Lynchburg, Va. – The Rev. Jerry Falwell was remembered by thousands Tuesday as a champion of conservative Christian values who fearlessly galvanized the religious right into a powerful force in American politics.
The funeral returned Falwell to his roots – the Thomas Road Baptist Church, where he started as a young preacher in 1956 with just 35 parishioners in an old, abandoned soda-bottling plant. He built the congregation to an estimated 24,000 over the years by knocking on doors and listening to the people who answered.
More than 10,000 people attended the funeral, many forced into overflow seating.
“He was a champion of the fundamental values that we hold dear,” fellow Virginia evangelist Pat Robertson said as he entered the sanctuary. “He stepped on some toes.”
The event was mainly peaceful, though it drew a handful of protesters.
Police said Liberty University freshman Mark David Uhl, 19, was arrested after they found homemade bombs in his car. Police do not believe he planned to disrupt the event by using them.
Falwell, 73, died a week ago after collapsing in his office at the university. His physician said Falwell had a heart condition and presumably died of a heart rhythm abnormality.
In many ways, he was the architect of his own farewell: He designated the speakers and picked out the music for the service, according to Mark DeMoss, his former executive assistant. The most prominent of those attending were leaders of the religious right; none of the Republican presidential candidates attended.
Speakers remembered Falwell the politician, who became a force in the Republican Party in the 1980s after starting the Moral Majority and organizing the conservative Christian vote to send Ronald Reagan to the White House.
“He said, ‘I believe God has called me to confront the culture,’ and did he ever confront it,” said the Rev. Jerry Vines, former president of the Southern Baptist Convention, who gave a sermon that ranged from personal stories about Falwell to biblical references.
Falwell was outspoken in his condemnation of homosexuality and pornography, and his opposition to abortion led him to get involved in politics.
The Rev. Franklin Graham, son of evangelist Billy Graham, said he had been asked whether he agreed with Falwell. He drew applause with his response: “Every time he opened the Bible, I agreed with Jerry Falwell.”
The White House was represented by Tim Goeglein, who told the crowd Falwell was “a great friend” of the administration. Among Virginia Republican leaders at the service were Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling, Attorney General Bob McDonnell and former U.S. Sen. George Allen.
Other conservative leaders attending included former Republican presidential candidate Gary Bauer and Paige Patterson, president of the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas.
More than 33,000 people had viewed Falwell’s body over four days.
A private burial was planned on the grounds of Liberty University near a former mansion where Falwell’s office was located.
