What better combo could there be? I'm not a student of law, but I still found this to be a facinating story about its history and importance. The descriptions of Larry Flynt are colorful and often times halarious. Fawell doesn't exactly come out looking like an angel either, but I found Smolla's treatment of both characters to be fair. Ultimately, the conclusion of this book are right on. Flynt and Falwell are both hustlers of the American Dream. They just sell their versions from opposite ends of the spectrum.

Rod Smolla knows how to tell a story. We all know Larry Flynt is colorful, what we didn't know is how brilliant his young attorney was in getting the Falwell trial heard in the "Live Free or Die State" when Hustler's distribution there was about 1% of its national sales. A must read for any staunch defender of the First Amendment.

This book gave a very informative look at abortion and teen pregnancy from two different points of view. Rev. Falwell writes every other chapter of the book, explaining the processes and consequences of abortion from an observer's position. Alternating chapters are written from the personal experiences of a christian young lady (teen) that was raped. She tells about her friends' and family's reactions, her pregnancy, and abortion, and her own thoughts and feelings. This book opened my eyes to the realities of pregnancy and abortion, and helped me to determine that it is definately worth doing whatever is necessary in order to avoid these circumstances. Rev. Falwell makes it clear that it is better to be "safe" than not, if you are going to have sex, but the only 100% protection is to abstain from sex until marriage. A great book for teen girls and parents of teens to read. Even good for teen guys, shows them what they're really getting into, and what the girl might have to go through, when they decide to have sex.

This book gives the stories behind songs that are POPULAR NOW. Although many of the stories are happy accounts, many of them reveal human suffering, and out of this darkness comes a sunbeam...a song! The songs wear like steel.

Each of the stories is in devotional form. The book is excellent for a daily devotional guide.

This book is the result of extensive collaboration by many great minds in the field of evangelical Christian theology, and it shows. The analysis is detailed and well thought out, and provides valuable insights into passages of scripture both familiar and obscure.

The format is simple: the full text of the KJV in the left column, with individual verses separated by as much space as necessary to accommodate the attendant commentary in the right column. Direct quotes to scripture in the commentary portion are in bold type for quick recognition.

Although I use this resource on a regular basis in my own Bible study and class preparation, my enthusiasm for it is tempered by several factors. First, there is a notable absence of consistency in terms of how much detail is afforded to various passages. In other words, some relatively "unimportant" topics are exhaustively discussed, while other more central doctrines are given somewhat cursory treatment, and still other controversial passages and doctrines seem to be avoided altogether.

Second, the denominational bias of the contributors occasionally shows through very strongly. On those points, particularly on some unclear doctrines, the views of the commentators are nothing more than statements of opinion, and should be treated appropriately in deciding how heavily to rely on them. For example, look at any passage dealing with alcohol consumption, tithing, or election/predestination, and you are left with little doubt that this book was written from a Baptist perspective.

Overall though, I find this commentary to be a valuable addition to my personal research library. I regularly turn to it to see what some of these great minds have to say, keeping in mind that the authors are not infallible and their work not inspired.

No more flipping pages or carrying an extra book. Scripture on left side of page, commentary on right side of same page. Commentary by solid, conservative, proven contributors (Jerry Falwell, James Dobson, Elmer L. Towns ...).Map supplements, GREAT introductions and outline for each book. Two drawbacks, 1)no concordance at all, 2) not available in softbound, only hardbound. Overall: Makes my top two study bible list. Greatly recommended. Will be enjoyed by all!

My sister received this book when she asked for information on Liberty University. (I guess Jerry has a bunch of these in a warehouse) She chose to go to Bob Jones and I got the book. This book is a good read, It tells about Jerry growing up and how he came to Christ, as well as the history of Thomas Road Baptist and other ministries. It ends when Jerry Falwell took control of PTL from The Bakkers, though if you want the complete story on that you'll probably have to go to his newer autobiography. If you want to get to know the man behind the iage read this book

Although Dr. Falwell is a conservative, he is one who accepts criticism gracefully and admits when he's wrong. This book will give you more insight into Dr. Falwell and find out that much what the media says about him is not true.

Harding does not attempt an expose, per se, although readers will be disturbed, perplexed and perhaps shocked by some of this book. For her research, the author immersed herself in the world of evangelical fundamentalism, getting to know the people, even becoming (in a sense) an insider herself. The fruit of her time is The Book of Jerry Falwell, an exploration of the way words are used in the fundamentalist "subculture" (though I am not sure if this is a designation Harding herself uses), specifically in the ministry of one of modern fundamentalism's key figures, televangelist Jerry Falwell.

