BILLY GRAHAM'S DISOBEDIENCE TO THE WORD OF GOD
"And Jehu the son of Hanani the seer went out to meet him, and said to king Jehoshaphat, Shouldest thou help the ungodly, and love them that hate the Lord? therefore is wrath upon thee from before the Lord" (2 Chronicles 19:2).
BILLY GRAHAM ACCEPTS DEGREES FROM CATHOLIC COLLEGES AND SAYS THE CATHOLIC GOSPEL IS THE SAME AS HIS OWN
On Nov. 21, 1967, an honorary degree was conferred on Graham by the Catholic priests
who run Belmont Abbey College, North Carolina, during an Institute for Ecumenical
Dialogue. The Gastonia Gazette reported:
"After receiving the honorary degree of doctor of humane letters (D.H.L.) from the
Abbey, Graham noted the significance of the occasion--'a time when Protestants and
Catholics could meet together and greet each other as brothers, whereas 10 years ago they
could not,' he said.
"The evangelist's first sermon at a Catholic institution was at the Abbey, in 1963, and his return Tuesday was the climax to this week's Institute for Ecumenic Dialogue, a program sponsored in part by the Abbey and designed to promote understanding among Catholic and Protestant clergymen of the Gaston-Mecklenburg area.
"Graham, freshly returned from his Japanese Crusade, said he 'knew of no greater honor a North Carolina preacher, reared just a few miles from here, could have than to be presented with this degree. I'm not sure but what this could start me being called "Father Graham,"' he facetiously added.
"Graham said... 'Finally, the way of salvation has not changed. I know how the ending of the book will be. THE GOSPEL THAT BUILT THIS SCHOOL AND THE GOSPEL THAT BRINGS ME HERE TONIGHT IS STILL THE WAY TO SALVATION" ("Belmont Abbey Confers Honorary Degree," Paul Smith, Gazette staff reporter, The Gastonia Gazette, Gastonia, North Carolina, Nov. 22, 1967).
BILLY GRAHAM HAS TURNED THOUSANDS OF CONVERTS OVER TO APOSTATE CHURCHES
The evidence for this is overwhelming and has been widely documented. We have documented this in our book Flirting with Rome: Evangelical Entanglement with Roman Catholicism (Volume 1), available from Way of Life Literature (1701 Harns Rd., Oak Harbor, WA 98277). As early as Sept. 21, 1957, Graham said in an interview with the San Francisco News, "Anyone who makes a decision at our meetings is seen later and referred to a local clergyman, Protestant, Catholic, or Jewish." In 1983, The Florida Catholic (Sept. 2, 1983) reported of the Orlando crusade: "Names of Catholics who had made decisions for Christ were provided at that meeting by Rick Marshall of the Graham organization." The report said the names of 600 people had been turned over to the Catholic Church. In 1984, at the Vancouver, British Columbia crusade, the vice-chairman of the organizing committee, David Cline of Bringhouse United Church, said, "If Catholic step forward there will be no attempt to convert them and their names will be given to the Catholic church nearest their homes" (Vancouver Sun, Oct. 5, 1984). In 1987 a Catholic priest, Donald Willette of St. Jude's Church, was a supervisor of the 6,600 counselors for the Denver crusade. Willette reported that from one service alone 500 cards of individuals were referred to St. Thomas More Roman Catholic Church in Englewood, a suburb of Denver (Wilson Ewin, Evangelism: The Trojan Horse of the 1990s). In 1989, Michael Seed, Ecumenical Advisor to (Catholic) Cardinal Hume, said of Graham's London crusade: "Those who come forward for counseling during a Mission evening in June, if they are Roman Catholic, will be directed to a Roman Catholic 'nurture-group' under Roman Catholic counselors in their home area" (John Ashbrook, New Neutralism II: Exposing the Gray of Compromise, Mentor, Ohio: Here I Stand Books, 1992, p. 35). By September 1992, the Catholic archdiocese of Portland, Oregon, had set a goal to supply 6,000 of the 10,000 counselors needed for the Graham crusade. All Catholics responding to the altar call were channeled to Catholic churches. These are just a few examples of the hundreds which could be given.
