Ann,
This truly is your best blog! Your pinpointing of the truth about Falwell is exact. It says so much about society today and the game playing of pretending to be a true Christian.
It seems that people will tell you that they are liberal and still love Jesus but you cannot get them to stop behaving in a sinful manner, such as being gay or a gay activist, to show their love of scripture and adhering to it. In others following God's Word.
Another scripture verse these liberals may not want to hear is "Many will say to Me in that day, Lord, Lord did we not prophesy by thy name? And in Thy name cast out demons? And in thy name done many wonderous things? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you, depart from Me all you doers of iniquity".

Pretty Good for a ..... mean girl.

Neils
9:28 am
05/17/2007

While I may not share the same degree of affection for Rev. Falwell as does dear Ann, I do echo her sentiments on his life.

The list of men and women in the world who have or have had the courage and ability to spread His Word as wide and as far as Rev. Falwell is short indeed. The Rev. Billy Graham and his son Franklin, Orel Roberts, Bishop Fulton Sheen, Pope John-Paul II are but a few who are in this rarified category. Of course there is Mother Theresa and others who have made a positive imprint on the world during their time on Earth as well.

Regardless of your orthodoxy, each and every one of those listed above were good, did good, spoke good, preached good and ya hardly heard any of them on the View, Hardball and other such avenues for spreading the liberal mantras.

No matter what your particular belief is, assuming that you have a belief, all of these when speaking ex cathedra spoke the truth. Of course, from time to time even the holiest and best meaning of people can have their thoughts and words taken out of context and perhaps be vilified for their ideas. But, when you look not at the words themselves but at the basis of the word, the fundamental of the thought, one will see that it was spawned by something moral.

Baptists are somewhat hardliners in certain areas of Scripture. We Catholics have a different take on some aspects of Theology. Pentecostals, Lutherans, Methodists and all the other Christian denominations all have more in common with each other then their differences. So, why can’t we all just get along?

Because of the secular humanists, the atheists, the hard-line lefties see those differences and use them to divide us rather than we seizing the similarities and using them to galvanize our collective faith.

One needs only to look at the abhorrent statement by the “entertainer” Christopher Hitchens, atheist and hate-monger, who said upon learning of Rev. Falwell’s death, that he does not believe that he is in Heaven but “It is a pity there isn’t a hell for him to go to.” But, one needs to know the source of this tender remark. Hitchens is now promoting his new book “God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything.” (So, my guess is that this chap sleeps late on Sunday mornings.)

It is said that you are defined by your enemies. Looking at those who disliked/hated Rev. Falwell, those gay activists, atheists and others of the career hate cartel, my guess is that Rev. Falwell was a pretty good guy.

You can say what you will about Rev. Falwell but you can not dispute that he was a man of God and earned and deserved the title “Reverend” unlike some others whose names and faces keep popping up in the news, spewing their bigotry and hate while claiming to have the mantle of God.

God Bless you, Rev. Falwell and job well done, good and faithful servant.

God Bless and God Speed
John

Jaksavin..."You can say what you will about Rev. Falwell but you can not dispute that he was a man of God and earned and deserved the title “Reverend” unlike some others whose names and faces keep popping up in the news, spewing their bigotry and hate while claiming to have the mantle of God.

God Bless you, Rev. Falwell and job well done, good and faithful servant."

Amen!

Thanks once again, Ann, for your uncanny ability to see the forest through the trees...a very special gift indeed!

Thank you Ann Coulter for another stellar column about Jerry Falwell. I believe the media or should I say the drive-by media as Rush Limbaugh calls them, characterized Jerry Falwell and made him into some kind of radical fundamentalist when in fact he was a Christ follower and one who promoted peace and understanding between gay factions under Mel White's leadership and also held meetings and get-togethers on the campus of liberty University. There were many dialogs that they had together where they were expressing their own viewpoints without the rhetoric and name-calling and hate speech that perpetuates the gay activists and others who are promoting fisting among young children. Jerry Falwell was angry and it take to task the gay and lesbian individuals that were trying to promote a lifestyle change in America and yet he was the first one to live out the Christian mandate to love one another and love your enemies. I don't know if he ever returned evil for evil but I know for sure he was a man that was devoted fully to Jesus Christ and I'm sure that he was welcomed into heaven with a heroes welcome. I will miss Jerry Falwell and the strength that he stood for and I hope that someone fills in the gaps soon to take over his place in the evangelical conservative movement to continue the values he stood up for. The drive-by media always wants it their way and they never own up to their own hypocrisy but I know Jerry would have been the first one to own up to something he did wrong. That's the way he was and that's what he believed and he was a Christian in every way. I hope that his mission and his efforts with liberty University and other ministries continue on unabated by his death. He would want nothing more than to have these ministries continue.

