Tammy Faye Messner dies

Source: CNN

(CNN) -- Tammy Faye Messner, the former televangelist and Christian singer who battled drug addiction and later inoperable cancer, died Friday morning, according to CNN's Larry King on Saturday night. He said the family had asked him to make the delayed announcement.

She was 65.

"She died peacefully," King said.

Messner was a guest on "Larry King Live" on Thursday. She said she couldn't swallow food, and weighed only 65 pounds.

Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/07/21/tammy.faye/index.html

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According to Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tammy_Faye#Cancer), she died yesterday morning shortly after appearing on Larry King, but her death was not announced until this evening.

ON EDIT #2: updated this with CNN's story.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tammy_Faye_Messner

Tammy Faye first battled with cancer in March of 1996, when she was diagnosed with colon cancer. She successfully treated the cancer and it went into remission by the end of that year.<4>

On March 19, 2004, just 2 weeks after her 62nd birthday, Tammy Faye made an emotional appearance on Larry King Live and announced that she had inoperable lung cancer and would soon begin chemotherapy.<5> She continued chemotherapy throughout mid-2004. Then, on November 30, 2004, also on Larry King Live, she announced that she was cancer free once again. She described details of her chemotherapy and continued to appear regularly on King's show. It was on his program again that she announced, on July 20, 2005, that her cancer had returned.<6>

On March 13, 2006, just six days after her 64th birthday, she appeared again on Larry King Live and stated that she was continuing to suffer from lung cancer, which had reached stage 4, and was continuing treatment for it. She also mentioned having difficulty swallowing food, suffering panic attacks, and substantial weight loss. As Messner's health continued to worsen, a "Talk of the Town" article in the October 2, 2006 issue of The New Yorker stated that she was dying in hospice care, and a December 10, 2006 article in Walter Scott's column in Parade reported her son Jay was "at a North Carolina hospice with his mom, gravely ill with colon cancer".<7>

Tammy Faye was a guest by phone on Larry King Live on December 15, 2006 and stated that she was receiving hospice care in her home. <8> Tammy Faye appeared in her son Jay's documentary series, One Punk Under God, where she and Jay talked about her cancer treatments. In one episode, Tammy Faye required the use of oxygen in order to talk.

On May 8, 2007, she issued a statement on her website saying that all treatments to cure her cancer had stopped, but urged her fans to continue to pray for her. <9> The story was reported on NBC's The Today Show on May 11, and a feature in which fans and well-wishers could post get-well messages to Tammy was added to her website. As of July 2007, over 228 pages of wishes have been received.<10>

On July 19, 2007 she was the interview subject on CNN's Larry King Live where she looked dramatically thinner, weighing only a mere 65 pounds.

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On that note, RIP Tammy Faye.

I'll let you folks celebrate her "assent to Heaven"

without further comment

.


:wtf: :wtf: :wtf: :wtf:

RIP Tammy, you're an original.

RIP Tammy.

What kind of sick, terrible person are you?

So don't knock it.

Truly. But I don't think the death of a minor celebrity that none of us knew personally is analogous to the death of a DUer or a DU family member. It shouldn't be, anyway. But if a bit of public garment-rending makes people feel better, I'm certainly not going to stand in the way of all that catharsis. I just think it's one of DU's less attractive peculiarities, that's all.

And that is all I can say about her.

In what context?

"And that is all I can say about her" do you not understand?

I don't mean to be rude, but it's best that I leave it at that.

attractive "peculiarities."

Shame on you.

She was what she was--a con-artist low-life who managed to re-invent herself as a minor reality TV celebrity. Not the best person who ever lived, and certainly not the worst. I'm a bit skeptical of DU's public grief-a-thons, though, as they apply to the Tammy Fayes/Anna Nicoles/Steve Irwins of the world--but then I'm skeptical of celebrity culture as a whole. People see what they want to see in celebrities, mostly. It's peculiar indeed.

Superb. Keep it up. :thumbsup:

:rofl:

Her ex-husband did not. She was a truly good person by the time she left this world. I salute her and wish her well on her next journey.

but it might be best all round if the poster you responded to actually went ahead with that head-explosion thing. It might make for a lot less puerile, mouth-frothing, blind hatred in these forums.

or rather a song she did. I think it was called "God's not dead....." or some such. Anyway, I was at Flipside (the local Burning man event in Austin) and early one morning after a particularly "altered" night, I was woken up by that song, ringing out ethereally. It was such a sing song, repetitive song sung in such a child like voice but it stuck and that's all I can hear on my inner soundtrack right now. God's not dead, he's still alive, God's not dead, he's still alive...........

