Death of a Religious Right Icon
Jerry Falwell, 1933-2007
What the Corporate Media is saying...
Jerry Falwell, 1933-2007
Harnessed The Political Power of Evangelicals
By Joe Holley / The Washington Post
Jerry Falwell, 73, a Southern Baptist preacher who as founder and president of the Moral Majority presided over a marriage of Christian beliefs and conservative political values -- a bond that bore prodigious fruit for the Republican Party during the past quarter-century -- died May 15 of congestive heart failure after he was found unconscious in his office at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va. According to a school spokesman, he was taken to Lynchburg General Hospital, where CPR efforts were unsuccessful.
An Undeniable Political Force
By Jeff E. Schapiro / The Richmond Times-Dispatch
The Rev. Jerry Falwell is credited with making religious conservatives an enduring force within the Republican Party three decades ago. In doing so, Falwell became a polarizing figure. "That political train in Virginia didn't pass around the state without stopping in the Lynchburg station that had Falwell's name on it," said Charles J. Davis III, a Richmond lobbyist who was press secretary to the late Gov. John N. Dalton.
Legacy of Influence, Intolerance
By Michael Paul Williams / The Richmond Times-Dispatch
Falwell Was Also Faithful to Sports
By Hank Kurz Jr. / AP Sports Writer, The Richmond Times-Dispatch
Jerry Falwell, Moral Majority Founder, Dies at 73
By Peter Applebome / The New York Times
The Rev. Jerry Falwell, the fundamentalist preacher who founded the Moral Majority and brought the language and passions of religious conservatives into the hurly-burly of American politics, died yesterday in Lynchburg, Va. He was 73. His death was announced by Liberty University, in Lynchburg, where Mr. Falwell, its founder, was chancellor. The university said the cause had not been determined, adding that he died in a hospital after being found unconscious yesterday morning in his university office.
Preacher Built Religious Right Into A Powerful Political Force
By Stephanie Simon / Los Angeles Times
The Rev. Jerry Falwell, the fundamentalist preacher who transformed American politics by rallying the religious right into an electoral force, died Tuesday of apparent heart failure shortly after collapsing in his office at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va. He was 73. Falwell had suffered several cardiac and respiratory problems in recent years. He was found unconscious in his office Tuesday morning and was pronounced dead about an hour later at Lynchburg General Hospital.
Rev. Jerry Falwell, leader of Moral Majority, dies at 73
By Mark Feeney and Michael Kranish / The Boston Globe
WASHINGTON -- The Rev. Jerry Falwell, a Baptist preacher whose founding of the Moral Majority helped spur a Christian conservative movement that is reverberating in the 2008 presidential campaign, died yesterday at his office at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va. Rev. Falwell, 73, who had a history of heart problems, was found unconscious and pronounced dead after efforts to revive him were unsuccessful.
Rev. Jerry Falwell dies at 73
Religious right's 'lightning rod' transformed politics
The Dallas Daily News
The Republican National Convention in 1984 in Dallas was a heady celebration of religion and patriotism. And as leader of the politically potent Moral Majority, the Rev. Jerry Falwell was one of the stars. Rev. Jerry Falwell He led a giant prayer service at First Baptist Church. He testified before the GOP platform committee. And he gave the benediction after delegates renominated President Ronald Reagan and running mate George Bush. Mr. Falwell called them "God's instruments for rebuilding America."
Falwell Was 'Old Guard' Of Religious Right
Death Of Evangelist Sheds Light On Divisions
With Younger Members Of Religious Movement
CBS News
Even in his final years, the Rev. Jerry Falwell personified the religious right for many Americans. But the pastor, who died Tuesday at age 73, was from a generation of leaders that many evangelicals came to view as members of an "old guard" whose approach was outdated. Falwell was stricken at his campus office and died after a career in which the evangelist used the power of television to transform the religious right into a mighty force in American politics.
The Kingdom and the Power
The Rev. Jerry Falwell revolutionized the place of the
church in American political life. Remembering an icon.
By Howard Fineman / MSNBC - Newsweek
The Reagan Revolution has come and gone, and now the Republican Red State Machine—assembled by Karl Rove on the Reagan foundations—is grinding its gears. If you are looking for a sign that “CHANGE IS A COMIN’,” as they say, the death of the Rev. Jerry Falwell is as good an indicator as any. He saw patterns where others didn’t—for good and for ill—and, knowing him, I think he would see his passing for what it is: the end of an era.