When, oh when, will people come to their senses and realize that All religions are simply cults, some more evil than others, and that their followers are just baying at the moon.
Otherwise intelligent people are made to feel inadequate or incapable, and told that they must turn to a supernatural being who is said to reside somewhere up there in the sky, about which there is not even one iota of evidence.
Faith? My dictionary tells me that faith is: "Firm belief in something for which there is no proof."
Why can't people be less gullible and more self-reliant and take their own destiny into their own hands and do the best they can for others during their short sojourn here on our planet, without submitting themselves to the mind control imposed on them by theists?
It seems they are mesmerized by an mythical-loaded "promise" of life eternal in a place called heaven, where everything is hunky-dory -- no more worries, no more illnesses, no more wars, no more grief -- provided, of course, they do the bidding of their favorite religion.
Jerry Falwell, a manipulator, like all other theists, had to turn back the clock 2,000 years and send so many on a life-long guilt trip, hampering them from dealing with life's problems on their own two feet.
Religion, the scourge of our planet!

Ah, Nick. (Any relation to 'Old Nick'? - please excuse the lame attempt at levity). There are so many atheist sites full of the same pukey drivel you spew here. Wouldn't your time be better spent bashing Truth, etc. on one of those cyber rags? You're so lost, we must pray for you as yours is a God-sized problem. The Bible, for which I'm sure you have no regard, states: "The fool saith in his heart 'There is no God'". It reserves this vituperation for atheists because it is indeed ridiculous to be one. If you have ever bothered to truly exercise your cerebral processes, it would become abundantly clear why this is so. When you can convince us that your "wisdom" exceeds that of Solomon's (and your resume is more impressive than that of The Great I AM / Master of All / Ancient of Days) then we'll give credence to your inane writings. Until then, why don't you impress us with a solid refutation of the Kalaam argument or perhaps regale us with a rebuttal of Valicella or Thomas Aquinas? You plainly have never sought God. You find Him when you seek Him with your heart, soul and strength (you guessed it: the Bible, again). Have you ever pursued anything with such vigor? Rather than expose your ignorance here, why not ditch the pride and take an objective look at things?

In my haste, I misspelled his name:
William F. Vallicella, Ph.D.

Nick,

The bloodiest "cult" on this planet is Atheism, whose adherents "dealt with life's problems" by slaughtering millions in the past century. Atheists like to brag about their intellectual prowess, yet the majority don't seem to realize that their own belief system does indeed constitute a religion. Religion does not require a belief in God or gods (as demonstrated by Buddhism and Taoism). Every thinking human being asks himself the questions of the fundamental nature of reality and the meaning of existence. Religion in the broadest sense is simply how the answers to those questions lead you to react. The answers of Atheism: Nature of reality, random and accidental; meaning of existence, none ultimately. Consequently, their religion constitutes the embrace of anything that feels good for the moment; their morality is movable for themselves and laissez faire toward others (except the religious). Atheists are dancers on a cliff's edge, knowing that whatever they think, say or do is of no consequence because they will eventually fall, and that will be that. The only way most atheists can derive any illusion of meaning from lives is to "destroy" those who live with meaning (ie, religious Jews and Christians), either verbally or, as in the case of a Hitler, Mao or Stalin, literally.

“Old Nick”, good one, Wesley. In the UK and a few other places, the Devil, Satan, Hillary or whatever you wish to call the god of the dark is referred to as “Old Nick” a take off of Niccolo Machiavelli. (Who, perhaps in a very odd sort of parallel, was not as bad of a person as he was thought to be as a result of his writing of “The Prince.”)

I find it interesting/refreshing to see the topic turn to atheism/Belief/secularism. Try as one might and putting aside the “One True God” for a moment, one only need to look at virtually every civilization from the dawn of recorded history to see that they all had one thing in common; a belief system.

