Jerry Falwell

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Jerry Falwell

Jerry Lamon Falwell (born August 11, 1933 in Lynchburg, Virginia ; † May 15, 2007 ibid) was an American Baptist - fundamentalist pastor and television preacher , who was best known for his clear support for the religious right . He is the founder of Megachurch Thomas Road Baptist Church in Lynchburg, the Moral Majority , Liberty University , Elam Home for men with alcohol and drug problems, and Liberty Godparent Home for women in trouble because of pregnancy.

Life

Jerry Falwell and his twin brother Gene were born on April 11, 1933 in Fairview Heights , Lynchburg, Virginia, to Helen Virginia (nee Beasley) and Carey Hezekiah Falwell.

His father, Carey H. Falwell, was an extravagant entrepreneur who opened his first grocery store when he was 22. Soon he was operating 17 gas stations, many of them with small restaurants and shops. He built oil storage tanks, owned an oil company and founded the American Bus Line in 1927, which installed old battery-operated film projectors to show the drivers films by Charlie Chaplin as well as Laurel and Hardy . He later turned to alcohol smuggling and countless other businesses. His best-known business was the Merry Garden Dance Hall and Dining Room high up on a hill in Virginia that became the center of the Swing Society in Virginia. He also rejected religion (like his father before).

His mother was deeply religious and , as he said in the autobiography Strength for the Journey, the person who "planted the seeds of faith in him from the start".

He declared his acceptance of Christ on the evening of January 20, 1952 at Park Avenue Baptist Church in Lynchburg and met his future wife, the church pianist Macel Pate. The three children Jerry Jr. , Jonathan and Jeannie were born from her marriage.

Jerry Falwell founded the Thomas Road Baptist Church in 1956, which was described as the fastest growing church in the United States in the early 1970s and grew from an initial 35 church attendants to 22,000 members.

Attitude to the civil rights movement and the apartheid regime in South Africa

Falwell opposed the black civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s. He said of Martin Luther King :

“I do question the sincerity and nonviolent intentions of some civil rights leaders such as Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., James L. Farmer, Jr., and others, who are known to have left wing associations. ”

“I doubt the sincerity and non-violent intentions of some of the civil rights leaders like Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., James L. Farmer, Jr., and others known to have left-wing connections. "

- Jerry Falwell

In 1965 he took the view that the end of segregation would result in the end of the “white race”. On the anti-racist court decision “ Brown vs. Board of Education "he said in 1958:

“If Chief Justice Warren and his associates had known God's word and had desired to do the Lord's will, I am quite confident that the 1954 decision would never had been made. The facilities should be separate. When God has drawn a line of distinction, we should not attempt to cross that line. "

“If Chief Justice Warren and his colleagues had known the Word of God and had a desire to do the Lord's will, I believe the 1954 decision would never have been made. The [public] institutions should be separate. If God has drawn a line of discernment, we shouldn't try to break that line. "

- Jerry Falwell

He later completely revised this view. The first baptism of an African American in Falwell's community took place in 1971. Falwell also spoke out in favor of the apartheid system in South Africa. In this context, he called on his followers to invest in South African gold.

Attitude to the Vietnam War

In connection with the Vietnam War , Falwell criticized the fact that the US had not waged an all-out war against North Vietnam . The US president had a servant of God to use all the weapons the right to the evildoers ruin and destruction would bring. "

Attitude to equal rights for women

Falwell was of the opinion that the Equal Rights Amendment, an amendment to the constitution that aimed to achieve equal rights for women, would deprive women of many “special rights” and should therefore be rejected. Feminism is the root cause of divorce because women strive for "self-actualization". Falwell said: "If we exclude women from public life, it is not because we want to give them up, but because we want to give them back their essential honor ... The most outstanding and highest calling of women is always as wife and mother" .

The Clinton Chronicles

In 1994, Falwell advertised a documentary called The Clinton Chronicles: An Investigation into the Alleged Criminal Activities of Bill Clinton ( The Clinton Chronicles: An Investigation into the Alleged Criminal Activities of Bill Clinton ). Falwell also distributed this video. The documentary claims that Clinton is implicated in a murder and cocaine smuggling conspiracy with Vincent Foster , James McDougall and Ron Brown . The theory was revoked, but the video still sold more than 150,000 times.