The author's analysis rings true to life, for over the course of the past couple of years I have been on a pilgrimage away from my fundamentalist past, and can identify with many of her observations. For example, nowadays in conversation with fundamentalists I find I have to adapt my language and way of thinking to their language and way of thinking. When I have connected my worldview (still Christian, just not fundamentalist) to theirs, I can start to understand. Similarly, I find myself having to suspend my own mental system when talking to my new-age friends, and learn how words work in the world they inhabit. For this reason, Harding's perceptive commentary on fundamentalist political and religious speech resonates with my own perceptions, and thus emerges as fascinating, incisive and authentic.

One of the biggest insults I ever received was from a friend who thought he was saying something good about me, telling me, as if I'd broken some law of mutual exclusivity, I was both a Christian and an intellectual. I was an intellectual first, and had a born-again experience -- and my first real prayer offered to a God I scarcely knew included the phrase that, though I would follow Christ, I would not become one of those "nutty religious-righters". My first lesson as a Christian: you don't dictate terms to God. Now people who meet me with no exposition to my life tend to stereotype me pretty quickly, because the last firewall of the bigot in the USA is that against Christians. Increasingly at the end of the twentieth and dawn of the twenty-first century after Christ, "extremists" are defined as those who seem to actually believe what they profess to believe; and to believe fervently is the mark of a cultist, and probably a threat to society; and Christians are thought and written about, though not yet so mercilessly, in the same sort of ways that Jews were toward the end of the nineteenth century. Yet if God offered revelation to the Jews, not only of God's nature ("I Am That I Am") and of man's fall from Grace, and God came as a Jew in Jesus as sacrifice for our sins, and Christ rose from the dead to prove His power, one cannot be half-hearted in clinging to that salvation, though accepting it does not make one perfect. Throughout Christian history there has been an ebb and flow. At certain periods -- the twelfth century, the sixteenth, and the twentieth, for instance -- many Christians see their faith as becoming too worldly and corrupted and there was an impulse to go back to roots, to fundamentals, and rebuild as if from scratch the Church's relationship with God. Such an impulse drove modern "fundamentalism", a nebulous term that is increasingly being defined by those who would eradicate it. As in the twelfth century, when there was a rise of monasticism to separate the Church from society, in the twentieth century the impulse was pretty sedate. But in the 1970s many "fundamentalists" and evangelicals became increasingly politically active to join the increasingly complex marketplace of ideas, so that Christ wouldn't be lost in the babble of modern plurality. Dodging from one party to the next, first with the Democrats and Jimmy Carter, they were not isolated as enemies until they supported Ronald Reagan, when the intellecutal elite, to use an idea of Solzhenitsyn's, in the academic, artistic, and media communities began scapgoating Christian fundamentalists. The biggest scapegoats were the perceived leaders, the most famous (or infamous) being Jerry Falwell, whose name, in a wacky sort of way, became synonymous with intolerance and extremism. Because of media conditioning Christian fundamentalists (in precis: those who actually believe what they profess, and live that seven days a week and not just an hour on Sunday) have been perceived as easily-manipulated rubes, a nuisance rather than a subject for academic attention. However, just as people cannot be categorized simply by reference to their race, gender, or nationality, Christian fundamentalists cannot be put in a jar and labelled, for they come from all walks of life and all degrees of learning and intelligence. Though we hate to feel we're living under a microscope, there is some small glimmer of hope that this book will help to raise understanding and a level of tolerance toward fundamentalists, before society has to have the jolt it had to have tolerance for the Jews after World War II.

In light of Rev. Falwell's unfortunate comments about the tragedy of Sept. 11, 2001, I recommend this book to anyone seeking to understand, "Why would that guy say that stuff?" Harding presents an objective, intelligent, perceptive analysis of the way that Fundamentalist language shapes the way in which they relate to the world, and how Jerry Falwell changed that shaping from withdrawal to the active Moral Majority of the 1980s. Harding combs through Falwell's history and sermons to observe how the language of "being born again" affects the listener, showing Falwell's shift from separatism to political activism. She critiques both Falwell and Falwell's critics in a fair and keenly insightful way. Good reading and good understanding.

Grace Halsell is such a bold author who explored into such waters that very few authors will dare to dive into. She talks about and has indeed exposed this big time secret Alliance between the State of Israel and the American Evangelical fundamentalist Movement with a population of over 70 million! - under the Leadership of fundamentalist Christians like Jerry Falwell and Bill Graham. This Alliance is determined to eradicate the Palestinian population from their Holy Land, and other Arabs in neighbouring countries (from the Nile to the Euphrates) in order for the Evangelists to prepare for the coming of the Messiah. They are determined to bring this about by any means necessary, including the use of nuclear weapons! The very reason that the book is out of print should be a reason enough to arouse the curiosity of any reader. Most likely you should be able to get it at your local library. It's one book that will open your eyes to what is going on in the world today.