I don't pretend to understand the Jim and Tammy Faye era, but Tammy Faye redeemed herself. It is good to know that people can do that even if they so rarely do.

I recall watching her on The Surreal Life, and she seemed so kind-hearted. A totally different person than the one she was back when the PTL scandal hit.

Rest in peace.

:cry:

She was truly a class act.

and at peace.

He will be devastated, for those that watched his reality series.

I saw him when he held services at the Masquerade nightclub here in Atlanta about 5 years ago. I don't share his Christian faith, but I took away this: Jay Bakker really "gets" Jesus, and he's responsible for creating something (Revolution Church) very wonderful. I'm thinking about him tonight.

I am glad that Jay is married to such a wonderful woman. I can't recall her name right off the bat, but if one gets past her bright punk red hair and her body piercing (a cultural hang up for some), one will find a well grounded woman with a very strong faith, not in the Jesus that is peddled by most churches, but in the Jesus that treated women as equals and that never turned anyone away.

Bakker's Revolution Church is very cool!

"Jamie Charles (Jay) Bakker (b. December 18, 1975) is an American Christian pastor and the son of Jim Bakker and the late Tammy Faye Bakker Messner. He ministers to Revolution Church, a church he founded in 1994 in Phoenix, Arizona with Kelli Miller and Mike Wall.<1> Jay preaches at the New York City branch of Revolution Church located at Pete's Candy Store, 709 Lorimer St., Brooklyn, New York. Pete's Candy Store is a nightclub that features live music at night"

"Because his philosophy of inclusiveness extends to gays and gay marriage, Bakker falls outside of the beliefs of many in the conservative Christian community. When Larry King asked him if he was "part of the liberal sect of Christianity," he said that he was "more liberal than most" . <3> He also decries the influence of politics in religion, saying that it prevents civil discussion of topics such as homosexuality and abortion. <4>

Bakker also has several tattoos and piercings which give him more the appearance of a punk rocker than a traditional preacher."

link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jay_Bakker

His reality TV documentary showed when he lost all of the evangelical funding, right after he came out for LGBT rights and Revolution Church became gay accepting. Apparently a lot of the evangelists get subsidized by major evangelical organizations, provided they adhere to the orthodoxy.

Jay kept good relations with his mother. His relations with his dad, the topic of another reality TV episode, remained strained. Needless to say, Jay and Jim Bakker do not share the same theology. Jim has remarried and has a new ministry, but he is still preaching the same old shit, while Jay has become the epitome of WWJD put to work.

heaven. PTL. Praise The Lord.

:cry:

Tammy Faye will be missed by many, many of her friends and I consider myself to be a friend although we never met.

...well a check that actually cleared the bank

Why is telling the awful truth about this sinner of a woman called crass?

She was, by all accounts, not involved in the PTL scandal/crime mongering. Fact: She was never charged, indicted, or convicted of any wrongdoing. It seems she was the typical passive Christian wife, who lets hubby handle everything, and she just does her praying and singing and being a mother and wife.

If it makes you feel more tolerant of her, she had a one-season TV show with that gay man who used to be on another TV show...they became best friends for life. She seems to have taken people as they were, not what she thought they should be (or the Bible told her they should be).

She was forgiving of everyone who jilted her, including her ex-husband Jim (who besides being a crook, also had an affair with Jessica Hawn)...except for Jerry Falwell. She spoke out about what a betraying two-faced friend he was to the Bakers.

She was beloved by almost everyone who met her. It seems she truly was a pretty happy, positive, genuine person who had a thing for fake eyelashes (based on a childhood lack of self-esteem issue), and who sincerely liked most everyone and endeavored to see their good points.

For those who have a thing against religious people, then you may be glad she's gone. For others who think that people like her add value to the world, then she will be missed. She didn't deserve this early, painful death.

May there truly be the heaven she thinks there is, and that she is there, resting in peace and happy.

:(

I just couldn't believe that was her. Had I just been flipping through the channels, I probably wouldn't have even realized. I knew the end couldn't be far off.

And there her children were being loving and supportive of her.

