Category: Obituary

Jerald Tanner, Mormon challenger and founder of Utah Lighthouse Ministry, dies

Long considered a thorn to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in his search for truth, Tanner gained notoriety among Mormons for challenging their faith. He authored more than 40 books, including Mormonism – Shadow or Reality, and published reams of research papers and pamphlets assailing the church’s doctrine and history. He believed that an accurate and complete history would prove the faith false.

John Beloff: Scientist who put parapsychology on the academic map

John Beloff, psychologist, born April 19 1920; died June 1 2006 The psychologist John Beloff, who has died aged 86, was best known for initiating and nurturing the academic study of parapsychology in Britain. Born and educated in London, he was the son of Russian Jewish immigrants who had settled near Hampstead Heath. He was the fourth of five children, one of whom was his older brother Max (later Lord) Beloff, the founding vice chancellor of Buckingham University. In 1937, John began training at the Architectural Association in Bedford Square, but he found it profoundly unsatisfying. While serving in the

Bill Finlator spoke out with courage and conviction

W.W. Finlator took his Christianity seriously and acted on it all his long and productive life, speaking out on difficult issues and poking verbal thorns in the sides of those who could bring about change. When he died Monday at age 93 in Raleigh, his strong voice of concern for the underprivileged and the downtrodden finally fell silent. But his courage and determination will long stand as a model of the loving critic. For more than a quarter of a century, W.W. Finlator was pastor of Pullen Memorial Baptist Church in Raleigh and one of the most recognizable church leaders

Former pastor Finlator dies

W.W. “Bill” Finlator, the outspoken former pastor of Raleigh’s Pullen Memorial Baptist Church, has died at age 93. Finlator, a fiery preacher, controversial pastor and longtime liberal political activist, died of pneumonia Monday night, said his son, Wallace Finlator Jr., a Raleigh lawyer, on Tuesday. Finlator, a Louisburg native who grew up in Raleigh, led Pullen for 26 years, from 1956 to 1982. He championed civil rights and opposed the Vietnam War. In retirement he continued writing and speaking out against war, poverty and the death penalty, and in favor of civil liberties, women’s rights and workers’ interests. “He thought