective. However, it was obvious that the conservative Christian agenda was narrow in focus regarding the issues that were important to white evangelical Christians.

This inconsistency has led to a whole host of problems in our nation, in my opinion. When James Dobson came to Montgomery, AL to protest the removal of the 10 Commandments from the Supreme Court building a few years ago, he invoked the memory of Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott by saying that American Evangelical Christians were not going to ride in the back of the bus. To compare segregation and Jim Crow with the removal of the 10 Commandments is an historical mistake that could only be made by an affluent person who had never been truly persecuted. I was shocked at the hubris of such a statement, but then I realized that this movement is primarily about protecting OUR rights and OUR country. It was primarily about us, and because of that, it failed.

I did not know Jerry Falwell personally, so my comments are not directed to how nice of a man he was or wasn't. I can only speak to his public positions. While I too desire to see America honor God and be moral, I recognize that politics are not the avenue for change in this country. Politics require compromise and the lure of power is always contaminating. No, as Christians, we should seek to transform society by what we do, not by our votes. Politicians cannot protect America from evil, but we should work hard to make America great by transforming and rebuilding our cities, by ministering justice to the least of our citizens, and by truly being salt and light to a dying world. We should be marked by compassion and we should stand for those who cannot stand for themselves. Our work to save the unborn should go beyond the ballot box and we should work for equal opportunity for all of our citizens, regardless of race, gender, or religion. We should be consistent and actually live out our political principles and apply that action to all people. Maybe then people will see that we mean what we say and that we are not just acting in self interest.

I am not saying that Dr. Falwell did not agree with those positions. He might have. Maybe his enemy was the media who only reported on the political facet of his work. I know that Pat Roberston founded Operation Blessing which has done enormous good. My point is that Jerry Falwell was known for trying to change America primarily through the political arena, and because of that emphasis, I feel that he failed. However, I don't entirely blame him. It seems that he gained a large following because he was taking us where we all wanted to go anyway. Maybe we have learned and we will head a different course. One positive thing from his life is that we learned that when Christians are united, we can make an incredible difference in our country. The negative lesson is, when our energy is focused in the wrong direction, we can also cause harm and weaken the message of Jesus that is not always compatible with the politics of the Religious Right.

Let us not give up doing good and trying to change our nation. But, let us do it with a prophetic voice, not beholden to political processes. Jesus is bigger than political parties and power plays and His salvation is for all who believe in Him and are transformed in their hearts. As Jesus began his earthly ministry, he quoted Isaiah 61. If we read further, maybe Isaiah 61 can be a guide as to how change can really happen:

1 The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me,
       because the LORD has anointed me
       to preach good news to the poor.
       He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
       to proclaim freedom for the captives
       and release from darkness for the prisoners, 

2 to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor
       and the day of vengeance of our God,
       to comfort all who mourn,

3 and provide for those who grieve in Zion—
       to bestow on them a crown of beauty
       instead of ashes,
       the oil of gladness
       instead of mourning,
       and a garment of praise
       instead of a spirit of despair.
       They will be called oaks of righteousness,
       a planting of the LORD
       for the display of his splendor.

4 They will rebuild the ancient ruins
       and restore the places long devastated;
       they will renew the ruined cities
       that have been devastated for generations.

Maybe we can begin to turn our attention to verse 4 and live out what we profess to believe on a national scale. If Dr. Falwell brought us together and that was the ultimate result, then his legacy will be one worth leaving.

Update: As I have read other comments on Dr. Falwell's life, I realize that my comments here could be taken negatively regarding the whole man. I am primarily reacting to his political activities as that is what I am most aware of. I never really followed his ministry or was that close to it at all. For all of the good that he did in his life and ministry through living an upstanding life and leading many to faith in Jesus, I salute him. My comments are primarily directed to the effectiveness of his political legacy for the rest of us.

Comments

[Kevin]

Well said.

[Florence Young]

Very good comments. Thanks.

Florence in KY

[Robin Foster]

Alan

Could you at least wait until after he is buried before you are critical of him?

[Alan Cross]

Robin,

I am sorry that you thought I was being critical. That was not my intention. I did not know him nor was I affected by his ministry very much - I really knew little about his ministry apart from his public pronouncements. He was a very distant figure for me and I only really heard anything about him when he was being interviewed on CNN or something talking about homosexuals or abortion. I was discussing his political legacy and the results of the Christian Conservative movement of which he was a leader, which has affected us all. The death of a leader of a movement is generally a time that people talk about the legacy of that movement. That is what I was doing. I don't intend to be more critical after he was buried because I wasn't trying to be critical now. I have read where others said that he was a wonderful man and I will not dispute that as I have no knowledge of what he was personally like whatsoever.

[Kevin]

I think Falwell did a LOT of good things, including ministries to drug addicts, single moms, a flourishing church, a christian college, etc.