An excellent book written about the truth in Palestine. A "must read" book by an American for American people. We shouldn't be too stupid to believe the media.

One of the few persons who do not mind telling it LIKE IT IS. I commend G. Halsell for her excellent research on the subject. "The Truth Shall Set You Free."

I think that it is good but it could be better. I know that it is an autobiography, but I think that the author could have made it in better words.

First published in 1980, "Listen, America!" by Jerry Falwell is a political manifesto of the so-called "Christian Right." "Listen" is basically a diatribe against the various groups whom Falwell despises: humanists, feminists, gay rights activists, much of the music and television industries, etc. Through it all, Falwell preaches a narrowly defined version of the Christian faith.

The only good thing that can be said about "Listen, America!" is that it's a pretty clear and concise example of essential Christian Right thought. Falwell praises or quotes other right wing figures like Phyllis Schlafly and Jesse Helms. He reviews American history through a distorted, one-sided lens; in his efforts to depict the United States as a Christian nation, he fails to acknowledge the full theological and philosophical diversity of the nation's founders. He insists on a simplistically literalistic reading of biblical passages.

Falwell found himself the object of much scorn after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 -- attacks which brought devastation to New York City and Washington, DC. After that horrible tragedy, Falwell publicly blamed pagans, feminists, civil libertarians, gay activists, and others for allegedly bringing divine wrath on the U.S., and thus helping cause the attack. This cruel and insensitive rant outraged an already hurting nation, and greatly discredited Falwell. But his comments should not really have surprised anybody; he had made similar intolerant statements 20 years earlier in "Listen, America!"

Throughout his career, Falwell has tried to present himself as a sort of modern-day prophet. But "Listen, America" reveals him to be someone who is totally out of step with the true Christian prophets of the 20th century: individuals such as Thomas Merton, John McNeill, and Martin Luther King, Jr. While interesting as a historical document, "Listen, America!" is an ugly, mean-spirited book.

A prominent moralist and theologian, the Reverend Jerry Falwell produced a seminal work that re-defined decadence at the dawn of the Reagan era, paving the way for a president fondly remembered as America's Caligula. As the air-waves crackled with the self-righteous self-congratulations of atavistic trogdolytes and the conservative movement in the United States flexed new-found muscle, Reverend Falwell fixed his mighty intellect on a new vision of decadence that would replace the sybaritic hedonism previously associated with the concept. It is in this awesomely insightful book that the epistimological foundation for the establishment of pointless materialism, ham-handed application of military power, icy insensitivity to the unfortunate, goose-stepping jingoism and Christian hypocrisy as the basis for a new variety of decadence, hitherto unknown and unexplored, is laid. Read it and you will agree: what other kind of decadence could possibly be more appropriate for a super-power of Puritan heritage, so massively imbued with emotional repression, neurotic insecurity and greed? A must-read for all students of modern cultural history.

I am scared out of my mind that this man is our reverend. He is so full of himself and is teaching thoughts that the Pope Leo X taught, who was proved wrong by Martin Luther. He has his facts wrong and has no clue what he is talking about. His facts are false. So is his book.

Nowhere in this book do we find what truly is the source of Falwell's animus towards Ellen DeGeneres, Tinky Winky or Larry Flynt. We want to know why Falwell propagated that nonsense about "Clinton murders." Too bad you won't find it here.

Someone once said that the unexamined life is not worth living.

We're still waiting for Falwell's examination.

. . . I wonder how many of these people have met and spoken withRev. Falwell. I have. He is the antithesis of his public image. Hisautobiography, while somewhat lacking in editorial proficiency (so what?) is down-to-earth and real. He talks candidly about the weaknesses of his family, about the prejudices that he was exposed to growing up, but also about the love of those God apponted to lead him ultimately to Christ. Who could not be moved by his father's death-bed conversion or by the tortured life he led because of the guilt and pain he experienced?

Shame on you all. Falwell only elicits such derision because he is larger than life. How he has the energy to do what he does amazes me. At 66, he can work circles around most anybody. Why doesn't anyone care to comment on all the good that his ministries, such as the Liberty Godparent Home or the Elim Home for Alcoholics have done? These stories were in the book. I was inspired after reading it to spend more time in prayer and in the Word.

As for Falwell's many critics, let those who have a legitimate complaint make it. It is their right. He is human like the rest of us. If you are just a "sounding brass," enough already. Give the man a break.