Jerry Falwell Jr. is NOT His Father

 
By now you have probably seen the photo circulating on the internet of 58-year-old Jerry Falwell Jr. posing with a young woman (not his wife or daughter) with his pants unzipped.  As a result of the backlash from folks who said "How dare you when you're supposed to be an evangelical man of God?!"and a call from NC Republican Congressman Mark Walker to resign, Jerry Jr. removed the photo from his Instagram page and decided to take a leave of absence from Liberty University, where he served as President. In his defense, he did try to explain that the photo was taken out of context, saying it was taken at a "costume party" while he was on vacation and it was "just in good fun." He added, "I'm gonna try to be a good boy from here on out.  But why does he have to be good?  He is NOT his father and he doesn't pretend to be.

Jerry Falwell Sr.(born in 1933) was an ultra conservative Southern Baptist preacher who became a leading voice of the religious right movement which led to the so called Moral Majority. The organization, which formed in the late 1970's, worked hard to push through a pro-life and pro-family agenda complete with conservative judges to serve their purpose.  Falwell Sr. founded the Lynchburg Christian Academy in 1967 and Liberty Baptist College (now known as Liberty University) in 1971.  Over his lifetime, he stoked fear and hatred for Muslims, gays and radical blacks.  He went to his grave (2007) as a staunch conservative and kept the door open for an even more extreme version of white evangelicalism to take shape.

Although Jerry Jr. may describe himself as an evangelical, he is NOT his father.  He is not an ordained minister and according to Senior Politics Reporter Jane Coaston, "Jerry Falwell Jr. was the beneficiary of a family legacy built on the promise of sharing the Christian faith.....a legacy which he appears to have used to benefit himself and his family."  And while he is touted in some circles as one of Donald Trump's evangelical advisors, that relationship may be more "business related instead of a relationship with Jesus Christ.  According to published reports, Jerry Jr. and his wife have been the subject of some possible illegal wheeling and dealing.  (see more:   here   )

In my opinion, it is unfair to judge Jerry Jr. based on that photo because he was always that man. He wanted us see the picture or he wouldn't have posted it on his Instagram account with more than 24k followers.  He wanted us to see his "fun side."  He wanted us to know that he can be in Trump's orbit and get away with similar behaviors because that's what white male privilege affords to him.  He also wants us to know that "all have sinned and all fall short of the glory of God." 

And according to Isiah 55:7, 

"Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts.  Let them turn to the Lord and He will have mercy on them, and to our God, for he will freely pardon." 

Surely, he will seek that pardon from God because Trump has probably already given one.

The Radicalization of White Evangelicals

#45 and Evangelical supporters

According to a recent survey, more than 60 percent of white evangelicals say Trump has not damaged the dignity of the office of the Presidency.  A whopping 99 percent say of these same white evangelicals say they are opposed to him being impeached from office.  They believe Trump represents their interests and their hopes for keeping America the kind of country they can identify with (code for "white privilege rule") and free from terrorism, immigration and crime.  They see him as their protector.

Not long ago, I saw a video posted on Twitter about a man who identified himself as a Pastor and declared there would be a war on Christians before the end of 2019 and he was heading to his bunker to prepare.

Yes, I do believe there is a war going on INSIDE the United States but the white evangelicals are the perpetrators.  They have picked up their crosses (and probably their guns) and declared themselves as victims of a war AGAINST THEM by the non-believers.  They have been radicalized and and say it's all "in the name of Jesus!"  As a follower of Christ, I am baffled at how a group of people who claim to follow the teachings of Jesus are behaving like white terrorists.

 Be always humble, gentle, and patient. Show your love by being tolerant with one another. Do your best to preserve the unity which the Spirit gives by means of the peace that binds you together. (Ephesians 4:2-3)

To be perfectly honest, I had never heard of white evangelicals until I moved to the South and then I was curious as to why they call themselves evangelicals.  Is it because they believe they are God's angels placed here on Earth to make sure we are all "born-again" so we can go to Heaven and be one big happy family under God?  I think not---especially when you take into consideration that more than 80 percent of those who identify themselves as evangelicals voted for #45 in the 2016 election.  (Source:  Christianity.com).   Furthermore, a whopping 70 percent of white evangelical Protestants approved of #45 from July 2018 to January 2019.  And according to a Pew study, "White evangelical Protestants who regularly attend church (at least once a week or more) approve of #45 at rates matching or exceeded those of white evangelicals who attend church less often." (Source:  The Atlantic).

It's obvious these people have an agenda.  Otherwise, how do you explain the fact that have tolerated Trump's crass behavior and not spoken out against Trump's betrayal of Biblical principles. According to my Bible, #45 has broken at least FIVE of the Ten Commandments!  However, these white evangelicals have become his foot soldiers with their rallying cries against Muslims and other immigrants as they long for his Make America Great Again campaign slogan to become their reality.

Yes, these white evangelicals clearly have an agenda and they are willing to put their "religion" aside for their GREATER good.  It's no secret that they'd like to see a world without abortion rights and have applauded states like AL, GA, LA, KY, MS, MO, OH, AR and UT, who have all passed stricter abortion laws in 2019.  They are concerned that their white christian culture may be dissolving before their eyes so they need judges on the bench who will rule in favor of their causes.  They get what they want from #45 and he gets what he wants---their votes.  One hand washes the other but sadly, it'll never be clean.

The rest of America has been consumed by things like mass shootings, the impeachment inquiry, climate change, the unraveling of the Middle East, etc.  What we need to focus on is those white Christians who call themselves evangelicals and who have been radicalized in the name of Jesus. Remember, these are the SAME people who believe #45 was chosen by God to protect our nation.