On Falwell

As most people know, Jerry Falwell died yesterday.

I would not have found this subject worthy of comment in this blog, if it weren’t for the fact that I’ve read more than one post, from Pagan bloggers who usually know better, who’ve reported this with a smug or even gleeful tone.

Needless to say, I’m unlikely to have been a fan of the man from Lynchburg, a man who said of September 11, 2001, “I really believe that the pagans, and the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians who are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU, People For the American Way, all of them who have tried to secularize America. I point the finger in their face and say ‘you helped this happen.'”

But that is just not the point.

I really wanted not to write this entry. I have been hoping that, if I just ignored it, perhaps no one outside the Pagan community would read any of the blog entries that have depressed me this morning. But this willingness to try and score cheap points over the death of another human being… This is just not right.

You don’t like the politics of the right wing of Christian fundamentalism, oh my people? Attack the politics. But not the man. An attack on a person does nothing to counter an idea… it just raises the volume on the discussion.

Intolerance of Christians–even Christians who are intolerant of us–is still wrong.

Everybody, please stop.