Behind the creators of the video was the organization “Citizens for Honest Government”, to which Jerry Falwell paid US $ 200,000 between 1994 and 1995. In 1995, Citizens for Honest Government interviewed two Arkansas State Police state troopers , Roger Perry and Larry Patterson, about conspiracy theory.

Falwell's advertisement for the 80-minute video also included an excerpt showing Falwell a defaced "journalist" claiming to be afraid for his life.

The journalist accused Clinton of killing numerous journalists who got too close to the matter.

It was later revealed that the "journalist" was Patrick Matrisciana, the video producer and president of Citizens for Honest Government. Falwell later distanced himself from the authenticity of the video. In a 2005 interview for the documentary " The Hunting of the President ," Falwell said, "To this day, I do not know whether the allegations made in the Clinton Chronicles are true."

More political views

Among other things, Falwell called for the school system to be converted from a public system to a voucher system for parents, with the hope that the entire school system would be taken over by Christian communities. He was considered a supporter of President Bush . He described the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 as God's revenge on America's liberal sin . Falwell also denied global warming , citing climate deniers like Fred Singer and Bjørn Lomborg . He thought the warnings about climate change were a satanic diversionary maneuver intended to prevent Christians from preaching the gospel. He said of unions that they should stop asking for more money and study the Bible instead. In 1999, Falwell speculated that the Antichrist might be on earth and be a Jew. In 2006, the Jerusalem Post reported that Falwell had endorsed the theological position that Jews would automatically go to Paradise after their death because of the covenant between Moses and God. Falwell obtained a reply in which he emphasized that all Jews who do not expressly confess to Jesus Christ are threatened with hell.

Falwell was a supporter of the Guatemalan politician and dictator Efraín Ríos Montt .

Falwell was a supporter of Christian Zionism , he rejected Sharon's unilateral disengagement plan and criticized George Bush for asking Israel in 2002 to withdraw its tanks from the Palestinian cities.

Falwell continued to criticize the television series Teletubbies for believing that the character Tinky-Winky was gay because it was pink, wore a handbag and the symbol of the Gay Pride movement on her head. This homosexuality would spoil the children (in fact the figure is purple).

Litigation with the hustler

In the November issue of 1983 brought Hustler a parody about Falwell. The magazine mimicked an advertisement from Campari in which celebrities talk about their first Campari. The TV preacher spoke about "his first time" in a fake interview: Allegedly he had incest with his mother in a toilet block while he was drunk. Jerry Falwell then sued the magazine for $ 45 million in damages for psychological stress. Larry Flynt , the magazine's editor, defended himself against the lawsuit. Finally, on February 24, 1988, the United States Supreme Court ruled in favor of Flynt and the Hustler . The ruling was based on the fact that the first amendment and the freedom of expression guaranteed therein were more important than the alleged harm that public persons would have from psychological stress as a result of parodies.

Litigation with Jerry Sloan

In 1984 Falwell described the gay-friendly Metropolitan Community Church as "bestial" and "satanic". This church would one day be "wiped out" and there would be a festival in heaven. Jerry Sloan sued him for $ 5,000 donated to Sacramento 's first "Gay Community Center". Falwell appealed unsuccessfully.

Prophecy and demise

A few years before his death, Jerry Falwell prophesied that the end of the world was at hand and that he himself would see the return of the Lord. The TV preacher died on May 15, 2007 of an arrhythmia at the age of 73 in Lynchburg, Virginia.

Criticism of Falwell

Falwell was already very controversial during his lifetime and was considered a political target of the Democrats in the United States. But Falwell was also heavily criticized among the Republicans. Barry Goldwater , the 1964 Republican presidential candidate, said of Falwell: “ Every good Christian should line up and kick Jerry Falwell's ass. ”

Falwell's view, later withdrawn, that the victims of the September 11, 2001 attacks “possibly deserved” their fate was described by the publicist Christopher Hitchens as treason .

