Billy Graham

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Billy Graham, 1966
Billy Graham Signature.svg
Billy Graham at the Feyenoord Stadium in Rotterdam (video, June 30, 1955)

William Franklin "Billy" Graham (* 7. November 1918 in Charlotte , North Carolina ; † 21st February 2018 in Montreat , North Carolina) was an American Baptist pastor and revivalist of evangelicalism . In the United States, it is not only conservative theologians who call him one of the most influential Christian preachers of the 20th century.

Life

Richard Nixon and Billy Graham on May 28, 1970 during an evangelism

Billy Graham was born into a conservative Presbyterian home. At an evangelism event in his hometown of Charlotte, held by the Baptist preacher Mordecai Ham in the fall of 1934, Graham had a conversion experience . He then began studying theology at Bob Jones University and Florida Bible College. In 1939 he was ordained a pastor at the Southern Baptist Convention . In 1943 he graduated from Wheaton College . During this time he also took over the presidency for a school.

At Wheaton College he met his future wife Ruth McCue Bell, whose father was a doctor and missionary. From Graham's marriage to Ruth Bell Graham , who grew up as the daughter of missionaries in China and Korea , three daughters and two sons emerged who are also active in evangelical American churches and known nationwide. His son Franklin Graham runs the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA).

Billy Graham was the co-founder and first full-time employee of the evangelical organization Youth for Christ (YFC), for which he conducted various revival events. In 1948 he and his team wrote the Modesto Manifesto during an evangelism event in Modesto, California , which established a high ethical standard for them as traveling evangelists. The four included topics of honesty, integrity, purity and humility should be answers to any temptations. In 1949 he already attracted a great deal of attention in his work as a "revival preacher". The events he preached at in Los Angeles were initially scheduled for 3 weeks. However, since the influx was extremely high due to its increasing popularity, the duration was extended to a total of eight weeks. In 1950 he founded his own ministry, the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA). Together with the then managing director George Wilson, the mission statement was quickly established: Spread the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ by every possible means . In the same year he began his own radio program under the name The Hour of Decision (German: "Hour of Decision"), which was broadcast in the United States and abroad for the next 50 years. In 1951, Graham decided to work exclusively as an evangelist and resigned from the office he had accepted as president of a school.

His first book was published in 1953. In total, he published more than 25 books. Graham is considered to be the initiator of the International Congress for World Evangelization , which took place in Lausanne, Switzerland in 1974 and as a result of which the Lausanne Commitment applies, an authoritative document of evangelicalism.

Billy Graham (r.) At a meeting with President Bill Clinton (1996)

In the 1950s, beginning led Billy Graham until 2000 mass evangelism , called Crusades ( Crusades through). The moments shortly before the end of the event when he called for reflection and a decision for Jesus Christ were typical. He began his evangelistic ministry at YFC in the USA and expanded his evangelistic work to all parts of the world. In the late 1980s he was one of the first foreign evangelists in Moscow . In Germany he conducted a total of five crusades in conjunction with the Evangelical Alliance . The best-known among them was Euro '70 , which took place in Dortmund's Westfalenhalle and was broadcast live to many of Germany's major cities using the most modern technology at the time. He was also involved in building ProChrist in the 1990s .

US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump pay their respects to Graham (2018)

Billy Graham suffered from Parkinson's disease and prostate cancer and ended his missionary work in 2000. However, he still preached to large audiences later on; his sermons tended to become simpler, clearer, and more central, and he was able to dispense with speculative topics and statements. During his 50 years as an evangelist, he and his stable BGEA team, of which he was also managing director, are said to have made a fortune of around 384 million dollars. The BGEA sells books, magazines, CDs, videos, DVDs, conducts training courses, radio and television and collects donations.

Due to Billy Graham's increasing illness-related weakness, he gradually withdrew into private life. Here he lived secluded in Montreat, North Carolina, where he died on February 21, 2018 at the age of 99. His body was laid out in the rotunda of the United States Capitol from February 28 to March 1 .

Work and positions

Countries where Billy Graham preached

Graham was a pastor of the Southern Baptist Convention, but his preaching was never denominational . He worked with many different denominations . Theologically, he was one of the founders of the evangelical movement that broke away from Christian fundamentalism in the 1950s . Graham was against abortion and homosexuality . In these political questions he appeared on the side of conservative right-wing parties in the USA. The southerner Graham rejected racial segregation and appeared in front of a mixed audience as early as the 1950s. His friend Martin Luther King noted that without the help of Graham - whose opinion was influential among whites in the southern states - he would not have been so successful. However, Graham refused to participate in the Selma March, probably also with regard to his white supporters. In 2005 he said he regretted not having been more active on the race issue. Graham received criticism for being harnessed to the Vietnam War. He supported the soldiers spiritually in the US war in Vietnam through troop visits and major events (crusades) at Christmas 1966, 1967 and 1968. On the occasion of the Vietnam War he preached:

“Somewhere and at some point you have to draw a line to which the communist aggressor can go and not one step further. Where should you draw this line? Should you pull them in Thailand and South Vietnam, or should you give way and pull them in the Philippines, or should you give way and pull them near Hawaii, or should you give way and pull them on the west coast of California, or should you give way and pull them on the Draw the western border of Texas or should one move even further and draw this border on the Mississippi? Where are you In a certain place and at a certain time, America must stand firm. "

He linked his suspicion of "the mighty power of communism", the "enemy of Christianity", with end-time ideas (1954):

"The Antichrist, before the prophets warned that he would appear in the last days, is growing and taking shape before our eyes ..."