The world is a smaller, less positive place today without her essence in it. There should be more like her. (She also raised what seem to be two good kids, which is an indication of how good a mother she must have been, seeing's how she raised them in such an unusual environment and with a betraying thief for a father.)

Her suffering is over.

you indeed were a lovely human being.

She broke my heart the other night on LKL. I couldn't even watch. It is so painful to lose a loved one to cancer. My prayers go out to her family.

I look forward to seeing you there, Tammy! :hi: (Sorry if this sounds maudlin.)

i remember watching their tv program in utter fascination..

rest in peace

No matter at what stage of her life..even with the PTL and the made up doll make up and all of the show stuff of PTL and the clothes and life style. She just went with it, had faith in her con man husband and the lord. And when it all fell apart, she still went on with what she knew and always did it with kind of a child like innocence and wide open vulnerability. And then she evolved to include everyone who would listen to her...and everyone who she met..and finally just everyone out there. All of us, in a way both love and fear such wide open vulnerability. In a way it is too much for us look at and absorb. Whoever she was and no matter how different her beliefs were from mine, I am glad I got to experience Tammy faye Bakker.

any of the others. May she RIP as well. I can understand her falling in with the people she did. There was the brainwashing and bible schools and all that, which led her down that primrose path. However, someone did point out to me that she did a lot of positive work with drug addiction while still a part of the PTL and before the scandal pulled her world apart. I truly believe she didn't know what was going on behind the scenes with her husband. When it all fell apart with the scandal she picked herself up and carried on. Those were her actions, which I judge her by.

And your family.

Thank you for your courageous goodbye on Larry King Thurs. night.

Thanks for the kind thoughts for TFB.

Tammy Faye has also been known as one of the few evangelical Christians who had the support of the gay community. She was one of the first televangelists to reach out to those with AIDS when it was a little-known and much-feared disease. In return, she told King in July, "When I went -- when we lost everything, it was the gay people that came to my rescue, and I will always love them for that."

And peace be with your family.

as much as she did--a horrible way to go. What ever happened to her smarmy little weasel of an ex-husband?

Bless her soul. I liked her spirit.

for her, especially after I first heard of her condition.

Anyhow, if it's true her son's church welcomes the LGBTs among us, that's real redemption in my book.

RIP, Tammy Faye. You were an original.

blessed god -- receive this gentle soul and let your peace be with her family. amen

I knew just by looking at her, that she didn't have much longer to live. It broke my heart when the poor woman said she dreamed of being able to eat some fast food again...because I knew it was never to be.

Thank God she's no longer suffering, and I pray that she's in Heaven now. :cry:

Have you even said any thing?


How does your comment forgive stealing from WIDOWS?


How is anyone who forgives her NOT A SUCKER?


Show me one person who went to bed unhungry.

Show me one selfless deed.

Show me why .

SHOW ME,.

That's what Tammy Faye did. Let the poor lady rest in peace.

Tammy Faye learned from her mistakes and became a better person. To me, that is something to be admired, not scorned.

Rest in peace, little lady.

"All we like sheep have gone astray" One of the most important things to learn in life whether your Buddhist, Christian, Pagan, or whatever is FORGIVENESS.

The clip I saw of her on Larry King earlier this week just about brought me to tears. She seemed like a genuinely decent person, even when she was around people who weren't. I don't share her religious beliefs, but I'm happy she's at peace.

She said she was not afraid to die, but was worried about her family because she knew how sad they would be. RIP.

Thank you for showing the world the power of forgiveness.

I emailed her a note on Friday. I know there was no possible way she could have read it now.

I said in my email that I appreciated her message of love to all...especially as a gay man. She did indeed preach a message of acceptance and love for gay and lesbian people. She was indeed a true Christian.

And I told her that I hoped her remaining time was peaceful and free from pain.

You will be missed, Tammy Faye. :cry:

sure what I believe or do not believe anymore I do know that if there is something that allows us to be conscious in some way after death then she has read your email and it most likely made her smile. Now we all know her pain is gone. You did a very nice thing and her family will appreciate it very much I am sure. I wish I had thought to do that as well.

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...to pay back all the people her and Jimmy ripped off?

Let's get real.

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My mom died from it quickly!!

Once my father-in-law was diagnosed, he was gone within about two weeks.

