[SuperJon]

The whole debate/discussion/argument in the baseball forum got me thinking. Who is the spiritual leader at Liberty currently? Obviously, for years, it was Dr. Falwell. Who would have that role now?

Towns?
Caner?
Jonathan?
Jerry Jr?
Carson?
Hindson?

[Cider Jim]

Johnnie didn't make your top 6?

[SuperJon]

We can throw him on there. I was just naming the ones that came to my head first.

[WinterIsComing]

Sunday School answer, but also the ONLY right answer; Jesus. These men know alot about the Bible, but knowledge alone doesn't make them spiritual leaders. It's a heart issue, not a head issue. I'm not saying they don't have Christ's love in their life, I can't know those things. What I'm saying is Christ Love and Christ's Love towards His Body should be their and our sole focus and not make it about any person, place, thing, or idea. Knowledge is good, but only when backed up by a heart that truly loves God and loves people.

[Cider Jim]

Sly, this thread could really use one of your cool voting polls.

[PAmedic]

Sunday School answer, but also the ONLY right answer; Jesus.

I think you're missing the point- He is a given.

I believe SJ is asking : of the current <earthly> figures in ADMIN, who- if anyone- has picked up Doc's mantle?

[SuperJon]

Sly, this thread could really use one of your cool voting polls.

I could've put a poll but with the endless number of answers possible, I didn't want to leave any out.

[SuperJon]

Sunday School answer, but also the ONLY right answer; Jesus.

I think you're missing the point- He is a given.

I believe SJ is asking : of the current <earthly> figures in ADMIN, who- if anyone- has picked up Doc's mantle?

Yeah, Medic explained that pretty well.

[PAmedic]

1st time for everything.

back to my architectural renderings...

[olldflame]

While I am not on campus enough th know who IS filling that role, I have an opinion on who it SHOULD BE. From the beginning, Doc always spoke of LU as a ministry of TRBC, and as pastor of the church, he was the spiritual leader of the university as well. IMHO, even though Jr. is chancellor, the pastor should still be the one providing spiritual guidance. That would be Jonathon.

[4everfsu]

While I am not on campus enough th know who IS filling that role, I have an opinion on who it SHOULD BE. From the beginning, Doc always spoke of LU as a ministry of TRBC, and as pastor of the church, he was the spiritual leader of the university as well. IMHO, even though Jr. is chancellor, the pastor should still be the one providing spiritual guidance. That would be Jonathon.

Are LU and TRBC connected at the hip today like it was when the school started out?

[bigsmooth]

i would say jonathan too, but i just sense that jonathan is really focusing on TRBC and JLF JR. is LU. so second for me would be towns.

[BJWilliams]

It does seem as patently obvious with Jerry Sr gone but LU and TRBC are still connected from what I can tell...its always been said that the TRBC board can step in should the LU board ever stray in a direction that the church thinks is detrimental to the mission of the church and the school

[jcmanson]

I don't think Jonathan is. From what I can tell he has very little to do with what is going on at LU. Not Jerry Jr - just not his calling. From my vantage point I would say it's either Caner or Johnnie Moore, but I don't live there so I could be wrong.

[prototype]

Johnnie didn't make your top 6?

Carson is on there... right after Jerry Jr.?

I love when he wears that Sombrero and guesses the questions, classic...

[JK37]

Why does it have to be one person? Why can't it be by committee, so to speak?

Name me one person who could fill Doc's shoes....*crickets, crickets*

The brightest minds at the University don't have an answer. Even Doc himself knew no one person could do it. And that's okay. Maybe even better than insisting on one person, even if that individual did exist. IMO, a monarchy only succeeds as long as the monarch is also the visionary. In his/her absence, fulfilling various leadership roles by committee is completely okay.

[SuperJon]

Why does it have to be one person? Why can't it be by committee, so to speak?

Name me one person who could fill Doc's shoes....*crickets, crickets*

The brightest minds at the University don't have an answer. Even Doc himself knew no one person could do it. And that's okay. Maybe even better than insisting on one person, even if that individual did exist. IMO, a monarchy only succeeds as long as the monarch is also the visionary. In his/her absence, fulfilling various leadership roles by committee is completely okay.

Who would you say is on that "committee" then?

[Schfourteenteen]

Short answer - None

Peter Pan answer

Note - When I refer to a leader, I specifically mean a figurehead role with freedom to drive around campus and run over people with his car and his Bible.

With respect to everyone, whether committee or a single person, I don't think Liberty has leadership culminating to what JF was to Liberty, and to a point, that's to be expected.

However, I don't see someone stepping up and challenging the students to be everything they can be. Part of that - Jerry Sr. preached at convo every Wednesday. Now? There are fill in speakers(talking staff members) on occasion, but no real spitirual voice among this squad. Plus, everyone on that list is preoccupied with some other task.

That was the great thing about Jerry - and this has been my perception about his role here over his last 2 or 3 years - he wasn't burdened with other operational responsibilities. He walked into convo, gave one of his ten memorized yet powerful speeches, made ONE political joke and walked out. Does speaking in convo make you a leader? No, but the combination of seeing him once or twice a week and hearing him speak with authority gave him the ability to have an impact on everyone. Call it a figurehead if you wish, but we don't have this on campus.

Towns - Ask anyone on campus what they know about him. The first response? He talks about sex with his wife in class. Other variations include "He talks about getting his 'cereal' every morning"

Jim Toman - Is very outspoken like Jerry was. Unfortunately, he speaks in tounges. The SBC would not like that.

Caner - Caner could have potentially become this spearheaded hardnosed leader, however he has alot of responsibilities within the seminary....and his reputation is under fire now.

