A Sea Of Red

Published May 18, 2007 11:56 am - I met Dr. Jerry Falwell in Midland, Texas, in 1979. One of his staff members called and asked if we could have dinner together. That was the beginning of a friendship that lasted over the years.

Phillip McClendon: 'America lost a great leader'

I met Dr. Jerry Falwell in Midland, Texas, in 1979. One of his staff members called and asked if we could have dinner together. That was the beginning of a friendship that lasted over the years.

I have many memories of Rev. Falwell. He was always a joy to be with. However, he also had a serious side, if you worked on a project with him he expected your best.

In the mid 1980s he came to Joplin to raise money for the “Old Time Gospel Hour” and Liberty University. He asked me to pick him up at the airport and take him to the Holiday Inn for the meeting. I still remember him telling me on the way to the meeting that there would probably be protestors. I admired his ability to stay focused on issues that were dear to his heart. It turned out to be a great meeting. People that loved Jerry Falwell were committed to him and his message.

Vision, Courage, Compassion
A Tribute To Jerry Falwell

By Chuck Baldwin, ChuckBaldwinLive.com

Friday, May 18, 2007

I first met Jerry Falwell when I was a Sophomore at Midwestern Baptist College in Pontiac, Michigan. The year was 1972. I can honestly say, hearing and meeting Dr. Falwell was a turning point in my life.

I was so impressed with Jerry's vision, courage, and compassion that the very next year, 1973, I transferred from the Michigan school to Dr. Jerry's Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia. The school was then called Lynchburg Baptist College.

Albemarle man met Falwell
By Carrie Crespo, Staff Writer

Thursday, May 17, 2007 — He was eating alone at a restaurant in the Holiday Inn in Lynchburg, Va., in May 1970 when he heard a voice, “Bring your dessert and come on over to our table.”

Next thing Carl Helms Sr. of Albemarle knew, he was having lunch with nationally-acclaimed Preacher Jerry Falwell, founder of Thomas Road Baptist Church and Liberty University.

Although this event occurred more than 37 years ago, Helms considers this one of the highlights of his life and is one of the thousands mourning Falwell’s recent death Tuesday at age 73.

May 18, 2007
Jerry Falwell's legacy will live on without him
Zev Chafets

In the main building of the Liberty University campus in Lynchburg, Va., there is a Jerry Falwell museum. The first exhibit is devoted to Falwell's father, Carey, a nonbeliever, a successful entrepreneur, a hoodlum, bootlegger and gunman who shot his own brother dead two years before the end of Prohibition. Not the kind of family skeleton usually put on public display by a university founder.

But the Rev. Jerry Falwell, who started Liberty University in 1971 and grew it into the largest evangelical college in the land, was not an ordinary college president. He was, first and foremost, a Baptist minister, and his father's exhibit said that even the son of a sinner can become a man of God. It was also a reminder that Falwell came from tough stock. He was a Christian who couldn't be counted on to turn the other cheek.

Regent University Honors Falwell's Legacy
CBNNews.com
May 17, 2007

CBNNews.com - Students and faculty at Regent University held a special remembrance service for Rev. Jerry Falwell.

They prayed for the Falwell family and signed a banner that will be sent to Liberty.

Jerry Falwell died of sudden heart failure on Tuesday at his Lynchburg office. Public viewing for Rev. Jerry Falwell begins today at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va.

The funeral will be Tuesday the church he founded, Thomas Road Baptist Church.

Rev. Falwell remembered in Mobile
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
By KRISTEN CAMPBELL
Religion Editor

On a visit to the Gulf Coast nearly five years ago, the Rev. Jerry Falwell told hundreds gathered at First Baptist North Mobile that "if it isn't controversial, it probably isn't worth saying."

He then went on to speak out against abortion and same-sex marriage, to affirm Americans' right to bear arms and to say that the United States "absolutely" should "go after Saddam Hussein."

Tuesday, Ed Litton, senior pastor at the Saraland congregation, remembered Falwell as one who was energized by controversy. But Litton also noted that the famed televangelist "had a genuine love for people."

Liberty University Graduates Remember Reverend Falwell

Pigeon Forge (WVLT) - More than just the Falwell family is mourning the Reverend's death Tuesday in Lynchburg. That's where Falwell founded Lynchburg bible college back in 1971. It's now called Liberty University, and Liberty alumni here in East Tennessee say they're grateful for how he helped shape their lives.

They tell the story of Jesus Christ nine times a week. But Tuesday's show was anything but routine.

"It was a sad time, a sad moment," Mike Salsbury says.

Mike Salsbury and two fellow cast members graduated from Liberty University...founded by Jerry Falwell.

"When I was doing the show today, I kept thinking, God, all the work we did at Liberty, this is what he would want for his to do," Salsbury continues.