RIP, Tammy....

than she often showed in her glory years married to a crooked televangelist.

Grow up.

Sheesh.

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but I'm saddened by this story. I hope she attained some measure of peace before her death.

I remember thinking watching Larry King, "It's nice to know that even at times like this people can still smile and laugh." I didn't think she'd go so soon, though. Very strange hearing somebody's words about life, death, and God, etc, hours before they went to the "Beyond". :(

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Fly Away...

Best Wishes to Tammy Faye's family in their time of sorrow.

I felt no sadness for Falwell - it is hard to feel sorrow for anyone who preaches hate. But Tammy, while I disagree with her seemed to try to bring people to Jesus with love.

As for her being corrupt - I see it as more tragic, almost like Madame Bovary. Only in this case it was the husband screwing around.

He wanted PTL and all the stuff that came with it. When PTL began to unravel in scandal, Falwell pounced and began a whispering campaign against the Bakkers - including claims of Jim Bakker's homosexuality - that was aimed at discrediting them in order to take their ministry and its property.

Jackie "Moms" Mabley summed up Falwell best for me:

"My momma always told me to never say nothin' about somebody who died unless it was good.
"He's dead. Good."

:hi:

But as I read about her in her post-PTL years I realized she was one of the good ones.

God Bless you Tammy Faye!

or what she and Jim did during their PTL days, nobody deserves to die like she did. Cancer is a terrible, awful disease. I wouldn't wish it on my worse enemy.

I'm glad her suffering is over.

RIP Tammy Faye.


“What we need in the United States is not division; what we need in the United States is not hatred; what we need in the United States is not violence or lawlessness; but love and wisdom, and compassion toward one another, and a feeling of justice toward those who still suffer within our country, whether they be white or they be black.”
Robert F. Kennedy

"Deserve's got nothin' to do with it." But you're right--nobody deserves to go like that. Okay, maybe not nobody, but I'm pretty sure Tammy Faye didn't.

God bless and keep you, lovely lady.

Thanks to all for showing mercy around here. She and her ex-husband hurt many people. But, she was a lightweight, and in a world where Dick Cheney still stalks the Earth, I have a lot of trouble firing up much hatred about Tammy Faye.

He has got to be taking this very hard. They became very close friends during the filming of their season of The Surreal Life.

You KNOW the producers thought they were being oh-so-lever putting those two on together.. but look what happened! They both had incredible respect and affection for one another, both of which continued after the filming of the show.

"I never felt more pure love as a did that night at the Castro theater". This was after she appeared in San Francisco and the mostly gay croud just loved her.

I'm sure my brother is greating her in heaven now and they're having a burger and fried.

RIP Tammy. I love you!

I am just reading through these responses and I have to tell you I had the very same thought. My brother probably greeted her as well, he really liked her in her later years. He will play the piano and she can do her thing!

Twenty-odd years ago, before there were umpty dozen cable channels, the PTL Club with its mesmerizing mindfuckedness was one of my treasured viewing pleasures. It was like Pee-Wee's Playhouse without the self-consciousness, and Tammy Faye was its real-life Miss Yvonne. Watching her alternately weep, sing and testify was like watching a train wreck. I winced, I cringed, but I couldn't tear my eyes away. I was so sad when it all came crashing down.

My condolences to her family and friends. Rest in peace, Tammy Faye.

My fondest memories of Tammy Faye were while getting stoned and drunk with my brother. In fact he called me when she appeared on LKL the other night.

About all I really remember was that she cried a lot on that show and her makeup was always running under her eyes. We watched with the sound off, so I never really knew what was being said.

I tend to agree with the poster who said that it's hard to muster up much feeling over her misdeeds. She was a Carmella Soprano, wise to what was going on but happy to be along for the ride.

I do think she'd have been a more sympathetic character if she'd attempted to right some of the wrongs during her time with Jim Baker. I'm not sure how that would work, though.



Cher

Even stoned, I couldn't take Jim Baker.

But Tammy was a character, and she could sing. I remember her belting out "We're blessed. We're blessed. We're blessed. We are blessed." I paused for that.

http://www.revolutionnyc.com/idea.htm


We met Tammy Faye's son, Jay Bakker, in June.
I don't care what else a person may have done, but if you can raise children like him, you've done the world a great service.

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I don't know what she did or didn't do that was either criminal, greedy or just plain stupid. Much, possibly.

