Reverend Billy Graham, one of the most formidable religious figures of the 20th century, died on February 21 at his home in North Carolina.

At the age of 99, and ill with cancer, Parkinson’s disease and pneumonia, his death did not come as a surprise. Tributes poured in. President Donald Trump described him as a “great man” and a “very special man”.

Barack Obama described him as a “humble servant” who “gave hope and guidance to generations of Americans”. George H.W. Bush described him as “America’s pastor” whose goodness touched people of all faiths. Jimmy Carter’s tribute was equally effusive, describing Graham as being “broad-minded, forgiving and humble in his treatment of others”.

Graham’s appeal was not limited to an evangelical audience. In a beautifully penned tribute, Archbishop of New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan admitted that “as anyone growing up in the 1950s and 1960s can tell you, it was hard not to notice and be impressed by the Reverend Billy Graham”. Though he came from a Catholic family, “there was always respect and admiration for Billy Graham and the work he was doing to bring people to God”.

These tributes reflect the appeal he had across different cross-sections of the population. He was undoubtedly influential and had access to the most powerful persons on the planet. On the other hand, he also connected with a wider global public.

Whether he was preaching in Moscow at the height of the Cold War or whether he spoke to audiences filling large stadiums in Europe and the US, an estimated 77 million are believed to have heard him preach in person. An additional 215 million people heard Graham preach on television.

His style was appealing. Often donning a suit and holding a Bible, he spoke in short sentences devoid of any jargon. His voice was powerful, confident, reassuring and hopeful. It was this style which endeared him to so many presidents and world leaders.

In 1950, Graham met Harry Truman who told the young pastor that he tried to live by the Sermon on the Mount. Later he would counsel President Eisenhower before his decision to send the US Army to the Little Rock Central High School after the segregated school refused to allow nine black students to join. Graham’s anti-segregationist stance was apparent from the start, stating that he does not “preach Jim Crow”.

Before his inauguration, John Kennedy spent a day at Palm Beach. He was also close to his successor, Lyndon Johnson, who often had Graham over as his guest at both his ranch and the White House.

His friendship with Richard Nixon proved to be the most problematic. Nixon often asked Graham to join him at the White House. Graham remembered Nixon as a complex man who was, however, capable of warmth and compassion. He later gave a reading at the disgraced president’s funeral in California in 1994.

In 2002, audiotapes recorded in the White House in 1972 revealed that both Nixon and Graham passed some anti-Semitic comments. Graham apologised and claimed to have no recollection of this conversation. His friendship with Nixon – an incompetent president who was also capable of gross dishonesty – undoubtedly dented his reputation.

Billy Graham was a friend and spiritual counsellor to presidents from across the political divide and all Christian denominations

There was less controversy surrounding his friendship with Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter. Ronald and Nancy Reagan were also old friends. After the attempt on President Reagan’s life, Graham flew to the White House to pray with Mrs Reagan. He was also with President George H.W. Bush on the night that the Gulf War began.

Bill Clinton recalled how touched he was when, as a young child, he saw Graham refuse to speak before a segregated audience. Clinton invited Graham to deliver the invocation at his inauguration. George W. Bush, on the other hand, would credit his faith to a conversation he had with Graham in 1985. After the dreadful attacks of September 11, 2001, President Bush invited Graham to speak to a nation in shock and grief at a prayer service in Washington’s National Cathedral.

In 2005, at the age of 87, Billy Graham retired from public ministry. In April 2010, President Obama travelled to North Carolina to visit the now-ailing Graham.

Graham also had an appeal beyond the US. He met the Queen several times and was invited to preach at Windsor Castle on several occasions. He similarly enjoyed cordial meetings with other world leaders including Pope John Paul II, Margaret Thatcher and Mikhail Gorbachev.

All this was a remarkable achievement for one who came to his faith at the age of 16 and who started his preaching ministry in canvas tents in rural America.

The access he enjoyed in the corridors of power earned him several critics. Some credit him with giving Evangelicals the political influence they acquired in recent years. He was the respectable and likeable face of a new and confident grouping which is very influential in American public life.

Nonetheless, Graham was also reluctant to support specific positions. Unlike other leading evangelicals, he refused to endorse candidates and his relationship with world leaders was one of friendship rather than power and influence. Indeed, he was a friend and spiritual counsellor to presidents from across the political divide and all Christian denominations.

Critics who accuse Graham of mixing religion and politics miss one crucial point – world leaders are also human beings who need friendship, advice and spiritual solace. President Clinton would later recall: “When he prays with you in the Oval Office or upstairs in the White House, you feel like he is praying for you, not the president.”

One can take issue with some of his finer theological viewpoints. However, there are some lessons which persons of the Christian faith can draw from this long and remarkable life.

He once wrote: “I am not going to heaven because I have preached to great crowds or read the Bible many times. I’m going to heaven just like the thief on the cross who said in that last moment: Lord, remember me.” The human need for mercy and forgiveness is one which touches many. Pope Francis made this a central theme of his pontificate.

Like other faith leaders, he was speechless before evil and human cruelty. At the Washington National Cathedral, three days after the most dreadful terrorist attack on American soil, he said: “The lesson of this event is not only about the mystery of iniquity and evil, but, it’s a lesson about our need for each other.” This is also an important lesson. The Christian faith cannot be lived in isolation but through a meaningful relationship with others.

The tributes pouring in are a testament to his dedication to others. Graham was truly convinced that he was preaching the ‘Good News’, and since this news was good, he sought to spread it to whoever was open to it.

André DeBattista is an independent researcher in politics and international relations.

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