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1. As yet more Jerry Falwell Jr. scandals come to light, I've decided to do a thread of everything I've ever written about him and Liberty University in the context of exposing evangelical authoritarianism. But let's start with the latest and a summary for those late to the party
The latest is this. "Pool boy" Giancarlo Granda has now accused Falwell of sharing a picture with him of a Liberty University student exposing herself on the Falwells' farm.
Now to where we've been over the last few days
https://hillreporter.com/jerry-falwell-jr-shared-pornographic-photos-of-liberty-university-students-says-giancarlo-granda-77153
#WednesdayThoughts #EmptyThePews
Now to where we've been over the last few days
https://hillreporter.com/jerry-falwell-jr-shared-pornographic-photos-of-liberty-university-students-says-giancarlo-granda-77153
#WednesdayThoughts #EmptyThePews
3. So, in an attempt to get ahead of the damning revelations about to drop re: Jerry Falwell watching while Granda cuckolded him, Falwell tried to blame the whole thing on his wife. Called it an affair "in which I was not involved."
Becki F. is now pushing the same apparent lie
Becki F. is now pushing the same apparent lie
4. In the meantime, on Monday night, Liberty University announced that Falwell was resigning.
Falwell then claimed no he was not; said he would continue to negotiate.
By late Monday night Falwell reversed himself again and resigned. It was a nutty thing to watch in real-time
Falwell then claimed no he was not; said he would continue to negotiate.
By late Monday night Falwell reversed himself again and resigned. It was a nutty thing to watch in real-time
5. This article I did for @RDispatches documents some of the funnier Twitter moments.
It also argues that b/c the "sin" Jerry was involved in--watching himself be cuckolded--doesn't play well to toxic masculine evangelicals, he won't get easy redemption https://religiondispatches.org/why-the-confession-and-redemption-path-is-unlikely-to-help-falwell-recover-from-sex-scandal/
It also argues that b/c the "sin" Jerry was involved in--watching himself be cuckolded--doesn't play well to toxic masculine evangelicals, he won't get easy redemption https://religiondispatches.org/why-the-confession-and-redemption-path-is-unlikely-to-help-falwell-recover-from-sex-scandal/
6. Prior to this, I had most recently written about Liberty University dumping its philosophy dept:
"Evangelicals have never had a Christian intellectual tradition comparable to that of the Jesuits, but they do often pretend to intellectual seriousness..."
"Evangelicals have never had a Christian intellectual tradition comparable to that of the Jesuits, but they do often pretend to intellectual seriousness..."
7. "Liberty’s decision to drop the pretense is perfectly in keeping with the Trump era, when all sorts of masks are coming off."
I wrote this one for @Convo_ist, a pro-democracy outlet you all should check out!
http://conversationalist.org/2020/05/28/liberty-university-eliminates-its-philosophy-department-furthering-the-christian-rights-anti-intellectual-backlash/
#WednesdayWisdom #EmptyThePews
I wrote this one for @Convo_ist, a pro-democracy outlet you all should check out!
http://conversationalist.org/2020/05/28/liberty-university-eliminates-its-philosophy-department-furthering-the-christian-rights-anti-intellectual-backlash/
#WednesdayWisdom #EmptyThePews
8. Previously, I'd commented on Falwell's love of censorship for @Playboy, noting that censoring student newspapers is common at evangelical colleges, as is controlling dissent with NDAs. I've come across both in my own original reporting on these schools
https://www.playboy.com/read/want-to-know-the-future-of-trumpvangelicals-in-america-look-at-their-colleges
https://www.playboy.com/read/want-to-know-the-future-of-trumpvangelicals-in-america-look-at-their-colleges
9. The big take-home argument from that piece, and one that I stand by, is that if you want to understand how evangelicals will govern our country if given unbridled power, just look at how they govern their universities. Liberty was Falwell's little dictatorship.