I don't care what religious or political beliefs you do or don't hold in conformance or disagreement with hers.

But there's little doubt that Tammy Faye Messner was a strong, tenacious, and devoted woman. She survived bad husbands, public scandals and humiliations, and many years with at least two (colon, lung, more?) bouts of cancer, although it outdistanced her in the end.

Laugh at her makeup or her faith, but you ultimately can't laugh at the indestructible Tammy Faye. That's when you have to stop and respect her. She hit rock bottom time and again and always came up fighting. Folks, she pulled herself together and put on the dog and pony show one last time on Larry King, virtually steps away from her deathbed, because she still had some things she wanted to say. Now, where did she get that kind of strength from?

Me, I'm in awe. What a survivor. What a dame.

R.I.P.

Welcome to DU. :hi:

your post has brought tears to my eyes. thank you. :hug:

welcome to DU!

May you walk into the Light

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I hope you have found what you spent your entire life searching for.

Into thy hands, O merciful Savior, we commend thy servant Tammy. Acknowledge, we humbly beseech thee, a sheep of thine own fold, a lamb of thine own flock, a sinner of thine own redeeming. Receive her into the arms of thy mercy, into the blessed rest of everlasting peace, and into the glorious company of the saints in light. Amen.

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As far as her past behavior and involvement with her ex-husband's "church" goes, she did endeavor to atone for that and tried to make amends as best she could.

As far as I'm concerned, everyone gets a second chance. Some get many more than that.

Condolences to her family.

(Methinks I smell a tombstone approaching.....Or maybe not. We'll see...) :evilgrin:

and may you rest in eternal peace.

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their horrible uber-christian tv show. The epitome of tasteless hucksters.

BUT I gained considerable respect for her after seeing the documentary Eyes of Tammy Faye recently. Those of you who haven't seen it, should.

RIP Tammy Faye.

But as I saw more of her over the years, and heard more about her life story, and heard her through more interviews, I gradually came to understand that, although she is different, she seemed to be that rarity of rarities....a genuinely good person with a naive vision of the world and people. It became clear that although her husband had been a thief and a philanderer, she had not been. She had been a victim, too. (Granted, I think she got carried away with the money, as so often people do.)

I believe she had a gentle soul and was a good mother and tried to be a good wife....all things important to her. She deserves the Heaven she wants. May she rest in peace.

trappings of fame and fortune because of it. But I took note of how she was kind to gays, and was NEVER one of the judgemental, hellfire-and-brimstone types that dominate now.

that people can change and try to make a small part of the world a slightly better place.

For those who write disparaging remarks, some day, you too will die. I kind of hope that you will have come to the fact that it is never too late to change, it is never too late to try to help people. Tammy Faye did this toward the end of her life. I find that quite remarkable...she is neither angel nor devil, she tried to clear things up, and it appears to me, she did a pretty good job of it.

FWIW, she showed remarkable courage and an acceptance of what was to be, we can all learn a lesson from that, regardless of what we think of the woman on a personal level.

So, Tammy Faye, the pain is over, the hurt is gone, you have made peace w/in your belief. Go quietly into the night, and may you find Peace.

O8)

You're a courageous lady. May you go in peace.

http://sisterpaula.org/Blog/375DA945-DD79-4E9A-B4DF-D840F1E0A438.html

RIP Tammy

while you could clearly tell she was very sick, her attitude was so positive and she was still joking when she was on Larry King. hard to believe she would have died just a couple days after that interview.

at least she is no longer in pain and i'm glad she was at peace with herself when she died.

I don't care if it was 25 years ago.


Fact is that Tammy Faye is now rotting in hell for her sins and I really can't forgive her.


Cancer is a horrible way to go, but it doesn't forgive her.

Does no one recall whAT EVIL THIS WOMAN DID?

stop making yourself look ridiculous.

And please put me on ignore ASAP.

evil villain even in the 80s. Read up on PTL, she was never involved in the day to day financial operations like Jim Bakker was. She could be kind of a tacky show woman on the show, but investigations never showed that she was responsible for the mismanagement like others were. Nice lady but never seemed smart enough to be purposefully devious.

I'm not sure what sort of poet isn't open to the idea of human fallibility, the possibility of human redemption, and the ripe dead certainties of suffering and death. A lousy poet, would be my guess...