The appearance of the Antichrist seemed very near to Graham:

"The time is drawing near, the destination has already been marked ... The signs of the false prophet are everywhere, and many of us may be living witnesses of the terrible moment when the final act of this ancient drama begins."

However, Graham did not set a specific time, in contrast to such book authors and communities for whom the topic of the end times was central. The central concern for Graham was that people find peace with God (such a book title).

Graham began to use modern means of mass communication early on. In addition to extensive literature work (he founded the journal Decision / decision ), he used early on the radio and the film (World Wide Pictures Inc.) as a mass media. Television was added later, and finally satellite television ( television preacher ). According to journalist Ben Bagdikian , Graham became known through the support of the proverbial ( Citizen Kane ) newspaper moguls William Randolph Hearst and Henry Luce . For example, in the early 1950s , Hearst obtained a telegram to the editor of the news magazine TIME to puff Graham to have him appear on the magazine's cover picture.

Billy Graham in Duisburg (1954)

In total, Graham announced at 417 major events to 210 million people in 185 countries. He appeared seven times in Germany, most recently in 1993 at the ProChrist event.

In 1954, he performed in the Olympic Stadium in Berlin (West), which can hold 100,000 people.

In 1982 he was allowed to perform in several cities in the GDR, including Berlin, Dresden and Wittenberg.

In his sermons he repeatedly mentioned anecdotes and examples from personal experience.

Graham's efforts for a new religious beginning in the successor states of the atheistic Soviet Union brought little results. Graham's work included training volunteers and so-called multipliers . Significant - but also controversial - was his contact with political decision-makers. Graham has also served as a pastoral advisor to several US presidents , including Richard Nixon . President George W. Bush said he had been instrumental in overcoming his drinking problems from Graham, a friend of the Bush family.

When, 30 years after President Nixon's resignation, his illegally recorded tapes were published by the National Archive , a scandal broke out after the release of a recorded conversation between Nixon and Graham. O-Ton Graham on February 1, 1972:

“A lot of the Jews are great friends of mine, they swarm around me and are friendly to me because they know that I'm friendly with Israel. But they don't know how I really feel about what they are doing to this country. And I have no power, no way to handle them, but I would stand up if under proper circumstances. "

“A lot of Jews are good friends of mine, they adore me and are friendly to me because they know that I am friendly to Israel. But they don't know how I really feel about what they're doing with this country. And I don't have the power to change that, I have no way of dealing with them differently, but under the right circumstances I would oppose it. "

After the recordings were released, Graham said he could not remember the conversation from the time of his evangelism and proposed moral leadership, and apologized - the tapes did not reflect his opinion.

Billy Graham meeting with President Barack Obama (2016)

Graham was nicknamed "The Machine Gun of God". "The Bible says" was one of his standard phrases.

According to the author Frances FitzGerald, Graham is one of the key figures alongside Pat Robertson for “the ideological change from the separation of state and religion to an infiltration of the state by religious actors and their agenda”.

Billy Graham in Popular Culture

In the television series The Crown , Billy Graham is played in the sixth episode of the second season of Paul Sparks .

Awards

President Ronald Reagan (left) presents Billy Graham with the Presidential Medal of Freedom (1983)
Ruth and Billy Graham Congressional Gold Medal.jpg
Ruth and Billy Graham Congressional Gold Medal (reverse) .jpg


Congressional Gold Medal of Honor for Ruth and Billy Graham; The obverse shows the likeness of the spouses, the reverse the Ruth and Billy Graham Children's Health Center in Asheville

Honorary doctorates

Fonts

  • with Ulrich Wever: The secret of happiness. R. Brockhaus 1954.
  • with Richard Dumath: Peace with God. R. Brockhaus, 1954. Further editions, e.g. B. ISBN 3-417-20464-X .
  • with Alfred Schmidt: Billy Graham to the teenagers. Oncken, Kassel 1960.
  • with Alfred Schmidt: Christ breaks chains. Oncken, Kassel 1963.
  • Challenge to life. R. Brockhaus, 1970.
  • Just as I am . Brunnen, Giessen 2001, ISBN 3-7655-3694-6 .
  • Every life - a journey. Hänssler, 2007, ISBN 978-3-7751-4638-8 .
  • Committed to the biblical message - in the evangelistic service . Esras.net, 2007, ISBN 978-3-905899-56-6 .
  • God is there - every day! 365 devotions for children (Cornelia Rohleder from the English "Hope for the day for kids"), Francke-Buchhandlung, Marburg 2018, ISBN 978-3-96362-026-3 .

