Freethought & Rationalism Archive

debater10 · 02-03-2003, 01:10 PM

Falwell, it seems, is planning on expanding his fundamentalist horizons. It has zlways been his view that Christians should be "Champions for Christ" in every field of work, which was the main reason he established Liberty University.
Now don't get me wrong, I really don't care so much if my doctor is Christian, Jewish, Hindu, or whatever, so long as he/she is capable.
But it appears that Falwell has bigger ambittions than getting his students jobs as doctors or teachers. At a Convocation at the end of last year, he announced that Liberty University would be founding its own school of law. Additionaly, he said that he wouldn't be surprised to see a Supreme Court justice from Liberty University before he died.
Needless to say, this is the last thing we need. Given the academic reputation of Liberty University, I don't think that we have to fear a Supreme Court justice, but this kind of a mobilization still presents itself as a threat. Falwell repeatedly preaches as to how the United States was founded as a "Judeo-Christian" nation, and he has spoken out in support of the 10 commandments being placed in courthouses.
The bottom line is this: Will we see a Liberty Law graduate as a Supreme Court justice? Probably not. But it still stresses the ever-present need for the secular world to ensure that its voice does not become silenced by the increasingly politically powerful religious leaders.

hezekiah jones · 02-03-2003, 05:38 PM

Breyer - Harvard - R5
Ginsburg - Harvard/Columbia - R5/R4
Thomas - Yale - R2
Souter - Harvard - R5
Kennedy - Harvard - R5
Scalia - Harvard - R5
O'Connor - Stanford - R3
Stevens - Northwestern - R15
Rehnquist - Stanford - R3

etc.

Considering Pat Robertson's Regent University Law School is currently ranked 161st out of 164 by academic reputation, I'd say Jerry's prediction carries worse odds than the second coming of Christ.

Toto · 02-04-2003, 12:44 AM

Liberty Law School

Quote:

. . .The ABA doesn't hand out accreditation quickly or wantonly. A law school must exist for one year before it can apply for provisional accreditation. The ABA will not grant provisional accreditation, followed by full accreditation, until a school has met many standards on curriculum, admissions, faculty and facilities.

. . .
Unfortunately, students at a new law school risk graduating from a non-ABA accredited law school. This could prevent them from taking the bar exam, and subsequently, practicing law.

Regent University in Virginia Beach decided to take the risk when it founded a law school in 1986. Its mission is similar to Liberty's - to provide a legal education rooted in Christian principles.

Jeff Brauch, dean of Regent University School of Law, said the school faced skepticism from ABA officials about whether a Christian university could provide an adequate legal education. The ABA didn't give Regent provisional accreditation until 1989, when its first students were on the verge of graduating.

"It was a question of, 'Is this a real academic endeavor or is it going to be more like Sunday school with a little bit of law?'" Brauch said.

Regent didn't receive full accreditation until 1996.

Brauch said Liberty's path to accreditation may be smoother than Regent's.

"In Regent's case, especially early on, there were some philosophical questions about the religious mission of the school and how that impacted the education," Brauch said. "I don't expect they'll be asking those questions of Liberty but they are certainly going to be asking the resource question."

However, the philosophical questions could arise.

In his e-mail, Falwell offers specific ideas about the law school faculty, saying it would "employ professors who are: committed to the inspiration and infallibility of the bible; committed to the Lordship of Jesus Christ; committed to a strict constructionist view of the U.S. Constitution; committed to training godly attorneys for the law profession, for service in American government or as judges and justices."

Stephen Maturin · 02-04-2003, 05:08 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by debater10
At a Convocation at the end of last year, he announced that Liberty University would be founding its own school of law. Additionaly, he said that he wouldn't be surprised to see a Supreme Court justice from Liberty University before he died.

Oh, dear. This is exactly the sort of thing you'd expect to hear from someone who believes that an invisible being in the sky talks to him on a regular basis. Falwell may not live to see a Liberty Law graduate pass a bar exam, much less become a Supreme Court justice. Baby steps, Jerry, baby steps.

Quote:

But it still stresses the ever-present need for the secular world to ensure that its voice does not become silenced by the increasingly politically powerful religious leaders.

Truer words were never written.

dangin · 02-04-2003, 08:31 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by hezekiah jones
Breyer - Harvard - R5
Ginsburg - Harvard/Columbia - R5/R4
Thomas - Yale - R2
Souter - Harvard - R5
Kennedy - Harvard - R5
Scalia - Harvard - R5
O'Connor - Stanford - R3
Stevens - Northwestern - R15
Rehnquist - Stanford - R3

Very nice reality check. Thanks for posting this.

02-03-2003, 01:10 PM	#1
debater10 Regular Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Lynchburg, VA, USA Posts: 106	Liberty Law School Falwell, it seems, is planning on expanding his fundamentalist horizons. It has zlways been his view that Christians should be "Champions for Christ" in every field of work, which was the main reason he established Liberty University. Now don't get me wrong, I really don't care so much if my doctor is Christian, Jewish, Hindu, or whatever, so long as he/she is capable. But it appears that Falwell has bigger ambittions than getting his students jobs as doctors or teachers. At a Convocation at the end of last year, he announced that Liberty University would be founding its own school of law. Additionaly, he said that he wouldn't be surprised to see a Supreme Court justice from Liberty University before he died. Needless to say, this is the last thing we need. Given the academic reputation of Liberty University, I don't think that we have to fear a Supreme Court justice, but this kind of a mobilization still presents itself as a threat. Falwell repeatedly preaches as to how the United States was founded as a "Judeo-Christian" nation, and he has spoken out in support of the 10 commandments being placed in courthouses. The bottom line is this: Will we see a Liberty Law graduate as a Supreme Court justice? Probably not. But it still stresses the ever-present need for the secular world to ensure that its voice does not become silenced by the increasingly politically powerful religious leaders.

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02-03-2003, 05:38 PM	#2
hezekiah jones Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2001 Location: WI Posts: 4,357	Breyer - Harvard - R5 Ginsburg - Harvard/Columbia - R5/R4 Thomas - Yale - R2 Souter - Harvard - R5 Kennedy - Harvard - R5 Scalia - Harvard - R5 O'Connor - Stanford - R3 Stevens - Northwestern - R15 Rehnquist - Stanford - R3 etc. Considering Pat Robertson's Regent University Law School is currently ranked 161st out of 164 by academic reputation, I'd say Jerry's prediction carries worse odds than the second coming of Christ.

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