Back in the early 80s, when people with AIDS were pariahs, she invited them onto her show, embraced them, and urged her viewers to do the same. Perhaps this was before your time, but many "serious people" then were advocating quarantining people with AIDS. Hell, even now, a quarter-century later, how many big name evangelicals would do what she did?

Then there are the many AIDS benefits she hosted over the years, and the time she spent urging despondent gay kids not to take their own lives, and her response to a mother concerned about her son's "sinful lifestyle" that if there's one sin Jesus would condemn, it is failing to love one's own child.

She did a lot over the years to make amends for the evil that she certainly did. What have you done to make amends for your own evil? (Slamming dead people on message boards doesn't count.)

Like you, I'm no fan of TFB, but my guess is God did not deputize you to stand judgment at the pearly gate. Give it a rest.

cast the first stone. If you're so without sin.

GROWN UPS around here understand that we all fuck up at some time or other. Whether it was willful ignorance or true naivete' of what was going on during the PTL Club days, she most obviously turned her life around.

To take on the all-powerful Southern Baptist church to DEFY their hatefest against GBL&Ts took GUTS! And another thing: She went through SO many tribulations in her life and she always came out with her faith in tact. THAT is TRUE Christianity in my book.

Yes, we all recall what she did, but most of us have the capacity to give credit where credit is due when people change for the better.

the fact that we are able to forgive when people truly see that their actions have hurt others, and ask for forgiveness?

maybe you are on the wrong board.

and i do make a distinction between those who do change, versus those who go through the motions of changing because they got caught. tammy faye is the former. jimmy swaggart is the latter (along with just about every republican ever "caught" doing anything).

even though there are not a lot of them, the bitterness of some of these posts just goes to show that many don't WANT to forgive.

i was raised christian, but am now a hardcore atheist. and forgiveness is not the exculsive concept of christianity. we have ALL hurt others. and people CAN change. we can wallow in the past, or we can get past it.

still, i AM able to see that there are some who actually live the tenets of christian teachings. tammy faye was one.

yes, she did love, believe and blindly follow her conniving husband. but that is really a sign of her willingness to give her all. that was what the "christian wife" is supposed to do, believe completely and follow her husband.

after she realized the truth, she realized they hurt people, and asked for their forgiveness. many have done just that.

she realized, and reversed some of her beliefs, with so many of the gay communty now her strongest allies, as proof of the ability to learn, and change.

through it all she had a childlike innocence. and i do believe that was real. she thought the best of people, and was hurt because of it.

yes, there are some who will always deserve our contempt and disdain.

but people who refuse to forgive, and are always bitter and hate filled, will be just that. bitter and hate filled. they wallow and fester, rather than forgive and grow.

and they represent the worst of du.

my love goes to tammy faye, my sincerest condolences to her family.

she WAS a gem.

RIP tammy faye.

speak of hell then you must believe in heaven. Can't really have one without the other. If you believe in heaven then can it be you do not believe in forgiveness for all who repent? (Repent being the key word. It is a verb.) Or is that just for people who repent from little things? So the "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" passage is meaningless. Only the righteous will be in heaven. That's an interesting concept, since none are righteous and that is the reason for the sacrifice on the cross.

A man gets to heaven and is being shown around and they come to a huge wall. He asks his guide what's behind that wall. Oh, that's where we put all the people (insert here: Baptists, Catholics, Apostolics or whatever your pleasure) who think they're the only ones here.

Just as an aside, I, personally am an agnostic but I, of all people here on the planet, believe and practice forgiveness. "And can it be that I should gain?" I may not live by the Word itself but there is much wisdom in some of the teachings just as there are many lessons to be learned from our world's and our country's history. Tammy was just one of millions and millions of people who go down the wrong road but take corrective action. Action is a verb. As far as the people she and her husband bilked? One of the greatest teachings by a man named Chuck Millhuff in a sermon called Giving Living is the "pay it forward" philosophy. If you give a man on the street money and he uses it for "no good" or fritters it away; or if you contributed to the Katrina victims fund, for instance, and your money never got to where it was supposed to "get to", then "what is that to thee?" You gave from your heart and if you are a believer in the creator, then your reward is in the giving, not in what was done with the gift. Perhaps that is where the expression "It's the thought that counts" comes from. Whenever you give, you receive ten fold, according to the teachings. Books like "The Secret" "The Celestine Prophesy" and many others teach the same principle.

