The Saga of the Falwell Family


Like many others, the meltdown of Jerry Falwell Jr. has always been a mystery to me. He seemed like someone in free fall and could not get in control of himself. Finally, a writer claimed to get behind the facade of his public persona to find a person who, along with his father, did not buy into to pious and narrow life of the fundamentalist brand of religion presented in public. It is the story of a family harmed, destroyed in some ways, by religion.

Jerry Sr. always appeared as the judgmental fundamentalist. He told lies about Clinton using Clinton's sexual sins as a backdrop. Always the most religious person in the room he excelled in getting publicity.

Jerry Sr., however, spent himself into a corner and pleaded with Jr. to help bail Liberty Un out of its near bankruptcy plight. Jr. had no interest in religion nor Liberty but came aboard and turned things around. Jr. and Sr. were close buddies, according to Jr., closer than the son who took over the church or the daughter. 

Jr. never thought father was as religious as his public persona. Eventually, Jr. came to see father had the fundamentalist facade because of Jr.'s mother, Sr.'s wife. She was uncompromising in piety and demanded complete adherence.  She and the partying Jr. never got along. Sr. kept on trying to please her. He wanted to retire and travel about without so many responsibilities, but wife wanted him to keep working to retain control. 

While Jr. knew he was named as the successor to run Liberty he did not want the job. He assumed father would live a long time and something would change relieving him from this millstone. Father died shortly afterwards and son had to move in.

Jr. explained his bizarre behavior as wanting to communicate he is not his father. All of his life people assumed he would be a preacher. He went to law school and started a career in property development. The entire saga of him at Liberty Un. was a historical accident.

Religion and its ability to play with minds can help some people. It also can damage people and the Falwell family is a story about religion messing with minds. 

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