No other figure in modern evangelical Protestantism has done as much to spread the Gospel than Billy Graham. Respected by virtually everybody, consistent in his preaching, Graham is humble, never been hit by scandal, and overall his ministry has been above reproach (except for some ethnic slurs he reportedly made while socializing with Nixon -- what a bad influence that ex-prez was). Graham has led more than 2 million souls to Christ, according to those who keep track of such things.
Yesterday, the Billy Graham Library was dedicated at his ministry's corporate offices in Charlotte, N.C. I really hope to go there someday. You can read more about the museum and the ministry here.
Last week, I spoke with A. Larry Ross, a high-profile publicist who handles the Billy Graham account. Larry also handled the Creation Museum, which is why we were hanging out a little bit. I asked him how Rev. Graham is doing and Ross said he's doing remarkably well for an 88-year-old man. His wife, Ruth, however is very frail. In fact, she was unable to attend yesterday's library dedication.
Rev. Graham is suffering from a number of ailments including macular degeneration of the retinas. He receives injections directly into each eye every month, Ross said, wincing as he told me about it. It sounds extraordinarily painful, but I'm sure God gives the good reverend the grace to endure the procedure.
I saw Billy Graham several times in his crusades, the most recent being in Cincinnati about 4 years ago (guessing on that time frame). To my surprise, there was a guy outside Paul Brown Stadium holding a gigantic sign that said Billy Graham "is sending people to hell."
I stopped to talk to the protester and he said his name is Darwin Fish. For real, he added, and proceeded to show me his driver's license. Born in 1961. His parents were hippies.
Even Billy Graham has his detractors. I found Mr. Fish amusing but disagree with his analysis of Billy Graham's apostasy. If you're interested, you can read Darwin Fish's explanation for why Billy Graham is a false teacher here.
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I finally wrote my article on Bishop John Shelby Spong and his new book, Jesus for the Non-Religious. The Episcopal bishop is a brilliant scholar but his beliefs are far outside the bounds of traditional Christianity: e.g., he says Jesus was not divine, was not born of a virgin, did not perform any miracles, did not have 12 disciples, and did not physically rise from the dead.
Clearly, this type of belief system rattles a few cages, but the bishop believes that it's necessary to shake things up in order to save Christianity from self-imploding. He earnestly believes that myths and legends have obscured Jesus' true message. So... if people were upset with my Creation story, wait 'til they get a look at Bishop Spong.
Last week is was the liberals who fulminated about the Creation Museum coverage; this week the conservatives will storm the castle because of my Spong interview.
As a religion editor, I try to be an equal-opportunity offender (just kidding!).
Toledo, Ohio June 1, 2007