I think the problem is that we (thirty somethings and younger) were probably more aware of him during some of the "low points" of his public comments, which came later in his life (9-11, teletubbies, etc).

Hopefully he can be remembered more for his ministry and less for his politics. I do think he was a godly man. Christ would be most honored if we learned both from Falwell's victories and what we may perceive as failures/mistakes.

[Jack Maddox]

Allan Said

" realize that my comments here could be taken negatively regarding the whole man."

do YA THINK??????????????

Jack

[Alan Cross]

No, I don't think, Jack. I realize that some people could take it that way because any statements besides praise and glory for some people are considered as out of bounds. But, I will say it again: My comments were not meant to be a personal attack or be negatively directed to the person of Dr. Falwell. I know that he loved Jesus, was a good husband and father, and was very sincere in his ideals. I only disagree with his political approach.

He was the leader of a movement that was before my time. I knew little about it except for the effects that it had on the churches and Christians that I knew, which was significant. My most personal memory of Dr. Falwell occurred right after 9/11 when he was being interviewed by Pat Robertson. I was full of grief flipping through the channels and I saw these two Christian leaders talking about the reasons behind the attack. Dr. Falwell blamed the gays, abortionists, and the ACLU for the attack, citing their activity as why God took His hand off America. I was stunned. That affected me greatly, and when I think of Jerry Falwell, that moment most prominently comes to mind. He later apologized, but I think that he had that initial reaction because he saw the things that happened to this country through the lense of his political and social movement. That is what I disagree with. I could forgive him for his statements, but that was a situation that spoke deeply to me about the flaws of the Religious Right. My desire is that we learn from that, and while emulating his good characteristics, we learn from the things that he had to apologize for.

My goal was to talk about the social and political legacy of the movement of Christian Conservatives that he helped to launch, not to criticize him personally. I obviously failed in communicating that effectively, and again, I apologize.

[Nathan Bradfield]

My comments are primarily directed to the effectiveness of his political legacy for the rest of us.

I gotcha, Alan. And that is what I want to address.

I think this sums up well what you are trying to convey here:

My point is that Jerry Falwell was known for trying to change America primarily through the political arena, and because of that emphasis, I feel that he failed. The negative lesson is, when our energy is focused in the wrong direction, we can also cause harm and weaken the message of Jesus that is not always compatible with the politics of the Religious Right.

Let us not give up doing good and trying to change our nation. But, let us do it with a prophetic voice, not beholden to political processes. Jesus is bigger than political parties...i>

First of all, politics was not his primary vehicle of change. Kevin, above, said something interesting about us in our 30's +/- knew of the more politically active Falwell and not how he started and ended up there. He was a pastor and grew a Christian university to one of the largest private schools in the country.

A nice segue into my second point, Christians focusing attention in politics is not necessarily wrong. In fact, I think it's absolutely necessary that we continue on with what Falwell helped launch many years ago. And here's why:

Civil government is established by God, therefore it is a legitimate area of activity for Christians (Matt 22:21, Rom 13:1, 1 Tim. 2:1-4, 1 Pet 2:13-17). There was a need for civil government when man sinned and became a threat to other men (Gen. 4:23). Politics is the process of electing the best men to office to protect law-abiding citizens against the lawless (Ex 18, Deut. 1:15, 1 Tim.3:1-7). Soon after the flood, God formalized civil gov't by, as Martin Luther wrote, "sharing his power with man" and "granting him power over life and death among men" (Gen. 9:4-6). To speak out against the the principle of political involvment is to call God's wisdom into question and all despots to rule.

Certainly Falwell was not perfect. I don't know about the legitimacy of this, but a friend of mine said Falwell once referred to the women of an all-girls college, which his daughter attended, near Liberty as the "whores on the hill."

Politics, since people are involved, are as dirty as running businesses, families, even churches. Christians cannot excuse themselves from it to focus only on ministry.

We must have both. Balance is the key. Hopefully, Alan, you'll agree that Christians focusing solely on politics will fail as badly as those who focus only on ministry. We must have the right combination of both.

Instead of turning our backs on Falwell's failings, let's learn from his mistakes and continue on with his dream, which is every Christian's dream, to evangelize and win souls.

Love you, brother.

[Nathan Bradfield]

From my comment above, these two lines need "quotes" around them as they are from Alan's post:

"My comments are primarily directed to the effectiveness of his political legacy for the rest of us."

and

"My point is that Jerry Falwell was known for trying to change America primarily through the political arena, and because of that emphasis, I feel that he failed. The negative lesson is, when our energy is focused in the wrong direction, we can also cause harm and weaken the message of Jesus that is not always compatible with the politics of the Religious Right.

Let us not give up doing good and trying to change our nation. But, let us do it with a prophetic voice, not beholden to political processes. Jesus is bigger than political parties..."

Sorry.

