Liberty U Gone Berserk

[Sandy]

[Haruo]

[Tim Bonney]

[Jon Estes]

[KeithE]

[Tim Bonney]

[Jon Estes]

[JE Pettibone]

[Dave Roberts]

One major difference was that Bill Clinton asked for forgiveness from people showing at least a degree of contrition. DT has not publicly admitted that he has done anything wrong.

Back to LU. This morning in a piece on student loan defaults in VA, LU was reported as now having over 3,000 current or former students in default on student loan repayments to the federal student loan program. One of the things that bugs me about them is that to get students, they offer lots of freshman scholarships. After the first year, these are not renewable and students face the full costs with which they are directed to federal student loans. I've had church members receive those and have to drop out after one year because the bait did not lead to additional help. Every year they send a letter to pastors asking them to nominate students for their freshman scholarships, and those letters nowhere say that the scholarships are not renewable.

[Jon Estes]

[Sandy]

[Dave Roberts]

[Sandy]

Arguments invoking the Clintons, particularly Bill, are simply diversions from the real issue. When someone starts in on that, they are saying, loud and clear, that they have no real legitimate rebuttal of their own.

[Jon Estes]

[Sandy]

[Jon Estes]

[ET]

[KeithE]

[William Thornton]

This story is a bit silly but mod/libs are always receptive to a good Falwell-bashing story even if it is a manufactured stunt. Maybe Junior was too aggressive with the publicity hound but he got what he wanted.

[Sandy]

There's always a good reason, an ulterior motive, an exception, a conspiracy theory, allowing for the justification of bad behavior by those who have a high profile and prominent "ministry". Falwell has invited at least two Mormons and an immoral adulterer to address the entire student body at Liberty from a right-wing political perspective in a mandatory attendance venue. So along comes a group and a leader that make the claim of taking the words of Jesus literally and seriously, certainly more theologically centered than the Mormons, and in total moral contrast to Trump-style immorality, and holds a two day revival in Lynchburg built around a Biblically-centered message, not hijacked by right wing politics, and not connected to Thomas Road or Liberty, and got a lot of attention, including from a good sized segment of the Liberty student body. I'm sure that caused some consternation on Liberty Mountain, and irked the powers that be.

So what do you do when a group of Christians with plenty of credibility and a following, even among the students at your school, come to town for a revival and the leader suggests that you get together to pray? You threaten to have him arrested if he steps foot on your campus, where you've allowed a couple of heretics and an adulterer to speak to your students. You can make all of the excuses and point the finger at all the conspiracy theories and ulterior motives you want, a duck is still a duck. And I can't help thinking how much that scenario sounds like the triumphal entry narrative.

How much different would the headlines, and perceptions, be if Falwell Jr. had accepted the invitation, prayed with the guy, and then let him address the students in convocation?

[William Thornton]

[Stephen Fox]

Shane was born in Maryville, Tn where my Father comes from and my Grandfahter and all his sisters, most of them good Methodist women who were early East Tenn supporters of Lamar Alexander. Shane was in conference at Koinonia in Americus Ga, of Marshall Frady fame among others, about two weeks ago to the spiritual enrichment of the son and daughter in law of John Morgan, pastor of Collinsville BC the last 40 years, John Morgan Third and his wife Susan, daughter of a legendary football coach in NE Bama got the spirit. William Barber, the NC Prophet was the leadoff presenter.

It is my understanding President Jimmy Carter is to be the commencement speaker in a few weeks at Liberty U.

I think Jerry Vines children and that of many SBC Presidents since the Takeover are graduates of Liberty U. Here in bama Rick Burgess seems to love the Place as does his friend Scott Dawson, the evangelist running for Governor.

[ET]

[KeithE]

[ET]

I'll give you I may be a bit harsh in my assessment of Claiborne. He may be an exception to the norm when it comes to the standard rhetoric of this issue. If his concern is primarily for the poor, then of course that will take use back around to a key question: Is giving the government the power to play god in the economy and attempt to regulate who has "too much" and who doesn't have "enough" the best way to address the issues of poverty?

Since we're off the tracks in regards to the original topic, I'll leave it at that.