The Book of Jerry Falwell: Fundamentalist Language and Politics

Description

National polls show that approximately 50 million adult Americans are born-again Christians. Yet most Americans see their culture as secular, and the United States is viewed around the world as a secular nation. Further, intellectuals and journalists often portray born-again Christians, despite their numbers, as outsiders who endanger public life. But is American culture really so neatly split between the religious and the secular? Is America as "modern" and is born-again Christian religious belief as "pre-modern" as many think? In the 1980s, born-again Christians burst into the political arena with stunning force. Gone was the image of "old-fashioned" fundamentalism and its anti-worldly, separatist philosophy. Under the leadership of the Reverend Jerry Falwell and allied preachers, millions broke taboos in place since the Scopes trial constraining their interaction with the public world. They claimed new cultural territory and refashioned themselves in the public arena. Here was a dynamic body of activists with an evangelical vision of social justice, organized under the rubric of the "Moral Majority." Dedication Contents Preface and Acknowledgments A Guide to Terms Introduction: Standing in the Gaps PART ONE: RITES OF ORIGIN 1 Speaking Is Believing 2 Fundamentalist Exile PART TWO: SITES OF REVISION 3 The Art of Jerry Falwell 4 Sacrificial Economics 5 Cultural Exodus 6 The Moral Majority Jeremiad 7 The Pro-Life Gospel 8 The Creation Museum 9 The Last Days 10 The Born-Again Telescandals Postscript Appendix A: Thomas Road Baptist Church Statement of Doctrine Appendix B: Sources of Jerry Falwell’s Sermons Notes to the Chapters Bibliography Credits Index