From the Babylonians to the Egyptians, to the Hebrews to the Druids to the United States of America there is a belief in God. (Perhaps not on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, but that is a different story.)

So, when an atheist attempts to explain away the non-existence of God or dispel the concept of religion I have to wonder. Whether paganism, pantheism, monotheism or something else, there must have been something in our earliest ancestors to give them the idea of a Higher Being. Some atheists will simply retort that it was ignorance that led the aboriginal earthlings to blame/ascribe to some unknown/unseen “power” to explain the rains, earthquakes, droughts and other natural phenomena.

(In the past hundred and a half years or so Darwinism has been embraced by the atheist set. This pseudoscience is equally unfathomable to most Christians or believers of God in general as our beliefs are to their adherents. When an atheist says, “prove your God to me” [although according to St. Francis, we ought to “preach the Gospel and if necessary, use words”] we can counter with “if man descended from apes, why are their still apes.” Needless to say that neither side is going to be convinced by those arguments nor is this the time or the place to further expatiate on this topic.)

As those wiser than I have intimated above, perhaps the best thing to do is to pray for the unbelievers.

But, if I may, one last thing I wish to posit to all atheists. If you do not believe in God, where did the universe come from?

God Bless and God Speed
John

Firstly, I'm an atheist. But I don't have anything against theistic religions. I don't think Believers are stupid in any way. Religion is a personal choice and I'm not about to attack anyone for whether they do or do not believe in God. But I do not understand how "Christians" who claim to be follow a loving and forgiving God think that it is alright to bash on anyone. If Christians really think that we're so misled, than they should feel sorry for us. Not all liberals are mean and nasty people. We should all try to be the best people we can be. Regardless of our religious beliefs. There is alot more to people than their religion or their sexual preferences, and the sooner the public realizes that, the better off we'll be.

Ann,
You have done it again, this is the best column I have ever read. (I am 76) The liberals hate President Bush for the same reason. "All men will hate you because of me". I pray for you every day claiming Psalm 91 for your protection and stand on Psalm 54:5 against those that slander you.
I have all of your books and if you ever get to Nashville, Please let me know as I would love to say Thank You in person.
Love and Blessings, Jim

Kayla:

Thank you for offering a civil side to atheism. What you say is true and your exhortation for us all to “try to be the best people we can be” is sound indeed.

You add: “not all liberals are mean and nasty people.” The corollary is also true, not all conservatives are nice and caring people.

I know a few atheists, probably within the percentile of the general population. Most of them feel as you do, that their belief, or lack thereof, can be in condominium with my belief. Similarly, to amplify on your last statement, I know and do have as friends gay people. And, similarly, we do not feel the need to compare notes on issues of sex.

That said, the problem, as I see it, it less of “the sooner the public realizes that, the better off we we’ll be” with regards to religion or sex. It is the promotion of those differences by extremists that seem to be problematic.

Where some 14% of Americans are atheists and some 10% describe themselves as gay there is an even smaller subset of atheist and gay activists who give the rest of their brethren a bad name. (I am not suggesting that atheists are gay or vice verse.)

The Michael Newdows and Christopher Hitchens’ of the world are basically giving the finger to the non-atheists of every stripe with their abject hate and vitriol. (How ironic, “Christopher” means “Christ-bearer.) ACT-UP, Queer Nation and other such groups have done far more to disenfranchise themselves and alienate the general public by their actions and rhetoric. They have basically created a self-fulfilling prophesy.

This is not to say that groups holding views opposite are just fine and dandy but for some odd reason, they are not as vitriolic, virulent and as violent as those of the left. Have you ever seen a “Straights for Jesus” march down the street? When was the last time you heard of a group of Catholics barging into an Atheist Union meeting and dousing them with Holy Water? Yet, the gay activists have broken into churches and have done horrific things and the atheist activists are not satisfied that they can have their “belief” system, they want to take religion and recognition of God out of every bit of our lives.

(As an aside, you hardly ever see a pro-war rally where there is violence, oddly enough, but there seems to be plenty of police activities at “peace rallies.”)

So, Kayla, it is less the idea that one is atheistic, monotheistic, anysortoftheistic, gay, straight, half and half, tall, short, rich, poor, left, right, Democrat, Republican, Liberal or Conservative. The ones that get the press, good or bad, are those who make the most noise. The only difference is the perception of the general population and the spin of the press that allow things to appear different than what they really are.