Falwell's death Tuesday afternoon hit 2004-graduate Nathan Lynch hard.

SuperJon wrote:Your kids are watching cartoons and you're bored this morning, right?

SBC leaders voice appreciation for Falwell

Posted on May 15, 2007 | by Staff

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (BP)--Leaders of several Southern Baptist entities voiced their appreciation for Jerry Falwell in the hours following his death May 15. Their comments follow.

-- Daniel L. Akin, president, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, N.C.:

“Dr. Jerry Falwell was a man who loved Jesus Christ, the Bible, his Family and America. Those who knew him personally saw a gracious and generous person who never forgot how God’s grace had transformed him. Dr. Falwell was a great visionary and innovator. Southeastern’s family sends its condolences to the Falwell and Liberty University family”

-- Geoff Hammond, president of the North American Mission Board:

"Jerry Falwell's death is a huge loss for Southern Baptists, evangelical Christians and for our nation. His death is also a very personal loss for me and my family since our son, Timothy, attends Liberty University. I, along with the staff and missionaries at the North American Mission Board, want to extend our deepest condolences and sympathy to Jerry's wife, Macel, his children, Jerry, Jr., Jonathan and Jeannie, and all those who loved Jerry so dearly.

"While Jerry will forever be known in many circles for the positive change he brought to the American political landscape, I will always remember him as a church planter whose church became one of the greatest in America. Not only that, but in his role as founder and chancellor of Liberty University, Jerry has trained up tremendous young champions for Christ who are planting churches and sharing the light of the Gospel around the world. Our prayers will be with Jerry's family and all those who will be grieving his loss in the days ahead."


-- Paige Patterson, president of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas:

"I have lost a great friend. America has lost a great patriot. Nevertheless all followers of Jesus rejoice for Dr. Falwell today even as we sorrow together with his entire family over our loss. Dr. Falwell's shadow falls across the face of the rebirth of conservative values in our nation, in the Southern Baptist Convention, and in the entire evangelical world. Only once in a generation will a man of his stature arise. We all owe him a debt of eternal gratitude."


Several other noted Southern Baptists also issued statements.

Evangelist Billy Graham:

-- "Jerry Falwell was a close personal friend for many years. We did not always agree on everything, but I knew him to be a man of God. His accomplishments went beyond most clergy of his generation. Some of my grandchildren have attended and currently attend Liberty University. He leaves a gigantic vacuum in the evangelical world. I am praying for his family, and especially the university that he headed."

-- Doyle Chauncey, executive director-treasurer of the Southern Baptist Conservatives of Virginia state convention:

“Dr. Jerry Falwell was a true friend and supporter of the Southern Baptist Conservatives of Virginia. While we mourn this tremendous loss, we rejoice in the many years we had with this local church pastor and man of God. In fact, his was one of the first phone calls pledging support for the formation of the SBCV in 1996. Our hearts and our prayers go out to his family as well as the Thomas Road Baptist and Liberty University families.


-- Evangelist Freddie Gage, who knew Falwell personally and preached revivals at his church, said Falwell was "just the complete opposite" of what his detractors said he was. Gage recalled a day he and Falwell flew to New Albany, N.Y.

"When he got off the plane it was cold, a horrible day, and there were homosexuals and lesbians and demonstrators. They were throwing eggs at him. When he got down, he wiped all that off, walked over and started shaking hands with them. … If you were a multi-millionaire or if you were a bum on the street corner, Jerry Falwell would be there to help you. He was a man of mercy, he was a man of grace, he was a man of compassion. … The greatest thing I can remember about Jerry Falwell was in the revivals I had with him -- how he would open up his Bible and sit down with people and go through the plan of salvation. He was never afraid of confrontational evangelism."
--30--

Rev. Falwell's Bahamian connection
By BARBARA WALKIN

Senior FN Reporter

barbara@nasguard.com


Rev. Jerry Falwell, founder and chancellor of Liberty University, Linchburg Virginia, who died suddenly on Tuesday, May 15, had close friends in The Bahamas, including Grand Bahama businessman Allan Ingraham II.

Falwell, senior pastor of Thomas Road Baptist Church, was discovered in his campus office sometime around 11:00 a.m. He was 73.

"I became close with Jerry Falwell and his first cousin Terry Falwell at Liberty University because my son attended school there," Ingraham said yesterday, adding that he and Falwell developed a "very close" relationship and they communicated often.

In addition to Falwell's relationship with the Ingraham family, there was also a close bond with another Grand Bahamian family, the Beckles.

Ingraham explained that Tony Beckles, the former chief financial officer at the Royal Oasis Resort, is now the chief financial officer for Falwell Holdings and Liberty University.