literature

Web links

Commons : Billy Graham  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files
Wikiquote: Billy Graham  - Quotes

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Time Magazine: The 100 most important people of the century
  2. ^ J. Gordon Melton: Graham, William Franklin "Billy" . In: Encyclopedia of World Religions . Encyclopedia of Protestantism, No. 6 . Facts of File, New York 2008, ISBN 978-0-8160-5456-5 , pp. 248 (English).
  3. ^ J. Gordon Melton: Lausanne Covenant . In: Encyclopedia of World Religions . Encyclopedia of Protestantism, No. 6 . Facts of File, New York 2005, ISBN 978-0-8160-5456-5 , pp. 334 (English).
  4. ^ A b Last volley from “God's Machine Gun” in Spiegel Online , June 26, 2005.
  5. ↑ John Ortberg : Walking in Billy's Shoes. On the death of Billy Graham: Six lessons from his life , AufAtmen magazine, Witten 1/2018, pp. 58–62
  6. ↑ Billy Graham's body laid out in the US Capitol. In: epd.de. Archived from the original on May 14, 2018 ; accessed on May 13, 2018 .
  7. ^ Those Who Have Lain in State or in Honor in the US Capitol Rotunda. Retrieved May 13, 2018 .
  8. ^ "Pilgrim Preacher: Billy Graham, the Bible, and the Challenges of the Modern World". Museum of the Bible. April 21, 2020.
  9. ↑ https://www.christianitytoday.com/news/2018/february/billy-graham-martin-luther-king-jr-friendship-civil-rights.html
  10. ↑ http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/billy-graham-played-complicated-role-us-race-relations-53344966
  11. ↑ https://hpd.de/node/14880
  12. ↑ https://hpd.de/node/14880
  13. ↑ Extensive quotations from Franz Graf-Stuhlhofer : “The end is near!” The mistakes of the end-time specialists (theological teaching and study material; 24). 3rd edition, Verlag für Kultur und Wissenschaft, Bonn 2007, pp. 32, 34, 47f, 86f, 147.
  14. ↑ Billy Graham: Peace to God. 10th paperback edition, 1971, p. 151 f.
  15. ↑ Billy Graham: Peace to God. 10th paperback edition, 1971, p. 46.
  16. ↑ Der Spiegel: Twelve harvests a year. June 23, 1954, accessed on May 31, 2020 (German).
  17. ↑ Marlies crowd: Exote on tour. Die Zeit, October 29, 1982, accessed on May 31, 2020 (German).
  18. ^ Obituary: The global church owes Billy Graham immeasurably much , idea.de, article from February 22, 2018.
  19. ↑ https://hpd.de/artikel/bestseller-beschreiben-aufstieg-und-ektiven-evangelikalische-14287
  20. ↑ Billy Graham died at the age of 99. In: sueddeutsche.de. February 21, 2018, accessed July 27, 2019 .
  21. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Select Chronology Listing of Events in the Life of Billy Graham and the History of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, up until Rev. Graham's Retirement in 2005, with a few later significant events. In: Billy Graham Center. Wheaton College, May 23, 2018, accessed August 16, 2020 .
  22. ↑ All Honorees. In: achievement.org. American Academy of Achievement, accessed August 16, 2020 .
  23. ^ Grant Wacker: America's pastor: Billy Graham and the shaping of a nation . The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts 2014, ISBN 978-0-674-73627-6 , pp. 47 (English).
  24. ↑ Remembering Billy Graham: A timeline of his life. In: NBC26. Scripps Media, Inc, February 21, 2018, accessed August 16, 2020 .
  25. ^ Congressional Gold Medal Recipients. In: history.house.gov. United States House of Representatives, accessed August 16, 2020 .
  26. ^ Inductees Archives. In: Gospel Music Hall Of Fame. The Gospel Music Association, February 14, 2017, accessed August 16, 2020 .
  27. ^ Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Library. In: Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Library. Archived from the original on October 16, 2006 ; accessed on August 16, 2020 (English).
  28. ^ Caroline Davies: Honorary Knighthood for Billy Graham. In: The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group Limited, December 7, 2001, accessed August 16, 2020 .
personal data
SURNAME Graham, Billy
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Graham, William Franklin (maiden name); Machine gun of god
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American Baptist pastor and evangelist
DATE OF BIRTH November 7, 1918
PLACE OF BIRTH Charlotte
DATE OF DEATH February 21, 2018
Place of death Montreat