10. In late 2018, I published an interview with @JoshuaGrubbsPhD, a Liberty alum and now a secular psychology professor, on my own website. Perhaps one of these days I'll revive the Ex-Evangelical Conversations series https://cstroop.com/2018/12/11/ex-evangelical-conversations-professor-of-psychology-joshua-grubbs-featuring-advice-for-exvies-seeking-therapists/
11. I also quoted @JoshuaGrubbsPhD in my latest for @damemagazine, which argues that ex-evangelicals are key to helping the American public understand Trumpism. Trump is a symptom of American authoritarianism, which is rooted in right-wing Christianity https://www.damemagazine.com/2020/08/20/what-ex-evangelicals-can-teach-us-about-trump-christians/
12. Falwell's abuse of power was entirely predictable, but the precise ways he proved to be hypocritical were not. For powerful evangelical men, "sexual sins" are forgivable so long as they are sufficiently "masculine" in nature. Falwell now fails to be https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/06/17/arts/jesus-john-wayne-untangles-gender-messages-white-evangelical-circles/
13. But before concluding this thread, I do want to note that authoritarianism *is* abuse, and you can be sure there are horror stories in any evangelical institution that's large enough and been around long enough. They are routinely covered up, but that's gotten harder to do.
14. Hypocrisy is baked into authoritarianism; excesses committed in a hyper-masculine mode, as noted, are forgivable. But in an authoritarian system, sometimes someone goes to far and has to be ousted to save face. That's what happened to Falwell.
Will Liberty change w/o him?
Will Liberty change w/o him?
15. Spoiler alert: no. Liberty's Board is a who's who of far right-wingers. They share Falwell's politics, grounded in the same authoritarian theology, on which see:
https://cstroop.com/2018/05/30/authoritarian-christianity-or-what-franklin-graham-really-means-when-he-equates-progressivism-with-godlessness/
Evangelical institutional culture is inevitably abusive. Nothing here changes that
https://cstroop.com/2018/05/30/authoritarian-christianity-or-what-franklin-graham-really-means-when-he-equates-progressivism-with-godlessness/
Evangelical institutional culture is inevitably abusive. Nothing here changes that
16. There's an odd paradox we can observe in evangelical universities, however. There's generally a critical mass of students who want their schools to change to become more inclusive. And the faculty are more liberal, overall, than the students. Yet nothing ever changes. Why?
17. The short answer is this. As all smaller colleges struggle with finances, evangelical schools depend on parents who want conservative orthodoxy enforced and donors who demand they remain incubators for the next generation of culture warriors. Administrators hold the line.
18. Here's a thread looking at this dynamic in more detail:
https://twitter.com/C_Stroop/status/1117625634694553601?s=20
#Exvangelical #EmptyThePews
https://twitter.com/C_Stroop/status/1117625634694553601?s=20
#Exvangelical #EmptyThePews
19. As you follow the events of the fascist #RepublicanNationalConvention, remember that they reflect exactly what the vast majority of white evangelical Christians want. In fact, it's primarily the Christian Right that brought us to this low point. https://www.pajiba.com/politics/christianaltfacts-is-why-america-is-a-dumpster-fire.php
20. And if that concerns you, act accordingly. Demand that our major media outlets examine the systemic authoritarian nature of evangelicalism in their coverage of evangelicals. Demand that ex-evangelical voices be included. Promote our work, for example: https://www.amazon.com/Empty-Pews-Stories-Leaving-Church/dp/1946093076
21. Of course, also vote like your life depends on it--because it may. Your rights and freedoms certainly do. Hopefully we can overcome Republican attempts at cheating, but if we keep normalizing extremism, ousting Trump won't save us down the road
#VoteForBidenHarris #VoteBlue
#VoteForBidenHarris #VoteBlue
22. I know there are a lot of unmet needs in this time of #Covid_19, but if you have anything to spare and want me to be able to keep doing this kind of work, please support my Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/cstroop
Freelancing fees are not enough to cover all of my living expenses
https://www.patreon.com/cstroop
Freelancing fees are not enough to cover all of my living expenses
23. If you can't afford to support me via Patreon, simply sharing the link so others might choose to helps a lot too!
Thank you for reading! If this is your first time coming across my Twitter, I hope you'll check out http://cstroop.com .
Oh, and there is one more thing
Thank you for reading! If this is your first time coming across my Twitter, I hope you'll check out http://cstroop.com .
Oh, and there is one more thing
24. If you are a writer from a hardline religious background you've left behind, or you know someone who is, check out the follow-up project to Empty the Pews: Stories of Leaving the Church @laureneoneal and I are working on.
Thanks again! End thread
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1HUIhAgaz1-dQaQNoPvjC-QN1ySeyUEo_pHAsEl7H-PM/edit
Thanks again! End thread
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1HUIhAgaz1-dQaQNoPvjC-QN1ySeyUEo_pHAsEl7H-PM/edit
