Liberty University Announces Investigation Involving Jerry Falwell Jr.

LYNCHBURG (VA)
SNAP Network

September 1, 2020

An investigation into Jerry Falwell Jr.’s tenure as president of Liberty University will be conducted by an outside agency, something we believe is necessary in order to get to the bottom of the scandals that have rocked the institution in recent weeks. Given that Falwell is a second-generation leader, there could well be overlaps with his father’s tenure that may require exploration and we hope that the investigators have been given leave to explore any and all abuses of power that have occurred at Liberty.

This situation reminds us of a case at a megachurch in California’s Silicon Valley. The leader of Menlo Church, John Ortberg, was forced to step down when it became known that he left his own son in ministry after the son had confessed to having a sexual fixation on children. Like Menlo Church, Liberty University had been led in a monarchical fashion that could have led to other abuses of power. Similarly, there are elements of both sexual abuse and cover-up at Liberty too, especially as they relate to how Becki Falwell allegedly preyed on at least one young college student. It is important that the sexual aspects of the Liberty case, and how far back they go, are examined.

We do have doubts that this investigation will be truly independent, especially since the board at Liberty has yet to identify the outside firm they hired to handle the investigation. At the same time, this is at least a step in the correct direction and will hopefully identify areas where secular involvement is needed.

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