Lynchburg, Va. (AP):

Thousands of mourners attended the funeral yesterday of the Rev. Jerry Falwell, the folksy evangelist who built the Moral Majority into a conservative Christian empire that influenced national politics.

The funeral returns Falwell to his roots - the Thomas Road Baptist Church, where he started as a young preacher in 1956 with just 35 parishioners in an old abandoned soda bottling plant. Today, his son Jonathan Falwell leads Thomas Road Baptist, and the sanctuary seats 6,000.

More than an hour before the service, crowds were being directed to overflow seating in Liberty University's 10,000-seat basketball arena and its football stadium. About 300 police and other personnel were helping manage the crowd, Lynchburg Police Chief Charles W. Bennett Jr. said.

Viewing of the body

More than 33,000 people had viewed Falwell's body over four days as it lay in repose. "He was a champion of the fundamental values that we hold dear," said fellow Virginia evangelist Pat Robertson, citing Falwell's stance against abortion and homosexuality. "He stepped on some toes."

Some Republican figures were expected for the funeral, but none of the party's presidential candidates said they could attend. The White House was sending a midlevel aide. Among the Virginia Republican leaders attending was Attorney-General Bob McDonnell. Falwell, 73, died a week ago after collapsing in his office at Liberty University.