Jonathan - He's a TRBC man. Not much connection with Liberty students, unless they go to TRBC on Sundays. Not sure why his role at Liberty diminished, because after JF passed on, Jonathan really took the spiritual torch with TRBC and LU. Of the people listed, he's by far the best suited to take this role.

Tyler Falwell - Has a way with the ladies. Can lead them to spiritual enlightenment. He can also hook them up with some great tanning cream. His role is probably better suited as a fist pumping GTL owner on campus.

Jerry Jr - Has really taken on the political side of things. He's also not a pastor, and while that's not necessary to be the spiritual leader, his skill set is better suited for where he's at. In addition,
a good deal of student students felt manipulated by this year's political escapades.

Carson - Has a ton of OSL responsibilities....also lacks the ability to prepare a sermon without an acronym.

Hindson - Was more involved with the school before his health problems kicked in. Hasn't been as involved publicly since.

Mark Hine - Tried to get rid of the Democrats. +1 in my book hahaha.

Johnny Moore - He's a great guy and a great speaker, but as he gets older I see him more in the Elmer Towns mold. At this point he's almost limited to being the 6th grader reading the announcements and laughing at his bad jokes.

Danny Rocco - Actually, this could work for multiple reasons. One - his name is Danny Co-Champion Rocco. Two - who doesn't listen to him? He's serious, intense, and scary looking when he gets on a roll. Lets get JB to re-work his contract.

IMO, its unreasonable to think within 3 years every facet of JF could be replaced, However, the campus seems to need someone to take this role. I do think a figurehead can develop. A leader IMO cant come from the outside and just take over the place, so here's my opinion as to the future. As Jonathan continues to lead TRBC, he will be able to fill that role for Liberty. Will that happen? That depends on what God calls him to do. But for now, we certainly miss JF.

[Green Monkey]

I agree with that. I don't really see anyone stepping up to be Liberty's main spiritual leader. The position needs somebody with a big personality, is spiritually dedicated, and can really relate to students.

Most people like Jonathan but his main focus is on TRBC. Towns and Hindson are both awesome but I think they're past the age when they could take on that role.

Jerry Jr. is a good administrator and lawyer, but not spiritual leader. I feel that he's just not personable enough to really inspire the students. Even though Jerry Sr. was older, I felt that he really understood the students better while Jr. just seems out of touch IMHO. I think Sr. honestly kept the needs of the students above all else while Jr. is way too embroiled in politics at this point.

I like Caner A LOT but he's probably too polarizing of a figure to be the real spiritual leader. He is a great guy, but he exudes too much false bravado and "manliness" to the point where his sincerity would be in question. Plus I don't think he has the tact and patience to deal with the church people that would probably become a part of his daily life and is too busy with the seminary and speaking engagements to be that involved in the campus.

Everyone I know who knows Carson says he's a really good guy, but I don't think he has the personality for the role. He would really need to step up and get himself out there more. And while Johnny is a good man, I really just can't take him seriously at all.

With Hine, well, I'll just keep my opinion of him to myself... I'm not really familiar with the other people you've mentioned except Rocco. For some reason he does seem like the most likely candidate as unlikely as that sounds. I can actually look at him with genuine respect and admiration.

[JK37]

A few thoughts in response to the last few posts:

SJ:
*Off the top of my head - Towns, Caner, and Carson are the ones I foresee fulfilling the position on that so-called "committee", which is one in name only.

To S14 & GM:
*Towns - I would have answered that his "favorite pie is cake." But, I see your point.
*Regarding your Toman point, I realize it was entirely in jest. But just to be clear, we're not an SBC school. Sort of a pet peeve of mine.
*Jonathan. I won't comment, other than to ask how close do you think he and his older brother really are?
*Rocco. I hate to to be cryptic, but there's sort of a buzzword to this one that will prohibit him or others like him from carrying this so-called torch, at least for a couple more generations, I believe (and hope). I'll give you a hint: it begins with a 'C'.
*"I don't think Liberty has leadership culminating to what JF was to Liberty, and to a point, that's to be expected." .. Best point you made, to which I agree 100%. We lost a great deal of our uniqueness on 5/15/07. But such a loss was inevitable.


PS - the Tyler line cracked me up!!!

[ALUmnus]

The fact that this is a question answers itself. This is a question that would have been asked at the time of Jerry's death, but seeing that it's being asked three years later, well, that's not good. I was thinking about this a few weeks ago, and I think because the school does lack a spiritual leader, it really hurts the student body and the whole spiritual climate of the school, which has been in steady decline for years now (in my opinion).

[Rocketfan]

The fact that this is a question answers itself. This is a question that would have been asked at the time of Jerry's death, but seeing that it's being asked three years later, well, that's not good. I was thinking about this a few weeks ago, and I think because the school does lack a spiritual leader, it really hurts the student body and the whole spiritual climate of the school, which has been in steady decline for years now (in my opinion).

+1 - thats well said.

[Schfourteenteen]

*Rocco. I hate to to be cryptic, but there's sort of a buzzword to this one that will prohibit him or others like him from carrying this so-called torch, at least for a couple more generations, I believe (and hope). I'll give you a hint: it begins with a 'C'.

Co-Champion
Contract
Cover 2
Crazy Eyes

[ALUmnus]

*Rocco. I hate to to be cryptic, but there's sort of a buzzword to this one that will prohibit him or others like him from carrying this so-called torch, at least for a couple more generations, I believe (and hope). I'll give you a hint: it begins with a 'C'.

Co-Champion
Contract
Cover 2
Crazy Eyes

No, no...Calvinist.

[Schfourteenteen]

*Jonathan. I won't comment, other than to ask how close do you think he and his older brother really are?

This is an interesting question. I don't know the answer and I'd guess there are few who really do. My less than skilled speculation would suggest - if they were best buddies Jonathan would be more involved with Liberty U.

But really I have no idea.