Loving tribute or disgraceful exploitation? On Larry King's interview with dying Tammy Faye

Tribute

1 of 2

by Tony Smith

Write now Print Invite a writer™ Add to Favorites RSS Feed Contact this writer

While Tammy Faye Messner (formerly Bakker) is best remembered for her extravagant make-up and unfortunate choice of first husbands, there were other facets of her life that are frequently over looked. For one thing, Tammy Faye was an outspoken supporter of the gay community - something that is considered an abomination by most Evangelical Christians.

During Tammy's final interview on Larry King Live, Jimmy from Sherman Oaks, CA, asked the emaciated Tammy Faye, "Unlike many of your Christian contemporaries, you have been a very positive influence in the gay community. Why do you think you found it in your heart to love and accept us?"

She replied, "Well, you know when we lost everything - it was the gay people that came to my rescue and I will always love them for that,"

Tammy Faye's son, Jay Bakker, later elaborated in greater detail on his mother's contributions to the LGBT community:

"She stood up for people when it wasn't popular," Jay said. "She had one of the first people in the early '80s on Christian Television with AIDS. I mean, Reagan didn't even mention the word AIDS during the '80s and here my mom was talking about it on Christian Television.

"She had one of the first MCC (Metropolitan Community Church) pastors, which is the first gay denomination. She did an interview with them and although she might not have agreed on everything with them, she loved them and built a bridge. And I just had a huge conference for MCC and hundreds of people just said, Your mom built the bridge between Christianity and homosexuality, and we love her and pray for her every day."

While I personally am not that familiar with Tammy Faye's life after Jim Bakker and the PTL scandal, I was able to find further testimony on the internet from Tammy Faye's fans.

Hamza Darrell Grizzle, creator of the Blog of the Grateful Bear, wrote: "Tammy Faye Messner spent her years after the PTL Club scandal ostracized by many in the established church, and she said many times that the only people who reached out to her during her times of isolation were her friends in the gay and lesbian community. Tammy Faye was able to break out of the narrow restraints of her Pentecostal upbringing while still holding on to an authentic love for Jesus and his message of God's radical love for all people."

In a more humorous take on Tammy Faye's contributions, a user named Dean wrote on his Velvetmafianyc MySpace page: "Praise The Lord and pass the mascara! God bless you Tammy; you had your priorities in order: Love God and all his creations. Keep your make-up flawless at all times. Never pass-up a chance to be on television. Marriage works better when your husband is in prison. You will be greatly missed as a voice of compassion in an increasingly cruel world."

It's also worth noting that Tammy Faye's thirty-one-year old son Jay is a pastor who founded the Revolution church located in New York City, Atlanta, and Charlotte. The Revolution church endeavors to minister to those that more conservative churches exclude, like gays and lesbians. Their webpage partially describes their agenda as, "To show all people the unconditional love and grace of Jesus without any reservations due to their lifestyle or religious background, past or future." Tammy Faye was a strong influence on her son and publicly supportive of his endeavors. Certainly Jay shares his mother's compassion and deeper understanding of what Christianity should truly be about, unconditional love and acceptance, instead of the holier-than-thou-art hypocrisy that it has largely become.

It's impossible not to think of Tammy Faye and remember her fabulous eye lashes, but don't forget to include her strong will, her even stronger love for all people, and her dedication to being the kind of empathetic role model that all Christians should aspire to be. She truly believed in loving God, but also believed that God loved all people equally. Tammy Faye had an important message to share and worked hard to spread the word despite, or more likely because of, her own unique personal style.

Learn more about this author, Tony Smith.
Click here to send Author comments or questions.