Farewell, Falwell

So, it's been something of a full week for my Mom's clan. We have a wedding at the weekend, and our Southern branch is mourning the loss of their beloved pastor, Jerry Falwell.

Yes, you saw that right. It's been mentioned here in the past, but some among the readership might be shocked to learn that the reach of Whispers even extends to the flock of the late Evangelical titan, who died on Tuesday at 73.

Not long after news of Falwell's death began circulating, BustedHalo asked for a reflection on the man as I saw him, given the peculiar confluence of this work and my ties to Lynchburg and the ministries... it's now up.

Admittedly, what poured out is something of a contrarian observation, and I know some won't be too pleased with it. But it's not just about Falwell, what he said or how he lived -- it's also a commentary on the way we communicate these days, and how the advances intended to bring the masses into closer and richer contact with each other has, in many cases, ended up driving them, us, further apart. And to what end?

The more we contribute to that, the less counter-cultural we are and, ergo, the less effective we are... at least, if we're truly to be that much needed leaven and light in the world.

This line of work involves calling things as one sees them, and this is simply how I see it, no more and no less.

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