And though I don't believe in hell ---- when I die, if I'm wrong, I have a pass. "Just another Marine reporting sir, I've served my time in hell."

She did, however, sure such a sense of acceptance and love to all, even though she disagreed with. Her season of "The Surreal Life" showcased that.

and i'm glad she gave a CNN interview not too long ago.

she looked aweful on larry king thursday nite and frankly im amased she was even able to do it.
you can say what you want about her and her past and thats fine.. but i think she had alot of strength and conviction to come on television even while she was in her last moments.

i dunno.

a few years ago i saw her talking about how stupid it was that churches turned away homosexuals and i kinda formed a slightly positive image of her... but then again i dont know much about her past except her bastard husband. lol

:D

...which was worse than the nasty comments about her performing or her involvement in the PTL scandals.

It was having her last interview running again and again by The Insider and Entertainment Tonight and Extra. Besides showing her in agony and her describing her pain in detail, there were the unctuous hypocritical eulogies by the show hosts.

Yes, there are worse hypocricies by the MSM, and most of them are documented on DU, but this is just plain tawdry. And you know that, if the subject comes up, Hannity or Limbaugh or O'Reilly or one of those other clowns will say the same things.

Say what you will about the PTL scandal, I think nearly 20 years is long enough to redeem anyone. She was a courageous and incredible woman for her time. Her "last will and testament", so to speak, on LKL is not a surprise knowing who she was as a person. Let us not forget that. Rest in peace Tammy Faye, your paradise of an afterlife, however you define it, is waiting for you.

I agree. She was remarkable.

and EXCELLENT first post!

:thumbsup:

:hi: and welcome!

I am glad that Tammy Faye has passed away. I hope she finds the comfort she was expecting to find in the afterlife. She had a horrible life at the end. I saw part of the interview with Larry King also and it was really sad. :(

May Tammy Faye RIP.

:kick:

...I mean the demand just decreased by 20% by my estimations.

It's hard to tell the difference when we're supposed to be the kinder gentler group.

Tammy Faye might not have been the greatest person that ever lived, but I believe she tried and especially the last few years of her life, she really tried.

Those of you that want to be assholes, go right ahead, and I'll say it again, those comments make you no better than the Freepers and actually they'd be proud that you're so prickish.

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because they ripped off my parents for about $5,000. I never forgave Jim, but Tammy seemed to grow from their fall. Jim became a pitiful creature, totally broken, but Tammy seemed intent on remaking herself. She may have still been a huckster at her core, but she did allow us to see a more human side of her. She seemed more accepting of other people. I still want my parents money returned. Same goes for the money given to the 700 club for prayers for my dad to be cured of cancer. When they didn't work, they said he wasn't showing enough commitment (meaning money), that his faith (donations) was too small.

She was, after all, a goody fundy wife and believed it was her duty to "obey" her husband and be submissive to whatever he ordered her to go along with. She wouldn't have been allowed to have any say in the goings on at the PTL back then. If she dared question Jim she would have suffered greatly at the snide judgment of her congregation for being a bad unsupportive wife. She paid her price, and suffered a painful horrific death no one deserves.

Jerry Falwell was much different. He was a vile disgusting hateful pig and deserved no mourning whatsoever.

Tammy Faye went through a lot in her life, but I have to say as a queer person if there were more Christians in the world like Tammy Faye Messner, the world would be a lot more loving and accepting of all people. Many people only know her from the PTL scandals and her stint on Surreal Life, but she was a lot more than. She really took what Jesus said about "the least of these" to heart and she ministered to PWA in an era when the government ignored the disease and people seriously talked about quarantining PWA. Tammy Faye loved the GLBT community and embraced us and didn't care that the evangelical Pharisees around her called her names for it and questioned her walk with her Lord. I don't care what the assholes on here say about her, I loved Tammy Faye and I think the world is a lot less brighter without her in it.

Namaste, Tammy Faye. I'll be lighting a candle for you on Samhain.

Glad her suffering is over.

he died this past Wednesday.

RIP, Tammy Faye.

ago. RIP

The puppets on their show were so terrible that they were just a riot. Wonder who has the video of those shows? Did you sing the "1-2-3, The Devil's After Me" song when you were on the show? Were you compensated -- like did they give you a "goody bag"?