Resurrecting the Public Death
Tammy Faye reminded us how to die.
Rob Moll | posted 7/27/2007 08:53AM
I paid little attention to Tammy Faye Bakker during her PTL days. But I gave her close scrutiny the day before she died, when she appeared on Larry King Live. Her eyes, which formerly sparkled with an indomitable spirit, had faded. Tammy Faye's mascara, her trademark even when it ran with tears down her cheeks, foreshadowed her decay. Tammy Faye's skin hung off her cheekbones.
I saw defiance and a Christlike countercultural challenge behind her eyelashes. She lived publicly, and she died publicly. Tammy Faye was unafraid to show us the ravages of cancer and remind us of the decay that was brought into the world through sin. Tammy Faye reminded us that dignity comes from the character we display in the circumstances God allows for us, whether withered by cancer or in the peak of health.
After her televised farewell, how she died became as much a part of her story as her PTL days. I was proud to call her a sister in Christ...
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/200 ... -52.0.html
See also
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/200 ... ml#related
God bless!
Ian
