Death of a salesman

Attention must be paid to the passing of the Rev. Jerry Falwell because this conservative and controversial political figure was a fixture in the national debate that shaped the United States in the late 20th century.

Falwell was no theologian or even a religious leader in the manner of, say, the Rev. Billy Graham, who speaks and preaches with great moral authority and, subsequently, a measure of political influence. Falwell invoked and wielded religion as a powerful device to be used and adapted for partisan political purposes, the same as direct-mail advertising or television.

History will remember Falwell not as a leader but as an innovator, a man of timely partisan influence. He masterfully organized people of a kindred religious viewpoint into a powerful voting bloc. Falwell might have vastly overstated his authority in speaking for them, but politicians respected his claims and implied ability to deliver a vote.

In later years, Falwell spent as much time apologizing for preposterous slurs and insults as he did making them, but the tempests only served a broad marketing function for his latent clout and capacity to outrage. Often, he simply embarrassed people of faith. Last September, he announced that God would keep Congress under GOP control.

Politicians — most famously John McCain — squabbled with Falwell but they could not ignore him. As the Arizona senator fired up his presidential campaign last year, he made a conciliatory pilgrimage to Falwell's Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va.

Future scholars will find the Rev. Falwell's righteous indignation preserved in the political-science section of the library.