Falwell

He was, of course, a monster.

What kind of man, let alone what kind of minister of the Gospel, would underwrite a video full of made-up stories about a President of the United States whose policies he happened to oppose being a cocaine trafficker and assassin, and recruit the film's producer to pose as an investigative journalist appearing in sillouette, as Falwell himself interviewed him about why he feared for his own life? ("Be assured, we will be praying for your safety.")

What kind of man, let alone minister of the Gospel, would report that another president whose policies he happened to oppose said things to him that he never, ever said? ("Falwell responded that his account 'was not intended to be a verbatim report,' but rather an 'honest portrayal' of Carter's position.")

I can respect a man with the integrity not to hide controversial beliefs, like, "God Almighty does not hear the prayer of a Jew." But what kind of man, let alone minster of the Gospel, claims to have changed his mind on the most profound questions of theology (reassuring his powerful friends on NBC's "Meet the Press," "God hears the prayers of all persons") simply to save political face?

What kind of man calls fellow Christians "brute beasts" following "a vile and Satanic system" that will "one day be utterly annihilated and there will be a celebration in heaven"? And who then, when a tape is produced of him saying it, offers the owner $5000 to sell it to him - then welches on the deal?

And what kind of man, confronted with a book in which he is quoted exulting, "I hope to 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!", claims to have never uttered such words - though the book is a collection of his own sermons?

What kind of man? The kind of man conservative leaders everywhere fall over themselves, of course, to praise.

UPDATE: And here is a dispatch from the America Falwell has given us: a bearded Orthodox Jew harrassed by prostelytizing chaplains and staff at an Iowa Veterans Administration Hospital: "You mean you don't believe that Jesus is the Messiah?" "Is it just Orthodox Jews who deny Jesus?" "I don't understand; how can you not believe in Jesus; he's the Messiah of the Jews, too, you know." An elderly couple performed "The Old Rugged Cross" in the waiting room: "It was driving me nuts, and they were enjoying it."

Views expressed on this page are those of the authors and not necessarily those of Campaign for America's Future or Institute for America's Future