‘Someone’s Gotta Tell the Freakin’ Truth’: Jerry Falwell’s Aides Break Their Silence

[jmyrlefuller]

https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2019/09/09/jerry-falwell-liberty-university-loans-227914

By BRANDON AMBROSINO
September 09, 2019

Over the past year, Falwell, a prominent evangelical leader and supporter of President Donald Trump, has come under increasing scrutiny. News outlets have reported on business deals by Liberty University benefiting Falwell’s friends. Trump’s former personal attorney Michael Cohen claimed that he had helped Falwell clean up racy “personal” photographs.

Based on scores of new interviews and documents obtained for this article, concerns about Falwell’s behavior go well beyond that—and it’s causing longtime, loyal Liberty University officials to rapidly lose faith in him.

More than two dozen current and former high-ranking Liberty University officials and close associates of Falwell spoke to me or provided documents for this article, opening up—for the first time at an institution so intimately associated with the Falwell family—about what they’ve experienced and why they don’t think he’s the right man to lead Liberty University or serve as a figurehead in the Christian conservative movement.

(excerpt)
Note: This is a LONG read, but it pretty much confirms my suspicions about Jerry Falwell Jr. and his motivations. It goes into a lot of family dynamics: how Jerry Jr. was the ruthless one and Jonathan the devout Christian; how Jerry Jr.'s wife Becki is a sort of Rasputin at Liberty; how a lot of people who were deeply loyal to Jerry Sr. have deep misgivings about Jerry Jr.

[Sanguine]

Sounds like someone's got it out for Jerry.

[sneakypete]

Sounds like someone's got it out for Jerry.

@Sanguine

He is a chip off the blockhead that was his father.

I was working at the post office that handled CBN's mail back in the 80's. One of my friends delivered the registered and certified letters there that needed to be signed for,so he knew the women that worked at their mail center. One was a woman in her 20's whose husband was killed in a car accident,leaving her with a couple of small children and hospital bills to pay. So they put a donations jar on the counter so people who knew her could contribute to her and her family. Falwell Sr walked in there one day,spotting the donations jar,and snatched it off the counter,saying "ALL donations at CBN are the property of CBN,not any employee",and walked out with the money.

I was told that several people there quit their jobs and walked away that same day.

[musiclady]

It's obvious from hearing young Jerry speak that he has neither his father's intelligence, nor discernment.

[PeteS in CA]

@Sanguine

He is a chip off the blockhead that was his father.

I was working at the post office that handled CBN's mail back in the 80's. One of my friends delivered the registered and certified letters there that needed to be signed for,so he knew the women that worked at their mail center. One was a woman in her 20's whose husband was killed in a car accident,leaving her with a couple of small children and hospital bills to pay. So they put a donations jar on the counter so people who knew her could contribute to her and her family. Falwell Sr walked in there one day,spotting the donations jar,and snatched it off the counter,saying "ALL donations at CBN are the property of CBN,not any employee",and walked out with the money.

I was told that several people there quit their jobs and walked away that same day.

Jerry Falwell Sr. was pastor of Thomas Road Baptist Church, founded Liberty Christian Academy and Liberty University, helped found the Moral Majority, and succeeded Jim Bakker at PTL (for ~6 months, after which PTL closed in bankruptcy). None of these have names that could form the acronym "CBN". Are you confusing Falwell with Pat Robertson who founded Christian Broadcasting Network, CBN?

[verga]

And they wonder why people are losing their faith. Scandals across the board.

[sneakypete]

Jerry Falwell Sr. was pastor of Thomas Road Baptist Church, founded Liberty Christian Academy and Liberty University, helped found the Moral Majority, and succeeded Jim Bakker at PTL (for ~6 months, after which PTL closed in bankruptcy). None of these have names that could form the acronym "CBN". Are you confusing Falwell with Pat Robertson who founded Christian Broadcasting Network, CBN?

@PeterS

Yes,I was,and I apologize to the Falwell family and his followers for this mistake. AFAIK,Falwell was sincere in his beliefs,and tried to live a just life.

Pat Robertson,on the other hand,was the type of scum that gave con artists such a bad reputation.

[thackney]

And they wonder why people are losing their faith. Scandals across the board.

Put your faith in God, not other people talking about God.

