It’s not Rev. Falwell they hate so much as the truth he delivered.
The recent media tempest surrounding the passing of Reverend Jerry Falwell has blown away the mask of sublime compassion and tolerance worn by members of the mainstream left. Sadly – pitifully, really – the collective face exposed beneath the altruistic facade is one marred by ugliness and hatred – scarred by latent self-loathing.
Anti-Christian activist and former John Edwards presidential campaign blogger Amanda Marcotte – whom Edwards defended prior to her resignation from his campaign – kicked off the dancing-on-the-grave hoedown on her popular Pandagon website. Upon news of Falwell’s death, Marcotte pronounced, “The gates of hell swing wide open and Satan welcomes his beloved son.” Further down the thread, someone identified as “Vir Modestus” replied, “There is no heaven (or alas, hell) for him to go to. All that’s left is memory. May his memory rot like his flesh.” Blog member “tzs” longed for the days of old, writing, “…after watching Falwell I know why the Romans threw the Christians to the lions.”
Meanwhile, on the “gay” JoeMyGod weblog, “Vince” lamented, “I had hoped the [expletive deleted] would have pulled through and lived the rest of his life as a vegetable…” And “MegaHorror” over at Wonkette wrote, “I hope he suffered and I hope he was scared…”
There have been thousands of such hateful musings from self-identified “gays” and “lesbians,” atheists and other moveon.org types who make up the base of the “progressive” movement. Many of them can’t even be repeated.
Members of the mainstream media have also piled on. Chicago Sun Times “religion” columnist Cathleen Falsani (who claims to be a Christian) shamelessly celebrated Rev. Falwell’s death in her May 18th column Sigh of Relief over Falwell’s Death, equating him to a murderous mafia don and writing, “In fact, my very first thought upon hearing of the Rev. Falwell’s passing was: Good. And I didn’t mean ‘good’ in a oh-good-he’s-gone-home-to-be-with-the-Lord kind of way. I meant ‘good’ as in ‘Ding-dong, the witch is dead.’”
Although we might expect a spattering of comparable vitriol from a handful of right-leaning fringe elements if a similarly controversial liberal figure had died, it’s hard to imagine those inside the pro-family conservative mainstream – which Rev. Falwell represented – engaging in such a vile celebration of death.
What causes a heart to become so blackened? Why such hatred for a man who spent his entire life in service to both the Lord he loved and to his fellow man? True, he was unapologetically blunt in his defense of objective truth and unwavering in his opposition to sin, but Rev. Falwell showed – in word and deed – that he truly cared for those who hated him. He exposed them to the compassion and love of Christ, who freely offers salvation from the spiritual and physical death which is a natural consequence of immoral self-indulgence.
It’s not Rev. Falwell they hate so much as the truth he delivered. And as much as they hate that truth, they hate the Author of that truth. Scripture tells us that God’s natural law – His objective truth – is written on the heart of every man, woman and child. Our innate understanding of that absolute truth – whether we acknowledge it or not – coupled with our accountability to a sovereign but loving Creator, becomes like a virus to those who deny it. That denial of reality in turn manifests itself in a visceral hatred of those other equally broken and fallen souls who, by contrast, do acknowledge His truth.
Man’s rebellion against the Creator is no new thing. It's a time-honored tradition among those who prefer to view the world through the prism of moral relativism. And the world’s hatred of those who labor to share His truth is as robust as that rebellion. Matthew 5:11-12 tells us, “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
Yes, Rev. Falwell’s death has stripped away the mask, betraying the angry, rebellious and hurting countenance of those who hated him. If they could have, they would have thrown him to the lions. But they didn’t have to. He entered the den willingly with love in his heart and truth on his lips for Christ’s name sake. And based on that objective truth, Rev. Falwell’s reward in heaven will be great indeed.
jmattbarber@comcast.net
http://www.cwfa.org/main.asp
Read more articles by J. Matt Barber
And yet the left tirelessly defends Muslims, whose religious literature prescribes death as an acceptable punishment for homosexuality (or rejecting Islam, for that matter). I wish they could get exactly what they ask for. While they're getting their heads sawed off live on Al Jazeera, I'll bet they'd long for the days when their worst "oppressor" was Jerry Falwell.