Books

  • Church Aflame . Impact, 1971.
  • Capturing a Town for Christ . Revell, 1973.
  • Liberty Bible Commentary on the New Testament . Thomas Nelson, 1978.
  • Listen America! Doubleday, 1980.
  • The Fundamentalist Phenomenon . Doubleday, 1981.
  • Finding Inner Peace and Strength . Doubleday, 1982.
  • Liberty Bible Commentary . Thomas Nelson, 1982.
  • When it Hurts Too Much to Cry . Tyndale House , 1984.
  • Wisdom for Living . Victor Books, 1984.
  • Stepping out on Faith . Tyndale House , 1984.
  • Champions for God . Victor Books, 1985.
  • If I Should Die Before I Wake . Thomas Nelson, 1986.
  • The Fundamentalist Phenomenon / the Resurgence of Conservative Christianity . Baker Book House , 1986.
  • Strength for the Journey . Simon & Schuster , 1987.
  • The New American Family . Word, 1992.
  • Falwell: An Autobiography . Liberty House , 1997. ( Ghost written by Mel White [1] )
  • Fasting Can Change Your Life . Regal, 1998.
  • Achieving Your Dreams . World Publishers, 2006.
  • Building Churches of Dynamic Faith: A Five-Session Study Guide . World Publishers, 2006.
  • Dynamic Faith Journal . World Publishers, 2006.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Applebome, Peter: Jerry Falwell, leading religious conservative, dies at 73 . In: The New York Times , May 15, 2007. 
  2. ↑ Thomas Road Baptist Church: History, as of 2006 ( Memento of August 1, 2008 in the Internet Archive )
  3. ↑ James M. Washington: A Testament of Hope: the essential writings of Martin Luther King . HarperCollins, San Francisco 1990, ISBN 0-06-064691-8 (English).
  4. ↑ May 28, 2007 . The Nation. Retrieved November 7, 2010.
  5. ^ Falwell and the civil rights movement " http://hpd.de/node/13062/seite/0/1
  6. ↑ a b https://www.theguardian.com/media/2007/may/17/broadcasting.guardianobituaries
  7. ↑ a b http://www.nndb.com/people/558/000022492/
  8. ↑ https://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,959697,00.html
  9. ↑ Falwell, Listen, America! , 85.
  10. ↑ Falwell, Listen, America! , 98.
  11. ↑ Michele Swenson: Democracy Under Assault: TheoPolitics, Incivility and Violence on the Right . Sol Venture Press, Denver 2004, ISBN 978-0-9766788-0-9 , pp. 172f.
  12. ↑ a b c d The Falwell connection ( September 4, 2011 memento in the Internet Archive ) by Murray Waas Salon.com
  13. ^ The Hunting of the President (DVD) 2005
  14. ↑ literally: “ Labor unions should study and read the Bible instead of asking for more money ” , quoted from TITEL-Kulturmagazin ( https://titel-kulturmagazin.net/2010/11/29/trennt-die-gruenschnabel-spreu- vom-profi-wheat / )
  15. ↑ Chip Berlet / Matthew N. Lyons: Right-Wing Populism in America: Too Close for Comfort , Guilford Press, New York 2000, pp. 323f and 406.
  16. ↑ http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/05/15/334999/-Jerry-Falwell-friend-of-Efrain-Rios-Montt
  17. ↑ http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2002/10/03/60minutes/main524268.shtml
  18. ^ Hustler Magazine, Inc. et al. v. Jerry Falwell, 485 US 46
  19. ↑ Katy Burns: Jerry Falwell's greatest hates . Archived from the original on September 27, 2007. Retrieved May 18, 2007.
  20. ↑ About Us: Lambda Community Fund ( Memento from January 25, 2008 in the Internet Archive )
  21. ↑ Tagesschau.de, May 16, 2007 ( Memento from September 16, 2008 in the Internet Archive )
  22. ^ Guardian: God moves to the left
  23. ↑ “ Christopher Hitchens and Ralph Reed Square Off over Late Leader's Influence; the Christian Right. "May 17, 2007. FOX News. Retrieved June 23, 2009.

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Falwell, Jerry
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Falwell, Jerry Lamon (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American fundamentalist Baptist pastor and television preacher
DATE OF BIRTH August 11, 1933
PLACE OF BIRTH Lynchburg, Virginia
DATE OF DEATH May 15, 2007
Place of death Lynchburg, Virginia