[Alan Cross]

Nathan,

Here's my basic political philosophy for Christians: Be involved in politics, do the best you can, bring your faith straight into the public sphere, trust God to make a difference, do not be seduced by the lies of power, do not compromise your convictions for favor from those in power, always be prophetic instead of political, and do not put your faith in politics or power, but in God. If you do those things, you'll turn out alright and we will all be the better for it.

Overall, Nathan, I agree with you. I wholeheartedly believe that Christians should be involved in the political process AND every other area of life. We should bring our faith into it and transform those arenas. We should not retreat from anything. My point is that I saw a heavy focus on politics as though it was the answer by many in the 80's and 90's. I am not saying that we should abandon politics - goodness no! Rather, we should be involved but not put our faith in it. No one would admit to doing that, but I do think that it happened. I think that we are seeing the balance that you talk about return as Christians are remaining involved in politics and are also becoming more involved in social action. I think that we are starting to put our time, energy, and effort, where our mouth has been, so to speak, with Katrina relief being a prime example. My prayer is that we can combine the best of Falwell's political activism with a strong spiritual, social, and economic approach to returning our nation back to faith in God. I am just calling for a more holistic way.

As far as politics not being his primary vehicle of change, from what I have learned since I wrote my post, Dr. Falwell was very involved with helping people and ministering to those in need. I never heard those stories when he was alive as his legacy was primarily shown as one of political activism. Like I said, I did not follow his ministry or Liberty University much, and many of my opinions were formed by his public pronouncements. He was definitely KNOWN more for his politics than anything else, and that is what I am reacting to. That fact teaches me that the impression that people have of me often speaks louder than the things that I do or things that I stand for.

Overall, I don't disagree with anything you said, Nathan. I've probably learned more about Dr. Falwell SINCE I've written this post than I knew before, and for that, my dear readers, I am thankful!

[Jack Maddox]

I believe the response from some of us who perhaps did know Dr. Falwell somewhat (and may I add perhaps also agree with your assesment of some of his political activity and aproach to civic change) is not so much because of what you had to say, but simply perhaps the timing of your saying it. I for one do not believe you meant any thing undue or unkind, but perhaps a week or so would have been prudent and worth the wait. Then again, maybe not : )

Jack

[Alan Cross]

That is well taken, Jack. I was not trying to be disrespectful with the timing, but in retrospect I understand your point. When I read about his death I started thinking about his legacy and some thoughts arose regarding the movement he lead and the lessons that we can learn from it. It seemed appropriate because I had no emotional attachment to him as he was always a very far off figure for me. But, I understand that others feel differently.

[Nathan Bradfield]

Well said, Alan. I concur with your assessment, especially Christian involvement with Katrina relief efforts.

I can see how you would only know of Falwell from his political side. That's all the media is going to show you. Many atheist blogs have posted with glee how glad they are he is dead and included many of their favorite quotes of his. Of course, they are taken out of context and made to relate to the pro-homosexual etc agenda. But this is what the media wants you to see.

Thanks for responding. See you tomorrow night. By the way, did you link to me yet???

[Jack Maddox]

Dr. Falwell also had a great sence of humor...two thoughts come to mind...he would imitate Dennis Swanbergs imitation of him...priceless...and the time he bungied from the top of the vines center in response to a goal met during senior week by the student body...he bungied about 100 feet in his suit and all....EPIC!!!!!!

See you soon Dr. Jerry...until then....

Grace
Jack

[Beth D]

Sorry I'm late,

My head swirls with comments.

First, I'm mad at you, because once again you've reached into my head and written what I couldn't even verbalize.

Second, oh, how my uncles would disagree!

I know next to nothing about Falwell, my eye-roll comes from a different direction--although one you mentioned in the post. It's a pretty common situation, isn't it? A personal calling from God turns into a much-needed, successful ministry. But, one day, something changes. Like a college professor, the minister starts to preach not only his calling but that his calling should be of utmost importance to the exclusion of all else. Politics and media become the easiest way to influence the greatest numbers and it becomes a spiral from there.

My sweet, wonderful uncles, the poorest Republicans on the planet, do believe in a Christian state--whether the country wants it or not. I tend to think it's a bit like demanding your sick neighbor stop coughing instead of fixing him some chicken soup.

I don't know what place Christians as a group have in politics other than personal calling by God. I do wish leaders of Christian ministries would be more reticent in turning their calling into a Pied-Piper song, calling others into something they should probably stay out of.

[Kyle]

Please pardon me for fly-by commenting as I read through your recent posts. I feel like I'm trolling, though I hope I'm not.

Your line that urban poverty is the incubator of teen pregnancy seems a little insubstantial. Surely there have been other societies that were poorer than the urban poor, yet had drastically lower teen pregnancy rates. I'm not saying that there's no relation, or that urban poverty isn't an evil that ought to be alleviated, but surely poverty isn't the chief predictor for illegitimate pregnancy.