‘An unapologetic spokesman for Judeo-Christian values’
May 15, 2007| By Nathaniel Ward
Rev. Jerry Falwell, the conservative religious leader who founded the Moral Majority, died this morning after collapsing in his office at Liberty University.
“A man of deep faith, the Rev. Dr. Jerry Falwell was an unapologetic spokesman for the Judeo-Christian values on which America is based,” Heritage Foundation President Ed Feulner said on his passing.
He was steadfast in his religious beliefs, and steadfast in his view that every American owes it to future generations to get involved in the public arena. Yet this steadfast man was always willing to listen and to learn—and, where appropriate, to humbly confess error.
In the political realm, he will be most remembered for his role in founding the Moral Majority—the organization that galvanized evangelicals into political action in the late 1970s and helped Ronald Reagan win a landslide victory in the 1980 election.
A founding father of The Religious Right, his success in encouraging millions of Americans to engage in political action will be a major part of his legacy.
Nathaniel Ward is the Editor of MyHeritage.org—a website for members and supporters of The Heritage Foundation.
