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.)

Bessie is an animatronic cow that greets visitors to the Billy Graham Library. Seriously.

She has the Southern twang and low, sugary voice of an old black woman (an early voice over was determined to be “too Yankee”) and serves to draw kids into the experience. Bessie talks with pride of young ‘Billy Frank’ and emphasizes how God used Billy Graham. She also urges kids to take a quiz and exchange it for a prize at the end of the tour.

Watch a YouTube video of Bessie:

Check out the Ashville Citizen-Times virtual tour, which includes a complete video of Bessie’s speech.

“The new Library will not be a memorial to Billy Graham,” said BGEA board member Graeme Keith. “Nor will it be a museum. It will be a ministry that we believe will touch and change the lives of thousands of people in the years ahead as they visit this facility.”

Though the memorial aspect of the Billy Graham Library is hard to miss, especially since Graham’s wife, Ruth Bell Graham, is buried at the Library and Graham himself will be buried next to her when he dies. Ruth Graham had reservations about being buried at the Library, calling it a “circus” and a “tourist attraction,” before apparently relenting and agreeing to be buried there.

Billy Graham himself was initially opposed to the idea of the Library, refusing to have a monument to himself that would distract from the message of the gospel that he had preached all his life. He finally reconsidered when his son, Franklin Graham, pitched the Library as an ongoing crusade.

“When it was presented as an ongoing ministry and that people would have the opportunity to be won to Christ, I changed my mind,” Billy Graham said. Even still, hesitations linger. When Franklin Graham took his father on an early tour of the Library and asked him what he thought, Billy Graham said, “Too much Billy Graham.”

Despite the feel of a memorial and museum, the purpose is clearly to present the gospel. From the giant 40-foot glass cross at the front of the barn-shaped building to the spiritual counselors waiting at the end of the exhibit to talk and pray with anyone wanting to know more about becoming a Christian, it’s all about the gospel.

But that doesn’t mean it’s not without controversy. The animatronic cow prompts raised eyebrows, skepticism and laughter, and the $10 plush cows wearing Billy Graham T-shirts fuel complaints about the consumerist nature of the place. It’s all very Disney-esque, and it doesn’t help that exhibits were developed in part by ITEC Entertainment Co. of Orlando, Fla., a company that has created attractions for Disney and Six Flags.

It seems like it always takes an effort to shift the focus off of Billy Graham and onto the gospel. The two are often intertwined. At the dedication of the Library, after three former presidents spoke kind words about Graham, the evangelist took the stage and said, “I feel like I’ve been attending my own funeral.”

It’s likely the Billy Graham Library will always struggle with that dilemma.

Wait, no. That’s not right. It’s dedicated to that gospel message, not the lanky evangelist who the Library is named for. Hmm. Suffice it to say, the barn-shaped not-a-museum has its share of controversy.

But the attraction itself tells the story of Billy Graham and the gospel he preached. Visitors enter through a 40-foot glass cross and meet Bessie, the animatronic cow. The 40,000-foot facility covers Graham’s lifetime of ministry, from his roots in a Charlotte dairy farm (hence the cow and a theme that permeates the place) to a tent revival in Los Angeles that pushed him into national prominence, to a recreation of the Berlin Wall and his efforts to share the gospel behind the Iron Curtain.

The Library includes a gift shop and a cafe dubbed the Graham Brothers Dairy Bar. Outside the Library you can also find the grave of Graham’s late wife, Ruth Bell Graham. Nearby is Graham’s boyhood home, restored and open for tours.

What you won’t find at the Billy Graham Library is books or scholarly research. You can find that at the Billy Graham Center in Wheaton, Ill.

The Billy Graham Library is open Monday through Saturday (yep, closed on Sundays) and there is no charge for admission. The Ashville Citizen-Times offers a virtual tour of the Billy Graham Library, complete with video.

A few highlights from Henderson’s experience:

• Henderson asked Graham for advice as a pastor: “Spend lots and lots of time in prayer. It blesses us and touches the heart of God.” Graham added, “We need the Holy Spirit. Without the Holy Spirit, we’re empty.”
• Henderson asked how he could pray for Graham: “Just pray. I need God every moment of every day.”
• “I miss her greatly,” Graham said, pointing to a picture of his late wife, Ruth. This is a sentiment Graham has expressed repeatedly in interviews since her death.

Billy Graham pilgrims can see the library (complete with animatronic cow!), Billy’s boyhood home, the prayer garden where Billy’s late wife Ruth Bell Graham is buried, then ride up to Ashville for dinner at The Cove, a visit to the Chatlos Memorial Chapel and spend the night in one of the Cove’s two inns.

All that’s missing is a trip to Montreat, N.C. where Billy Graham himself still lives.