Jerry Falwell

Jerry Lamon Falwell (born on August 11, 1933) is an American Baptist pastor, televangelist, founder of the Moral Majority & Liberty University, and a prominent Conservative activist. His parents were Carey and Helen Falwell, and he has a fraternal twin brother, Gene Falwell.

Controversial remarks

In February of 1999, an article in Falwell's National Liberty Journal suggested that a Teletubbies character, Tinky Winky, could be a hidden homosexual symbol, because the character was purple (which he claimed was a color symbolic of homosexuality, although purple has long been associated with royalty and the pope), had a triangle on his head and carried a handbag. Falwell denied any personal involvement with the original article, and made clear he never had any prior knowledge or concern with the Teletubbies. Falwell's organization said the author of the article was simply repeating what others in the media were already saying about the nature of the characterhttp://www.falwell.com/?a=news&news=prstubb.

Related Topics:
Teletubbies - Tinky Winky - Homosexual

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After the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack, he (along with fellow televangelist Pat Robertson) made comments interpreted as blaming various groups for the attack. The two were widely condemned for having made these comments. When asked why God would allow such an event to happen to America, Falwell said:

Related Topics:
September 11, 2001 terrorist attack - Pat Robertson

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:And, I know that I'll hear from them for this. But, throwing God out successfully with the help of the federal court system, throwing God out of the public square, out of the schools. 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."

Related Topics:
Feminists - Gays - Lesbians - ACLU - People for the American Way

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Robertson then responded:

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:Well, I totally concur, and the problem is we have adopted that agenda at the highest levels of our government. And so we're responsible as a free society for what the top people do. And, the top people, of course, is the court system.

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Falwell later told CNN:

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:I would never blame any human being except the terrorists, and if I left that impression with gays or lesbians or anyone else, I apologize.

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Falwell has also stated:

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AIDS is the wrath of a just God against homosexuals. To oppose it would be like an Israelite jumping in the Red Sea to save one of Pharaoh's charioteers . . . AIDS is not just God's punishment for homosexuals; it is God's punishment for the society that tolerates homosexuals." (Reverend Jerry Falwell, circa 1991)

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Rev. Falwell has met with members of the gay rights organization Soulforce to discuss the effects of his anti-gay remarks over the years.

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In an interview given on September 30, 2002, for the October 6 edition of 60 Minutes, Falwell said: "I think Muhammad was a terrorist. I read enough by both Muslims and non-Muslims, that he was a violent man, a man of war."

Related Topics:
September 30 - 2002 - October 6 - Muhammad

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The following Friday, Mohsen Mojtahed Shabestari, the spokesman of Iran's Ayatollah Ali Khameini, issued a fatwa for Falwell's death, saying that Falwell was a "mercenary and must be killed," and, "The death of that man is a religious duty, but his case should not be tied to the Christian community."

Related Topics:
Iran - Ayatollah Ali Khameini - Fatwa

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