We lost Hugh Hefner recently.
The man influenced many lives.
(I wanted to say ‘touched’ lives but thought that would be distracting.)
His words echo throughout our culture:
“One of the great ironies in our society is that we celebrate freedom and then limit the parts of life where we should be most free.”
“You’re as young as the girl you feel.”
“Well, if we hadn’t had the Wright brothers, there would still be airplanes. If there hadn’t been an Edison, there would still be electric lights. And if there hadn’t been a Hefner, we’d still have sex. But maybe we wouldn’t be enjoying it as much. So the world would be a little poorer…”
Many things were said about Hefner after his passing.
Hugh Hefner was a GIANT in publishing, journalism, free speech & civil rights. He was a true original, and he was my friend. Rest well Hef. – Larry King
We’ve lost a true explorer, a man who had a keen sense of the future. We learned a lot from you Mr. Hefner. – Norman Lear
I had a number of great conversations and with Hugh Hefner. Was such an interesting man. True legend. What an end of an era! – Rob Lowe
You get the idea.
We lost Billy Graham recently
The man touched many lives.
(It’s okay to say that about Graham because he’s not Hefner.)
His words echo throughout many cultures:
The most eloquent prayer is the prayer through hands that heal and bless.
Nothing can bring a real sense of security into the home except true love.
Tears shed for self are tears of weakness, but tears shed for others are a sign of strength.
Many things were said about Billy Graham after his passing.
Most of them were thoughtful and appropriate.
But not all of them:
The big news today is that Billy Graham was still alive this whole time. Anyway, have fun in hell, b****. – Lauren Duca
Surely Graham, far from being “an exemplar to generation upon generation”, is an example of how religion is so often successfully leveraged as a means of making bigotry appear somehow acceptable, even something to aspire to. – Douglas Robertson, The Independent
You get the idea.
Sometimes I wonder what the world was like when God decided to flood it and start over.
It’s likely that people were still having sex…
…though not enjoying it much because Hef wasn’t around yet.
And I’m sure people were self-righteous in their godlessness.
I imagine them gathered around Noah while he worked on his boat.
“You’re on the wrong side of history, Pal!”
“Do you think your bigotry is acceptable?”
“Hey! Why is water falling from the sky?”
Billy Graham was not perfect.
He said as much all the time.
Hugh Hefner was not perfect.
He spent his life celebrating his flaws.
You gotta choose between Hugh Hefner and Billy Graham.
You can’t admire both.
Know this…
…you are defined by the people you admire.
2 Responses
Praising Hugh Hefner, who was at least indirectly responsible for the victimization and objectification of women, contributing to sexual addictions (arguably the fracturing of marriages) of millions of men, and Billy Graham, who dedicated his life to helping people find the love of God, is just another example of how utterly confused our culture is. I’m not confused. I pick Billy Graham.
Excellent post, John!
I’m not supposed to hate. I’m struggling with it, right this moment. The horrible impact Hefner had on my life, through his influence on certain males, touches deep wounds, like someone slapping a hand on a 3rd-degree burn. I’m not supposed to rejoice that someone has died – but I’m grateful Hefner is dead – just as much as someone who survived the Holocaust is grateful Hitler is dead.
The unopposed lust of this man, the permissiveness that let him parade his moral depravity and hook others into his addictions didn’t just harm his soul – he took others down with him – in the names of “fun, freedom, not hurting anyone else”, etc… B.S.!
I can’t even pray for his soul, it’s as if that got burnt out of him decades ago, and lust fully inhabited the remaining walking corpse.
I was just looking at the saved newspaper picture of Billy Graham, (right before seeing your post!) and I can barely see through tears. I am so grateful for him, grateful for his impact in my heart and soul. I have a continually-open, rumpled-page, encouraging devotional of his on my bed, next to my bible.
My husband and furry critter are on the other side.
I went through rough stuff as a kid. His daughter briefly lived near us. She offered a children’s bible study in her home. I went one day after school. That one encounter captured my heart for God. She gave me a ruler with the books of the Bible printed on it. It is among my greatest treasures.
I made a big mistake and mentioned how wonderful my time with her was – I was forbidden to go back. (I think she prayed for me. God blessed me in life-saving ways.) In secret, I read a tiny-print gift bible I had from my Grandmother. I read for hours every night, reading from cover-to-cover.
In one meeting, Billy Graham’s daughter rescued a little girl.
I love a flawed, but wonderful human being: Billy Graham.
Thank you for your posts, John…