tags: Jerry Falwell, quotes, religion, bigotry
As you probably know, Reverend Jerry Falwell died suddenly today after eating breakfast. It sounds like he died from a heart attack, although no one is quite sure yet. But isn't it interesting that Falwell was once described as having "heart challenges"? Speaking of having heart challenges, he was a true fire-and-brimstone preacher who founded a college, Liberty University, that presumably is trying to carry on with his proud tradition of judging others unnecessarily harshly. Here are a few quotes from Jerry Falwell, lest any of us forget what sort of man Jerry Falwell really was;
I hope I live to see the day when, as in the early days of our country, we won't have any public schools. The churches will have taken them over again and Christians will be running them. What a happy day that will be!
-- Reverend Jerry Falwell, America Can Be Saved, 1979 pp. 52-53, from Albert J Menendez and Edd Doerr, The Great Quotations on Religious Freedom.
The idea that religion and politics don't mix was invented by the Devil to keep Christians from running their own country.
-- Reverend Jerry Falwell, Sermon, July 4, 1976
Grown men should not be having sex with prostitutes unless they are married to them.
-- Reverend Jerry Falwell, on CNN's Crossfire, May 17, 1997
I do not believe the homosexual community deserves minority status. One's misbehavior does not qualify him or her for minority status. Blacks, Hispanics, women, etc., are God-ordained minorities who do indeed deserve minority status.
-- Reverend Jerry Falwell, USA Today Chat, quoted from The Religious Freedom Coalition, "The Two faces of Jerry Falwell"
Jesus set the example for love, as did Moses. I think Muhammad set an opposite example.
Reverend Jerry Falwell, at a speech in Kashmir that led to a riot.
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The passing of Rev Falwell should be met with mixed feelings. Some of those feelings are the sadness that is felt with the death of anyone, as anyone's death diminishes us all. But other feelings are that of happiness in that he is no longer here to inflict harm on his fellow man.
He is now with God to answer for that harm, may God be merciful to his soul.
Rev Spears
I refuse to delight in his death, as to do that opens me to delighting in the deaths of others.
But I will say that he was a hate-spreading person who made the country a worse place. He damaged us as a nation. There is nothing to miss, and his own legacy is a dark one, and the pages of history will speak only of his negatives in time.
For those unwilling to celebrate Jerry Falwell's death, allow me:
Hooray! Hooray!
Falwell is finally dead!
Woohoo!!!
Say hello to jesus, you hateful, deceitful, hypocritical motherfucker!
Of course there are deaths we should be happy about. Imagine what a great day it would have been if Jerry Falwell had his heart attack and his fat ass fell on Pat Robertson, who was able to shoot Jimmy Swaggart just before he suffocated? And then the pope showed up, slipped on the blood, hit his head and died! Everyone dies, so If we can be sad about good people dying, we're certainly entitled to be glad when assholes do.
Oh, and there's no god.
"I really believe that the pagans, and the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians who are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU, People for the American Way -- all of them who have tried to secularize America -- I point the finger in their face and say, "You helped this happen."
-- Rev. Jerry Falwell, blaming civil libertarians, feminists, homosexuals, and abortion rights supporters for the terrorist attacks of Tuesday, September 11, 2001, quoted from John F Harris, "God Gave US 'What We Deserve,' Falwell Says," The Washington Post (September 14, 2001)
Good riddance you stupid fuck.
R.I.P. Jerry Falwell
On Falwell's death I can contribute nothing. I didn't know the man. But my sympathies go out to his family and the millions of his followers which will, no doubt, make enormous contributions to his estate. Granting one last surge of cash to mark their dear leader's passing.
To Jerry, if you can hear me:
All the things you have done and all of the opinions you have voiced in your lifetime come down to this moment. You're dead. And if you are correct and we all face an ultimate judgement based on our actions then, I hope for your sake, that you are judged by your greater lights and not your darker ones.
So say we all.
I hope Freddy Mercury meets him at the pearly gates and tells him to go to hell.
I confess, I feel guilty for being glad that he's dead. But I can't help it: I am. One of the worst purveyors of hate and acting on irrational beliefs, Falwell was a catalyst for the fundamental religious movement that began in the 80s and has resurged in the United States over the past decade. A generation or more of young people have been raised to believe that all the ills of the world can be blamed on people who don't think the same way. We need fewer people like Falwell, not more.
I can't wait for the postmortem study on Falwell's ministries and the impact he's had on American culture. It'll be a horror story in all but name.
Moses sets the example of love? As in Numbers 31.17-18?
31:17 Now therefore kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman that hath known man by lying with him.
31:18 But all the women children, that have not known a man by lying with him, keep alive for yourselves.
I guess that depends on what your definition of "love" is.
It is unfortunate when a person has been such a force for evil in the world that the world is better off when they are no longer in it.
Speaking out against the lesbigaytrans perverts is a crime worse than murder.
This is why Falwell is being vilified.
You may be interested to note the religious/conservative reaction to liberal joy at Falwell's death: http://www.haloscan.com/comments/amfell/3685195453003356776/?a=40851
Let's not forget that this man had a family who grieves his loss. Let's not emulate this man by becoming just like him!
Let's hope instead that he comes back as a cross dresser in Baghdad or as a pregnant, cocaine-addicted, abused teenager in the pre-Roe vs. Wade America that he glorified.
Only God can judge him. I see his only fault being his naiveity in thinking he could control politicians. I often think Christians are grabbing a tiger by the tail when they think they can control special interest big business bought and paid for politicians.
Now american Christians are pretty much associated with aggresive foreign policy and the mass slaughter of innocents.