Falwell's Legacy: Faith, Hate or Teletubbies?
By Jonathan Mandell / CNN.com
"When I have children one day," Samantha Krieger of Dallas, Texas, wrote to CNN.com, "they will know of the legacy that Dr. Jerry Falwell left." But what will that legacy be? To Krieger, who had personal connections to Falwell -- she attended the college he founded; he officiated at her wedding; her husband was his nurse -- the evangelist "was a great leader and hero." Victoria Kidd of Winchester, Virginia, believes the exact opposite: "The damage he has done to the Christian faith is immeasurable," she wrote to CNN.com. Others would prefer to think that he has no legacy at all. "He should be erased from every history book and media story," wrote Brian Pippinger of St. Petersburg, Florida.
Falwell's Political Legacy Continues
Moral Majority Founder's Influence Had Waned in Recent Years
By John Cochran / ABC News
The death of the Rev. Jerry Falwell on Tuesday raises the question: Who fills the political void on the religious right? First though, another question: Is there any void to fill? Falwell, in the opinion of many on both the political left and right, gradually lost much of his influence after his post-Sept. 11 accusations that "the pagans, and the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians … the ACLU, People for the American Way" had to bear some of the responsibility for the attacks.
Falwell Rallied Moral Majority, Riled Critics
Falwell's Life Marked by Influence, Controversy
By John Cochran / ABC News
The Rev. Jerry Falwell, who died Tuesday at the age of 73, rarely shied away from controversy. After Sept. 11, he blamed the terrorist attacks on the morals of some Americans. On the Christian television program the "700 Club," Falwell said, "That's the pagans and abortionists, the feminists and the gays and lesbians who are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle," later adding, "the ACLU, People for the American Way, all of them tried to secularize America. I point the finger in their face and say, you helped this happen." Full story...
Falwell Changed U.S. Politics
By Rachel Zoll / The Associated Press
-- The Rev. Jerry Falwell's habit of sounding off on everything from liberals and terrorism to the "Teletubbies" regularly embarrassed his fellow conservatives. But it would be a mistake to remember the pastor as out of touch, or the buffoon his critics made him out to be. Falwell turned a major segment of U.S. Christianity into a political sledgehammer _ even if the movement has not achieved all of its goals and its leader's tongue got him in trouble.
Television Evangelist Falwell Dies at 73
By Sue Lindsey / The Associated Press
LYNCHBURG, Va. -- The Rev. Jerry Falwell collapsed at his campus office and died Tuesday after a career in which the evangelist used the power of television to transform the religious right into a mighty force in American politics. He was 73. The founder of the Moral Majority was discovered without a pulse at Liberty University and pronounced dead at a hospital an hour later. Dr. Carl Moore, Falwell's physician, said he had a heart condition and presumably died of a heart rhythm abnormality.
Jerry Falwell Told Followers He Was at Peace With Death
FOX News
LYNCHBURG, Va. -- Spiritually, the Rev. Jerry Falwell seemed prepared for his passing. A little more than two weeks ago, the founder of the Moral Majority preached of man being indestructible until he has finished God's work, then told churchgoers he was at peace with death. On the day before he died, Falwell called his son and asked him to take a drive up the mountain that overlooks Liberty University, where he posed for pictures near a new, massive "LU" logo with students from the school he built.
Best Newspaper article:
Falwell Leaves Lasting Legacy
His flock grapples with grief
By Pamela J. Podger and Annie Johnson / The Roanoke Times
LYNCHBURG -- The day started with an omelet and coffee at a local restaurant, where the Rev. Jerry Falwell paid equal attention to waitresses and visitors who stopped at his table. He sketched out plans for his Liberty University, fully confident that his breakfast companion, vice president Ronald Godwin, would bring them to fruition as usual. The two men left about 10 a.m. for their offices. When Falwell, 73, was late for an 11 a.m. meeting at his Thomas Road Baptist Church, staff rushed into his office and found him collapsed on the floor. He never regained consciousness, despite the efforts of emergency personnel.
Posted by Editor at May 16, 2007 06:54 PM
