The American Spectator

Reader Mail

State of the Race

5.17.07 @ 12:01AM

(Page 2 of 4)

On the other, he was a polarizer of people. He was the whites man's Al Sharpton, who like Mr. Sharpton, often spoke without regard to truth or facts. He was, like Mr. Sharpton, intolerant of and bigoted against those who held different beliefs. And, like Mr. Sharpton, he made a rich man's life out of his rantings.

As one who is not a member of the Assembly of God, I always felt that should Mr. Falwell ever have the power to make us, we'd all be members of his sect or we'd be somewhere else. He had no like for diversity, also like Mr. Sharpton.

Having said that Mr. Falwell must have done something right. The atheists published a vitriolic diatribe shortly after his death so he made them mad and that's a good thing. He also furthered the idea that being religious was not something to hide. He did that so well that even as they are passing laws against Christianity, the socialists are making reference to prayer and praying. Even Ms. Pelosi has said "I am a Catholic grandmother." I think the drive by media gave her a break by capitalizing "catholic" because she certainly has no Catholic beliefs in common with the Church of Rome.

I do believe Mr. Falwell will be remembered as the man who brought pride and political power to Christians. He made the so called "Religious Right" something that stirred fear and loathing in the hearts of the Godless Democrats. That's is a worthy epitaph for any man of the cloth.
-- Jay W. Molyneaux
Denver, North Carolina

"That tone -- angry, bombastic, and frequently puritanical -- was easily caricatured as hateful and intolerant of women, homosexuals, and religious minorities. Worse, it was often difficult to square with the Gospel."

I fully agree with W. James Antle II that Rev. Falwell did not properly distinguish law and gospel; but I say this as a Lutheran. Jerry Falwell was a Baptist and could not help reflect long-standing disagreements between Luther and the Anabaptists. It is perfectly in keeping with Baptist theology to confront the person in the pew with his sins and call him to a life of obedience to Christ almost in the same breath. For good or ill, this is an approach is and has been common among Protestants of various types. Too common by my lights but then "take the soup can off the shelf and read the label." In significant matters, I could not disagree with him more; but it pointless to fault Falwell for acting on who is was.

In the political realm, there is one certain thing likely to be all but lost in all the commentaries. Here was a man who took seriously the great promise of America. The voice of a single man can be heard in the forum of American deliberations and change the nation. For all his misgivings, Jerry Falwell loved his country.
-- Michael Wm. Dooley
Indianapolis, Indiana

The media attacks on Falwell over the years should be taken with a grain of salt. Maybe a tablespoon of salt. I saw Falwell speak to a student and professor audience at the University of Pennsylvania in 1982 or 1983. He was in his prime, he had just helped bring Reagan to office, and he was very, very good at dealing with the audience and some very pointed questions. No boneheaded comments, nothing outlandish and a lot of people left with an unexpected respect for him. I don't know much about him as a preacher or a political organizer, but I know what I saw then. It wasn't the wacky caricature that the mainstream media wanted to paint, and still want to paint, whenever a preacher says something conservative.
-- Greg F

Dr. Antle, I presume, the Reverend Falwell, would refer to himself as Dr. Falwell yet he had no doctorate degree from anywhere. He and I assume Dr. Robertson, another fraud, would use calamities as examples of divine judgments against secular society. Whether it was Katrina, do these two theologians know that New Orleans is below sea level, or the incineration of the World Trade Center, which was not because of our surrender to homosexuality!

That's just idiocy. It should remind you of another evangelical Protestant, John Wesley who preached that the cause of earthquakes was sins and that the cure was to believe on the lord, Jesus Christ, an individual who never even contemplated the institutionalization of Christianity!

I'd only like to know what sort of fortune this guy amassed off the backs of many hard-working, God-fearing, and overly credulous people. In our increasing balkanized and decadent society we are ruled by buffoons, taught by idiots, preached at by hypocrites and preyed upon by charlatans.
-- E. Del Colle III

JUDGING GIULIANI & CO.
Re: John Tabin's Rudy Was Way OK:

Obviously, Rudy has John in his back pocket. He is not a true conservative. He is wrong on many social conservative issues. He is more like 50/50 than 80/20. There is no way for a true conservative to vote for him unless Hillary is running and he is our only other choice.
--- Joseph D'Ambrosia

I'll grant you Rudy is way OK on the war. His answers out-distance John McCain's by miles. And, I am not particularly worried about Rudy's stance on abortion. The question of Roe v. Wade pales when compared to bombs exploding next door or terrorists taking over a school in a neighborhood nearby.

What really bothers me about Rudy is the same thing that bothers me about Newt. These two guys fall in and out of love way too easily; and once unzipped they go about destroying lives in every direction. Do we really want another sex scandal in the White House... this time our party?
-- Judy Beumler
Louisville, Kentucky

Letter to the Editor

topics:
Education, Trade, Health Care, John McCain, Mainstream Media, Catholicism, Abortion, Constitution, Law, Iraq, Israel, Energy