Other than that I think the guy had the right idea.
The world is a better place for his loss, and it truly is a shame that such things should be said about anyone.
I mourn not Falwell, but rather mourn that Falwell was Falwell.
And don't forget "Blow 'em all away in the name of the lord." Falwell was America's Ian Paisley. Good riddance to the hateful old bastard. Think I'll lift a pint tonight to celebrate his overdue death.
One need not take pleasure in a man's death (I certainly do not) to recognize that America took a great step forward today. Falwell, and those who follow him, are all about standing still, and we as a society cannot afford that in an ever-more-rapidly changing world.
As an athiest I am saddened that there is no hell for I would truely rejoice knowing that
Jerry was there.
Well chosen quotes, GS. But please fix the close blockquote tag on the second to last one.
Falwell was a monster, and we're all better off without him.
Unfortunately, his legacy, that of millions of people infected with religiously justified and politically active hate, lives on.
Disagreeing with someone polictically isn't a reason to celebrate their death. Indeed, even though I seriously disagree with almost every single choice the man has made, I would mourn the President's death, due to the office he holds and the respect it deserves. I would also silently respect the Vice President's death, again, due to the respect for his office, although I personally believe he is a turd fart of a human being. However, Jerry Falwell, is outright evil and holds no office worthy of respect. Good riddance to that fat piece of shit.
Lina,
Pol pot and Hitler had families that grieved their loss. I can respect their grief. However, as members of a society that is now worse off for his having existed, I am happy to see that Falwell will no longer be a blight of utter ignorance on cable news channels.
Some of those feelings are the sadness that is felt with the death of anyone, as anyone's death diminishes us all.
Hmm, utter tripe I'd say. This man's death no more diminished us than did the death of any other hateful bigoted piece of human garbage. The Hitler comparisons above are appropriate in that the world is better off without them. This news almost makes me wish I was religious just so I could see him in hell, instead I just feel sorry for the worms that will eventually eat him and hope they don't get infected by his vile nature.
(Actually that would make a pretty cool horror B-Movie, "Attack Of The Fundie Wormbeasts" or something similar...)
Seems every time I've seen him in the media he got fatter and fatter (more chins?).
So wonder what breakfast was?
3 portions of biscuits and country gravy
2 doz eggs
24 strips of fatty bacon
Coffee heavy on cream and sugar
1 mini orange juice
Rejoicing in the demise of the Rev doesn't explain how such a person gained so much power in the world. That is our fault and the fault of the "good" Christians who didn't speak out against all of his divisive and repulsive views. His success allows Rush, et al to have such a free market of hate.
I have to say that when I heard the news of Falwell's passing a big "WOO HOO"!!! escaped my lips and the song "DING DONG THE WITCH IS DEAD" went through my mind. Falwell is now sitting on the lump of hot coal that Satan has had waiting for him. The hate and the harm that he has brought to this world will fade.
But now let us celebrate the death of a hatemonger and rest assured that Satan will be shoving a pineapple up his fat ass every day for eternity.
It's interesting to compare the level of "hate" in Falwell's comments with that in the comments here.
Falwell's death *almost* makes me wish there was a hell he could rot in for eternity. In its absence, I rejoice in hope that he will be remembered with scorn and repulsion.
erm...
Oh, really...
If (and only if) that is the kind of "idea" you are talking about I can honestly say: FU you dirty, slimy douchebag.
Bob said -
Amen! It's a shame that spreading love doesn't result in the greater spread of love, but spreading hate causes forest fires of hate.
Note, everyone, that there is a serious difference between the hate some here show for Falwell, and Falwell's hate for many of us. Falwell was raised up as a leader in his organization, and he was raised up *because* of his particular set of oft-expressed hatreds.
Falwell hated gays because they were gay. He hated atheists because they were atheist. He hated liberals because they were liberal. I hated the f**k because he hated so many people I loved, and because he *actively* worked to make their lives more difficult. And he had the power to help do that.
The passing of such a man is worthy of celebration. Though excessive celebration, like in football, might best be saved for when you're off camera. If for no other reason that to avoid riling up the other team's more violent fans. In this case, there's very little doubt that their team has the more violent fans.
I don't think Falwell hated anyone. I think nearly everything he said was wrong, but wrong in the sense of being erroneous, not immoral. How can a sincerely held belief be immoral? I disagreed with him, but I don't think he was motivated by hatred. I can't say the same of many of the commenters here.
Bob,
You think he did not hate anyone? See the posting at the Washington Monthly about Falwell's getting his start on the issue of whether segregated (i.e., black-hating), religious, private schools should get tax breaks. When the courts lifted the tax deduction, Falwell and his religious cohorts channeled white rage into a political movement. Did you knowe a rural Virginia county shut down its public schools after Brown v. Board of Education for something like 17 years to keep white kids (sequestered in private schools) away from Black kids? For the great majority of the poor black kids in that county, the action ment a whole generation went without an education except what litttle their parents might manage. You think race hatred was far from Falwell's mind? Praise the white man's Lord if you do.
Hedwig, I can think of no higher compliment on your post than to tell you that this reminds me of Molly Ivins' excellent column on Richard Nixon's life and legacy. I see I'm not the only one who likes it -- it's the most emailed post on all of ScienceBlogs! Well done.
Check out this new game - Hitler or Falwell!
http://nom-de-grr.livejournal.com/51142.html
he was a piece of shit...
remember he supported segregation, and insulted martin luther king jr. for saying people shouldn't judge each other for their colour of their skin and he supported aparthied gov't in south africa
and he blamed 9/11 and katrina on blacks, jews, gays, feminists and muslims