Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks on June 17, 2009
You could call it “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry Evangelist,” but I don’t think anyone ever describes Billy Graham as angry. At any rate, during Graham’s famous Los Angeles crusade in 1949 he preached the infamous sermon “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” by Jonathan Edwards. The Jonathan Edwards Center at Yale offers a digital exhibit on the curious case of the 20th century’s most famous preacher borrowing a sermon from the 18th century’s most famous preacher.
What’s perhaps most interesting are the edits Graham makes to Edwards’ sermon. Graham focuses more on mercy and grace, he brings up Jesus sooner and more often, and he gives more of an Arminian slant on God’s will than Edward’s Calvinist take.
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks on April 30, 2009
We’ve talked about the poem U2 frontman Bono wrote for Ruth Bell Graham before. He visited the Graham house in 2002, read poetry to Ruth and presented her with a book. A photo appeared in Decision magazine capturing the moment. But with that book of poetry Bono also included a poem he wrote about Billy Graham.
That hand-written poem is on display at the Billy Graham Library:
“The journey from father to friend
is all paternal loves end.
it was sung in my teenage ears
in the voice of a preacher
loudly soft on my tears
I would never forget this
melody line
or its lyric voice that gave my life
a rhyme,
a meaning, that wasn’t there before.
a child, born in dung and straw
with The Fathers love and desire to explain
how we might get on with each other again….”
for The Rev. Billy Graham (that preacher)
Ruth and all the Graham Family
from Bono (March 11 2002)
with much love and respect….
(Special thanks to John Schroter for taking the photo and jotting down the words.)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks on March 27, 2009
“Sincerity is the biggest part of selling anything—including the Christian plan of salvation.”
-Billy Graham
(Texas Monthly, March 1978
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks on March 25, 2009
“We used every modern means to reach the ear of the unconverted … and then punched them straight between the eyes with the Gospel.”
-Billy Graham
(Texas Monthly, March 1978)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks on March 23, 2009
“I realize that my ministry would someday come to an end. I am only one in a glorious chain of men and women God has raised through the centuries to build Christ’s church and to take the gospel everywhere.”
-Billy Graham
(Billy Graham: God’s Ambassador)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks on March 19, 2009
“Have you ever wondered why God put you on earth, what is the purpose and meaning of life? It is to know him and to know his love.”
-Billy Graham
(Billy Graham: God’s Ambassador)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks on March 17, 2009
“My parents never once told me to be in at a certain time when I went out on a Friday or Saturday night date. I knew that I had to be up by three in the morning and if I stayed out past midnight I would get only a couple hours of sleep.”
-Billy Graham
(Just As I Am)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks on March 12, 2009
“My one purpose in life is to help people find a personal relationship with God, which, I believe, comes through knowing Christ.”
-Billy Graham
(Billy Graham: God’s Ambassador)
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks on March 5, 2009
If you ever needed a reason to hate cats, this may be it: Billy Graham’s cat keeps biting him. The Ashville Citizen-Times gave an update on Billy Graham’s health, from his grandson, Will Graham.
“He’s 90—I think that’s about the best way to describe it,” said Will Graham. “He has good days and bad days.”
Will Graham added that an electronic stunt has made a marked difference in Graham’s health. He also added that a cat given to Billy Graham for his birthday has been continually biting his hands. Graham, a dog lover, has tolerated the cat:
“He said, ‘That’s OK—it lets me know I’m still alive,’” Will Graham said.
Posted by Kevin D. Hendricks on February 26, 2009
The Billy Graham-Bono connection goes a little deeper as we discover an interesting tidbit: U2 frontman Bono wrote a song for Billy Graham’s wife, Ruth Bell Graham. A Washington Times story about the 2005 New York Crusade, billed as Graham’s last, included this bit about the rock band U2:
The evangelist geared the evening to young people, intertwining mentions of the rock group U2, St. Augustine and MTV. U2’s lead vocalist Bono, visited him and his wife at their Montreat, N.C., home, he said, and composed a song for Ruth Graham.
“In his song, he said we are ‘estranged by sin and bones,’ ” he said.
Which raises the obvious question for U2 and Billy Graham fans: Where is this song? So far a U2 song with the lyrics “estranged by sin and bones” hasn’t surfaced, and it doesn’t look the song will appear on U2’s latest studio album, No Line on the Horizon, which comes out next week.