[musiclady]

Jerry Falwell Sr. was pastor of Thomas Road Baptist Church, founded Liberty Christian Academy and Liberty University, helped found the Moral Majority, and succeeded Jim Bakker at PTL (for ~6 months, after which PTL closed in bankruptcy). None of these have names that could form the acronym "CBN". Are you confusing Falwell with Pat Robertson who founded Christian Broadcasting Network, CBN?

The confusion happens often, because to Pete, all Christians are the enemy.

They can be mixed and matched with impunity.

[Wingnut]

Televangelist are a special kind of scum.  Part PT Barnum. Part con man, and behold the promise of heaven.

[mountaineer]

Televangelist are a special kind of scum.  Part PT Barnum. Part con man, and behold the promise of heaven.

Falwell Jr. isn't a televangelist.

[mountaineer]

Falwell Sr walked in there one day,spotting the donations jar,and snatched it off the counter,saying "ALL donations at CBN are the property of CBN,not any employee",and walked out with the money.

CBN was run by Pat Robertson, not Jerry Falwell Sr. Are you sure you have the story straight?

[Wingnut]

Falwell Jr. isn't a televangelist.

Don't stop me with details when I am about to roll. 

[Right_in_Virginia]

Can we start a Religion Forum and move this thread there @mystery-ak

[Wingnut]

Can we start a Religion Forum and move this thread there @mystery-ak

Don't be coy.  You know the answer to that.

[mountaineer]

Thank goodness - and Myst - we don't have a religion forum here!

[Sighlass]

The confusion happens often, because to Pete, all Christians are the enemy.

They can be mixed and matched with impunity.

Also it has been shown, that the Christians here at TBR have NOT shied away from showing the true nature of Jerry Jr as it has played out. I count myself and several others here in that category. Thanks for the article @jmyrlefuller . I pray that Jerry's brother (Rev. Jonathan Falwell) does not get torn down and corrupted because of his conniving power hungry brother.  It may be too late for him also (I don't know much on Jonathan to be honest).

We have seen already that because of this... as the Bible predicted... "However, because by this deed you have given occasion to the enemies of the LORD to blaspheme" 2 Samuel 12 ... @sneakypete

[Right_in_Virginia]

Don't be coy.  You know the answer to that.

I don't do coy.   

I know for 10 years the management of TBR said we don't discuss religion.  But this has been overruled lately @The Ghost so why not be upfront and start a separate forum for the discussions?  This would allow those not interested in such discussions not to be forced to tiptoe through land minds.

Just a thought. 

[jmyrlefuller]

Can we start a Religion Forum and move this thread there @mystery-ak

The only reason I post it is because Falwell Jr. has injected himself into politics to an even greater degree than his father. I have consistently argued here that Falwell Jr. is not, nor has he ever been, a religious leader, simply because he shared the name and inherited some not-directly-religious operations from his father.

Call it confirmation bias, call it what you will, but this article describes what I've long suspected about him: he's a businessman riding his father's name and that Jonathan was the true successor to Falwell's ministry. (Though the wife-as-Rasputin angle... that's new. I'm not sure whether to believe that one or not, though it wouldn't surprise me.)

[mystery-ak]

I don't do coy.   

I know for 10 years the management of TBR said we don't discuss religion.  But this has been overruled lately @The Ghost so why not be upfront and start a separate forum for the discussions?  This would allow those not interested in such discussions not to be forced to tiptoe through land minds.

Just a thought. 

When we first started we tried a Religion Cat...it took over the whole forum and there were so many bigoted fights we deleted it.

[aligncare]

When we first started we tried a Religion Cat...it took over the whole forum and there were so many bigoted fights we deleted it.

What would Jesus have done? 

[PeteS in CA]

When we first started we tried a Religion Cat...it took over the whole forum and there were so many bigoted fights we deleted it.

I've seen that kind of result elsewhere. I assume I've expressed my religious views often enough that they are known to many here, but have only done so when my views were relevant to a thread's topic. I tend to avoid religion forums on discussion sites because of what they devolve into. So I would not urge restarting a religion forum.

[Sanguine]

Thank goodness - and Myst - we don't have a religion forum here!

Amen, sister!

[Sanguine]

I don't do coy.   

I know for 10 years the management of TBR said we don't discuss religion.  But this has been overruled lately @The Ghost so why not be upfront and start a separate forum for the discussions?  This would allow those not interested in such discussions not to be forced to tiptoe through land minds.

Just a thought. 

Sincere question, @Right_in_Virginia why do you say "this has been overruled lately "?

[mystery-ak]

I don't mind an occasional thread on religious news.....but no to a Cat