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During his ministry Jesus Christ made a clear distinction between the secular and the Sacred. He said when asked whether it was a sin to deal in Roman coin he answered, "Give unto Caesar that which is Caesar's"
When asked by the Romans if he was the King of the Jews he answered, "You have said it" and later, "My Kingdom is in Heaven."
He admonished his deciles that loyalty to lawful secular authority of the King or even the conquering Caesar was not a sin because their salvation lay in the Kingdom of Heaven.
Sounds a lot like Christ was a firm believer in the separation Church and State grounded in the Establishment Clause of the US Constitution.
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion"
Falwell on the other hand seems to have overlooked this last and most important principle of Christ's New Testament in direct contradiction of Christ's teaching.
The idea that religion and politics don’t mix was invented by the Devil to keep Christians from running their own country. — Rev Jerry Falwell, Sermon, July 4, 1976
and
"If Hillary Rodham Clinton is the Democrats' presidential nominee in 2008, it will motivate conservative evangelical Christians to oppose her more than if the devil himself were running, the Rev. Jerry Falwell has told pastors at a "values" conference."
I would suggest that these remarks reveal Falwell to be apostate. In spite of and to the detriment of his faith he had become a prisoner of the secular world he claims to despise.
To put it bluntly Jesus Christ, were he among us today, would not give a toss whether Hilary Clinton or Rev Falwell himself became president of the United States. In fact he most likely would admonish the good Reverend to turn his attention to the only Kingdom that mattered.
Falwell's entire career has been devoted to the secular. The Kingdom that has occupied bulk of his time and his writings is the kingdom (presidency) of this world not the hereafter
This is a man who ran for President in order to 'restore' to Christians control over 'their government'
Christ said give unto Caesar that which is Caesar's He did not take that to mean that Christians should run for office in the Roman Senate or the US Senate for that matter.
Falwell has also devoted his life to the establishment of Christian Education with the express purpose of preparing young Christians for the ministry but also and of equal importance, for public office.
When what is now known as Liberty University ran into financial difficulties did he turn to Christian donors for help? No he turned to the Unification Church and 'Reverend' Sun Myung Moon, who in addition to being a gun runner and drug trafficer is a false prophet who claims to God.
In short rather than battling Satan, Falwell went into business with him.
We are now seeing the results of this apostasy.
1) The Chaplaincy of the US Air force and Navel Academies have been taken over by Evangelicals who owe their loyalty to the pol ital agenda of the Southern Baptist Convention not to the US Constitution. All other faiths and sects can go pound sand.
2)The US executive branch has been taken over by Catholic and SBC Evangelical extremists.
3)No Child Left Behind a nationwide education standard that is unfunded mandate that has led to exam fraud, expulsions and transfers of low achieving students and a wide spread crisis in publication. This is not surprising since part the 'conservative' Christian agenda is the destruction of secular public education.
Feel free to ad to the list there is plenty more. I've just highlighted the founding principles of the theocratic agenda of the Religious Right
I would like to emphasis that I am not questioning Falwell's faith and wish him the best in the next world.
My argument is with the earth bound Falwell, whose life revealed an uncommon obsession with the secular and profane at the expense of faith, hope and charity.
In closing I offer a quote from a Freeper that attended Falwell's last sermon two days ago.
"At last sunday service he asked for 15 more years."
If the good Reverend rose to Heaven today he left this world dragging his feet, kicking and screaming all the way.
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