Comment by Patrick Mulligan | May 24, 2007
Sad that Mr Barber has nothing really to say positive about Falwell except subjective dribble "Why such hatred for a man who spent his entire life in service to both the Lord he loved and to his fellow man? True, he was unapologetically blunt in his defense of objective truth and unwavering in his opposition to sin, but Rev. Falwell showed – in word and deed – that he truly cared for those who hated him. He exposed them to the compassion and love of Christ, who freely offers salvation from the spiritual and physical death which is a natural consequence of immoral self-indulgence."
No proof in this dribble. In fact, is gluttony not a sin? Mr Falwell - his ill-begotten wealth through fear and promises he could never keep and his 150 extra pounds - is the personification of indulgence. What about "Thou shalt not kill"? Mr Falwell's unwavering support of the immoral and illegal invasion and occupation of Iraq was important in garnering public aquiesence. If there is a God I would not trade places with Falwell for his asisstance in the killings and murders in Iraq. I guess we should give him credit for not having a gambling addiction or, as far as we know, not lusting after young boys like so many other Men Of God. Pious enough for Mr Barber, though. All these things can be overlooked "righteously" because it appears that Mr Barber has followed Martin Luther's demand to "Tear out the eye of Reason".
Comment by Thom | May 24, 2007
Would that be the objective truth that God allowed the terrorist attacks in New York, Washington, and Pennsylvania to occur because of the pagans?
Comment by Katzen | May 25, 2007
For centuries people have asked, Why does God allow evil in the world? Clergymen and philosophers have all offered explanations. I also have my idea why, but not being either a clegyman or philosopher will hold that to myself. So I cannot answer Katzen"s question nor am I sure of where he is coming from. If he is an athiest, so be it - that's his right.
But the bigger issue raised by the article is really showing that the Left is motivated and ruled by hate. The thing I have always found interesting is that these people always profess just the opposit. Just talk to most of them and that hatred manifests itself. More often than not they telegraph that hatred even when they try to conceal it.
The fact that there were vicious attacks on the late Rev. Falwell should come as no surprise to anyone who knows the Left. In fact his passing only provided them with excuse to spew the hatred that is latent within them. With them malevolence masquerades as benevolence UNTIL THEY SEIZE CONTROL!
Comment by NHGrouch | May 25, 2007
All hail Jerry Falwell and his truth and courage. May a million preachers follow in his footsteps. Christ was a healer and miracle worker. Christ healed all sicknesses. Let the power of Christ heal the "sick" homosexuals!
Comment by c_of_mann@comcast.ne | May 26, 2007
To writer THOM:
No one said Rev. Falwell was a saint or without fault (sin).
Also the bible prohibits Murder, not killing. Some killing is justified or at times necessary. Too many people misinterpret that commandment.
But my question is: now that you have faulted Rev. Falwell and, in general, churchmen, who or what do you hold up as a societal roll model?
Comment by NHGrouch | May 30, 2007
To say Jerry Falwell was full of love is borderline delusional. Had the author never actually listened to anything the reverend said? This man was many things but love-filled was not one of them, especially not for his enemies. But I'll let Falwell's own words describe his positions:
"Homosexuals are brute beasts…part of a vile and satanic system that will be utterly annihilated, and there will be a celebration in heaven."
"The idea that religion and politics don't mix was invented by the Devil to keep Christians from running their own country."
"AIDS is not just God's punishment for homosexuals; it is God's punishment for the society that tolerates homosexuals."
"He is purple – the gay-pride color; and his antenna is shaped like a triangle - the gay-pride symbol."
"There are almost as many alcoholics as there are negroes."
…and who could forget this one?
"The abortionists have got to bear some burden for this because God will not be mocked. And when we destroy 40 million little innocent babies, we make God mad. 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.'"
It could be said that the left's behavior was in bad taste, but the author appears to revere this man. Jerry Falwell did not deserve your respect, at best he deserved your pity.
Comment by Vinyl_Word | June 1, 2007
To writer Viny L,
Comment by c_of_mann@comcast.ne | June 1, 2007