"His wife, Bernadette Beckles, is a teacher at the university and their son, Anthony Beckles Jr., is Rev. Falwell's personal pilot. So, The Bahamas had a very close connection ... and few may know, but there was a close connection with Falwell"

Published Monday, May 21, 2007
Falwell always said what he believed

J.D. Vick
Tuscaloosa

Dear Editor: As a Liberty University alumnus, I was saddened to hear of the recent death of Dr. Jerry Falwell.

I had a great deal of respect for him because he was not afraid to say what he believed even though it sometimes got him in trouble with the media. He did apologize when needed for things that he said, but the media would never forget it. He was misquoted on many occasions as well.

He backed up what he preached. He spoke against abortion, so he had a home for unwed mothers. He spoke against alcohol abuse, so he had a home for alcoholics. The list goes on. When he was given Rolex watches or expensive cuff links as gifts, he would not wear them because he did not want to appear like other televangelists who were misusing God’s money.

Jerry Falwell’s Legacy
One Pastor Reflects Upon Falwell's Ministry

by Ray Pritchard

Jerry Falwell died Tuesday at the age of 73. He will be chiefly remembered for two enormous accomplishments:

First, he led the fundamentalist movement out of the wilderness and won for it a seat at the table of public discourse. Looking back, it is hard to remember what things were like 35 years ago. Mainstream evangelicals had their leaders, most notably Billy Graham who traveled the world filling enormous stadiums for his crusades. But fundamentalists had no one comparable to Dr. Graham. Then Jerry Falwell stepped onto the scene, and he did it from the pulpit of a Baptist church in Lynchburg, Virginia.

Local man was a pilot for the late evangelist

By Mike Wilder / Times-News
May 22, 2007 3:00 AM


Tom and Debby Coble pose for a photo with the Rev. Jerry Falwell during a 2005 visit to Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va. Tom was Falwell's pilot from 1976 to mid-1979.

For more than three years in the 1970s, few people spent more time with Jerry Falwell than Tom Coble.

Coble was Falwell’s pilot from early 1976 to mid-1979. He flew him to speak at events all over the country.

Coble, of Burlington, started taking flying lessons when he was 15. He soloed for the first time at 16 and got his private pilot’s license when he was 17.

You never had to wonder where Falwell stood

By BARBARA SHARP | Tuesday May 22 2007, 10:14am

Jerry Falwell's body wasn't even cold when the mud-slinging began. A little restraint -- and class -- would have been nice, especially in light of the fact that those getting down and dirty were only exposed to the media image of the man, not the person who was the driving force behind countless humanitarian and ministry outreach programs in the U.S. and abroad.

Falwell was definitely a fire-and-brimstone hell-raiser, but at least you knew where he stood. He believed the Bible and wasn't shy about telling you what it said. If you didn't believe it, that was fine -- not everyone did, does or will -- and for people who blame Falwell for being divisive, well, he was. The Bible is divisive; religion is divisive; Christianity is divisive. Even Jesus said, "Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth." (He also said, "Love your enemies.") However, as people who knew Falwell will tell you, he had the uncanny ability and personal character to rail against what he viewed as an un-Biblical lifestyle or choice by someone -- then share the stage, a meal or a friendship with that same person.

May 25, 2007

A misunderstood legacy ... in life and death


J.C. Watts

I'm just a soul who's intentions are good;

Oh, Lord, please don't let me be misunderstood.

I don't know if Jerry Falwell was merely misunderstood, but I can assure you that he has been misrepresented -- in life and in death -- by a lot of misguided people. I'd like to dispel some of the misinformation and correct what I see to be a gross miscarriage of justice.

To paraphrase the late Lloyd Bentsen, I knew Jerry Falwell. Jerry Falwell was a friend of mine.

I think I knew him well enough to speak some truth into the record. Dr. Falwell honored me by allowing me to preach from his pulpit a couple of times. In addition to the fellowship that accompanies such visits, I was with him in many unguarded moments.

Sly Fox wrote:Here's another from my favorite Okie (next to Johnny Bench, of course) J.C. Watts:

May 25, 2007

A misunderstood legacy ... in life and death


J.C. Watts

I'm just a soul who's intentions are good;

Oh, Lord, please don't let me be misunderstood.

I don't know if Jerry Falwell was merely misunderstood, but I can assure you that he has been misrepresented -- in life and in death -- by a lot of misguided people. I'd like to dispel some of the misinformation and correct what I see to be a gross miscarriage of justice.

To paraphrase the late Lloyd Bentsen, I knew Jerry Falwell. Jerry Falwell was a friend of mine.

I think I knew him well enough to speak some truth into the record. Dr. Falwell honored me by allowing me to preach from his pulpit a couple of times. In addition to the fellowship that accompanies such visits, I was with him in many unguarded moments.

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