I Shared his Affection for this Great Nation
It is said that one can attract more flies with honey than vinegar. Mr. Buckley demonstrated that truism consistently for over five decades. Witnessing the world's head-long, stubborn rush toward self-destruction can warp a conservative's soul, causing a tendency to express only a vinegarized call to sanity. W.F.B generously marinaded the truth in sweetness. He replaced a scowl with a self-assured twinkling eye and wit.
This next Summer I will turn 60. I remember when there were so very, very few sources of cultural and political sanity available. William F. Buckley, Firing Line and National Review regularly and generously provided an oasis of truth in a sea of cultural insanity.
I am a Baptist pastor. Mr. Buckley a committed Roman Catholic. I grew up a farmer's child in northern Iowa, he a son of privilege. Yet when he gave voice to the self-evident principles which he so consistently championed, I felt there was someone who could finally articulate the convictions I knew to be true as well. Other than both being Americans, we shared very little in common. I never had the privilege of personally meeting Mr. Buckley, but I felt our affection for this great nation and opposition to those who would undermine it made us brothers. Rest in peace, my friend.
Rev. Ken W. Lewis Trinity Baptist Church, St. Paul, MN
03/04 03:52 PM
