Pastor D. James Kennedy has passed away
This is unconfirmed. Not even on the wires yet. But a reliable source just informed me Dr. D. James Kennedy passed away this morning. More forthcoming.
Update, 9:17a: Just called Coral Ridge Ministries. They are unaware. Holding for confirmation from someone.
Update, 9:29a: Confirmed, Sun-Sentinel….
Conservative leader the Rev. D. James Kennedy died Wednesday morning, sources at his Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church reported today.
The pastor died “peacefully, in his sleep, at home” around 3 a.m., according to the Rev. Ronald Siegenthaler, executive minister at the 10,000-member church. By his side was Anne, his wife of five decades.
Kennedy, who also founded a broadcast ministry, a seminary and an annual series of conservative conferences, suffered multiple complications ever since Dec. 28, when he suffered arrhythmia and cardiac arrest.
Update, 9:45a: Dr. Kennedy was a brave and stalwart defender of life. He taught other pastors how to vocally stand against abortion. He asked me to speak at one of his conferences and taped a two-part television show about my experience at Christ Hospital.
Sometime later, I received a heavy box in the mail. In it were 10,000 thank you’s from Coral Ridge parishoners, which was very thoughtful (click to enlarge):
Dr. Kennedy was a pro-life standard-bearer and hero. He will be missed.
Jill Stanek is a nurse turned speaker, columnist and blogger, a national figure in the effort to protect both preborn and postborn innocent human life.
Jill, Wiki is confirming him deceased:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D._James_Kennedy
Thanks, Laura. Wow, that was fast.
Sorry to hear this, I knew about his heart-attack some months ago……I really enjoyed watching him.
Dr. Kennedy was great man. Now is in God’s glory.
Hey, he died on the same day as Mother Theresa!
Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him. May the souls of the faithfully departed through the mercy of God rest in peace.
That’s sad. I hope you are okay.
Aw, PIP, thanks. I’m fine. This wasn’t unexpected. And he’s now home. No more suffering, only eternity in paradise.
Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him. May the souls of the faithfully departed through the mercy of God rest in peace.
Posted by: Bobby Bambino at September 5, 2007 10:07 AM
AMEN.
I’m really sorry to hear this. At least he is not longer in any pain.
Considering his work in the Pro-Life Ministries your quote of the day is very fitting.
I love the picture of Mother Teresa and the baby!
Holy cow!!!!
I hadn’t heard that he was in bad health at all. I guess seeing his weekly sermons on Saturday nights and Sundays gave me the impression that he was doing fine.
James is one of my greatest heroes and I had hoped to meet him someday before he died :[
I pray that many who hear of his death will hear the gospel and accept it and become "accepted in the Beloved" (Eph 1:6).
Ephesians 1:13-14 In Him you also [trusted,] after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory.
Colossians 1:13-14 He has delivered us from the power of darkness and translated [us] into the kingdom of the Son of His love, 14 in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.
I’m sorry for your collective loss. I had never heard Dr. Kennedy before today. I’ll see what I can find out.
Holy Cow is right. If the Wiki article is accurate, I’ve never disagreed with anyone more in all my life. I’m speechless, and will remain so out of respect for those of you who admired him.
Friends, family and others touched by the words and works of Dr. D. James Kennedy may offer their remembrances of him or condolences to his family in an online Guest Book created for him on Legacy.com.
Anyone may access Dr. Kennedy
James is one of my heros mostly for promoting homeschooling that included a Christ-centered curriculum and for pointing out the destructiveness of the public school system on his TV show.
That he was a big pro-lifer is the next thing that I admired about him most.
Hal -
“I’m speechless, and will remain so out of respect for those of you who admired him.”
Thank you.
My condolences to his family
I’m sorry to hear this!
from Schmitz Blitz: schmitzblitz.wordpress.com
Kennedy marks the second death of a major figure in the religious right this year (after the May death of Jerry Falwell)–I wonder if this is making his followers and other fundamentalist Christians take a long hard look at the state of their faith, seeing as they generally consider earthly tragedies and misfortunes to be punishments from God (recall Robertson’s remarks on Ariel Sharon’s stroke, and the countless comments made by others with regard to Katrina).
Elizabeth, I hardly consider the deaths of elderly men to be “tragic” when they die of natural causes in their sleep. They will be missed, and as with any death we mourn for their loss, but I don’t think that there timely deaths are indicitive of God’s judgement.
Lauren, I’ll second your post!
See what others have written
I’ve listened to Dr. Kennedy’s program and admired him for years. He will be missed!!