As far as your being “misled”, I will not feel sorry for you. But, I will pray for you.

God Bless (and I mean it) and God Speed
John

The childish comments by Wesley and Mechmorph simply corroborate the views I have had about Christians for several years.
They are simple-minded, slow on the uptake, and quick to anger, which doesn't quite seem to gel with the tenets of their religion, as I recall them.
But, then, given their degree of mentality (they believe in ghosts, myths, fairy tales and superstitions, it's not surprising!
Have fun in heaven, guys!

Nick:

Castigating those with views opposite yours does little to persuade others to yours. As you state about things which “doesn’t quite seem to gel with the tenets of their religion” I hasten to add that while they may not on the surface, we are all sinners and we all seek to better ourselves. Even St. Paul, one of the greatest examples of the early saints said: “among sinners, I am chief.” And this was AFTER his conversion and persecution of the early Christians.

Relegating belief to “ghosts, myths, fairy tales and superstition” would have one believe (if I may use that word) that atheists do not adhere to any of those in any way shape or form. To super exceed the parameters of your statement, one would be able to make the hypothesis that absolutely 0% of atheists suffer from OCD, fear being a superstition, of course.

By the way, how is that “evolution” thing going?

With respect to your last remark, “have fun in heaven”, I posit the following. I would rather live believing in God and find there is not one when I die, than to live believing that there is no God only to face Him when I die.

I try to live my life that there is a God and He gives the Faith to know that he exists. All one needs to do to share this feeling is to open your heart to His Call.

God Bless (I still mean it) and God Speed
John

Nick, (and any other atheists reading this)

There hardly seems to be anything that can be said to try and help you see our point as Judeo-Christians. You have obviously read the previous comments and still stand firm on your beliefs. That certainly is your right as is ours. Attacking us is hardly a sign of "good faith" and shows a deficeit in character. Truly live life as you intend it and we will live it as we do so.

What always bothers me about atheists is the fact that they say they truly believe there is no God but do they really believe that when they die they will cease to exist?

That is the hardest part of trying to intelectualize eternity. I say this because humans have this built in sense of "living forever". They believe it even unconsciously. They plan and plan and never see a total end to their existence. Their heart tells them that even though this body will stop someday, I will continue on somewhere. Why do athiests not agree? Very strange because an intelligent person reasons everything so why not living forever? If you don't then isn't that somewhat pessimistic?

I can only tell you, as other true Christains could, faith is one thing that cannot be proven but God has proven Himself to many people willing to accept Him. I have felt the power of God's Love and instantaneous physical healing after the combination of belief, acceptance and prayer came together to explode physically within my body. To know this experience is to know that God is there and he does care for each and everyone of us! Even you!

LAMadDog

I agree with most all of what you say. On the one hand, many atheists are good people and then there are others who are not. Sadly, believers can be classified just as handily.

The difference, as I see it, is that Christians are charged with proselytizing and evangelizing, the propagation of the Faith if you will. Where a good Christian or Jew will try to live a good life, if they are true adherents, they will also garner a few converts along the way. Those who do not share our faith and mock us do so not so much out of ignorance but they do not have the Faith as we do.

What I have an issue with is less of atheists not believing as we do but the way that they throw out random lines from the Bible to make their point. To my atheist friends (and foes alike) please do not do this. If you do think you are a good person, citing Scripture passages is disrespectful without a foundation in Faith. If you are not a good person, this only serves to amplify that and, again, you are not going to convince anyone that your lack of belief is credible.

The concept of eternity is daunting and the combination of religions that believe in a life after death or those who believe in reincarnation support your contention. However, some will say that is purely egotistical and we are mere specks a planet that will one day cease to be a planet. We live, we die and that’s that. I guess it is my darn faith again but for some reason, I do not think that God made us to be disposable beings. (More on this in the first few pages of the “Baltimore Catechism.”)

But to conceptualize the idea of eternity, this is the description that I found best. Imagine a bronze sphere 250 miles in diameter. A butterfly orbits this sphere ceaselessly. On each orbit one of its wings hits the bronze orb. When sufficient orbits have been made that the touch of the wing has eroded the sphere to nothing, THAT is the beginning of eternity.

I thank those who call themselves atheists for stimulating this discussion. It makes we believers appreciate what we have and the fact that we have a duty to live our lives better.

God Bless (yet, still again) and God Speed
John

NICKY----From your previous posts- I."Faith? Firm belief in something for which there is no proof. But the dictionary you have substantiates the belief as true sans proof by using the word SOMETHING, a substantive word. You may disagree, but other words: theory, supposition, and the like do not imply a tangible. II. "They are simple-minded, slow on the uptake, and quick to anger." Well, Nick, which is it? If I am simple-minded how is it possible for me to 'uptake' anger in a quick manner? Yea, since I obviously misunderstand this statement I must be slow on the uptake and therefore simple-minded, which means I cannot possibly offended thus not angry. go in peace my brethren.

i must say ---atheists are consistent. They consistently fail to address the issues i raise regarding the kalaam argument, etc. They also consistently lash out with insults. They also consistently lie about me insulting them. i did not call them fools----i have no standing to do so. however, the bible did ( and i happen to agree with it). if the shoe fits....
anyway, slow on the uptake?! nick, & anyone else here has but 2 clues as to my intelligence or lack thereof (assuming i actually wrote the entries): one is the manner in which i use the language and the second is the hint that i may have studied a bit (Vallicella, et al). re quick to anger? how you can even hope to guess is beyond me. more accurate would be that i'm amused at the sheer number of people who are so obtuse, they choose to believe absurdities such as: the universe created itself (which means it would have to have existed prior to itself not to mention the problem of something inanimate creating anything and then eventually producing that which is animate). nick, like so many of his partners in ignorance, probably had to google 'kalaam'; they know so little about which they have so much to say. and yes, i have righteous 'anger' at people who attack God, who has done nothing but good, and which ignorant men have tried to pervert or destroy at nearly every opportunity. re kayla: i do not feel sorry for you nor do i believe you hope to be pitied---i do have compassion for you and your words touched me. i pray that you do not leave this life without God's salvation - i even pray the same for nick and others like you. however, please don't expect me to listen idly as ignorant, proficiently wicked people blaspheme God Who is only good, loving, benevolent, merciful, kind, patient, loyal, etc. while they are culpable for committing every type of evil known.

p.s. regarding the destruction of the amalakites, hivites, termites and many other -ites God ordered destroyed (& the Gadarene swine while we're at it: trying to 'armchair quarterback God is the pinnacle of foolishness. from what i can discern, God sees all of time. He knew the amalakites et al would never repent and place their faith in Him. and as the Bible says: we cannot please God without faith. He knew they would die in their sins. he gave them their lives. They wasted their lives on evil. So He ended their lives when He deemed it proper. i fail to see the problem raised by the afore-posted entry that implies that the true Christian is as blood-guilty as a 'son of Ishmael' to whom the Bible refers as (something like): 'a wild ass of a man' who now expose themselves for what they are: ostensible sub-humans who rape 10-month old babies (Sudan), murder vis a vis sawing off the victim's head(Iraq), flying planes into skyscrapers while hoping to kill as many people as possible, attempting to cause mayhem of every sort with various explosive devices upon others who have not wronged them in any fashion, ostensibly plotting to precipitate nuclear holocaust ( Iran and its psycho leader's blithering about the 8th? imam), etc. (there's not enough space here to list all of the despicable, horrible, evil, degenerate, wicked, deplorable, odious, abhorrent and cowardly acts they so much enjoy committing. we can only hope they all become suicide bombers who miss their marks.

Here is a poem I wrote. I hope you enjoy it.

ode for the odious

let us pray to move the hand of God
may He raze this modern blight of Nod
might we see Him right the wrongs of late
may He end their current reign of hate
might He lay waste to this infidel horde
and may they know the power of our Lord

may we live to see Muhammad shamed
might we see the evil Q'ran tamed
may their idols go the way of Baal
and Dagon to the depths of Hell
might He summon His archangels legion
to smite these wicked, East of Eden
those living by the bloody sword
and fell them by the Word of the Lord

may this Ramadan be their last
their mosques and shrines things of the past
might we drive them from their wretched lands
this bastard race of Abraham
may their minarets and mullahs fall
we pray their end once and for all

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