BILLY GRAHAM THINKS THE POPE IS A GREAT EVANGELIST
In an interview with The Saturday Evening Post, Jan-Feb. 1980, Graham described the visit of John Paul II to America with these words: "The pope came as a statesman and a pastor, but I believe he also sees himself coming as an evangelist ... The pope sought to speak to the spiritual hunger of our age in the same way Christians throughout the centuries have spoken to the spiritual yearnings of every age--by pointing people to Christ." Foundation magazine, Vol. V, Issue 5, 1984, reported that Graham made this statement about the Pope's address in Vancouver, B.C. in 1983: "I'll tell you--that was just about as straight an evangelical address as I've ever heard. It was tremendous."
BILLY GRAHAM THINKS THERE IS SPECIAL POWER IN INFANT BAPTISM
In a 1961 interview with the Lutheran Standard, Graham said: "I do believe that something happens at the baptism of an infant... we cannot fully understand the mysteries of God, but I believe that a miracle can happen in these children so that they are regenerated, that is, made Christian, through infant baptism" (Lutheran Standard, October 27, 1961).
BILLY GRAHAM DOES NOT BELIEVE HELL IS A PLACE OF LITERAL FIERY TORMENT
The Orlando (Florida) Sentinel for April 10, 1983, asked Billy Graham: "Surveys tell us that 85% of Americans believe in heaven, but only 65% believe in hell. Why do you think so many Americans don't accept the concept of hell?" He replied: "I think that hell essentially is separation from God forever. And that is the worst hell that I can think of. But I think people have a hard time believing God is going to allow people to burn in literal fire forever. I think the fire that is mentioned in the Bible is a burning thirst for God that can never be quenched."
"Hell is not the most popular of preaching topics. I don't like to preach on it. But I must if I am to proclaim the whole counsel of God. We must not avoid warning of it. The most outspoken messages on hell, and the most graphic references to it, came from Jesus Himself. ... Jesus used three words to describe hell. ... The third word that He used is 'fire.' Jesus used this symbol over and over. This could be literal fire, as many believe. Or IT COULD BE SYMBOLIC. ... I've often thought that this fire could possibly be a burning thirst for God that is never quenched. What a terrible fire that would be--never to find satisfaction, joy, or fulfillment!" (A Biblical Standard for Evangelists, Billy Graham, A commentary on the 15 Affirmations made by participants at the International Conference for Itinerant Evangelists in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, July, 1983, Worldwide Publications, Minneapolis, Minnesota, pages 45-47).
BILLY GRAHAM INVITES CATHOLIC BISHOPS ONTO HIS PLATFORM TO BLESS THOSE WHO COME FORWARD AT HIS INVITATIONS
The Roman Catholic bishop of Sao Paulo, Brazil, stood beside Graham during his 1962 crusade in that city, and blessed those who came forward at the invitation. Graham said this illustrated that "something tremendous, an awakening of reform and revival within Christianity" was happening (Daily Journal, International Falls, Minnesota, Oct. 29, 1963, cited by the New York Times, Nov. 9, 1963).
BILLY GRAHAM PRAISES CHRIST-DENYING MODERNISTS
This has been widely documented for 40 years. In Graham's San Francisco Crusade, 1959,
he honored the notorious liberal Bishop James A. Pike by having him on the platform and to
lead in prayer. He also appeared at Grace Cathedral with Pike. Yet Pike had written in
LOOK magazine, expressing himself as not believing in the fundamentals of the faith. Pike,
in a pastoral letter that was to be read in all the Episcopal Churches of his diocese,
stated that "Religious myth is one of the avenues of faith and has an important place
in the communication of the Gospel." He spoke of the "myth of the Garden of
Eden." He said, "The virgin birth... is a myth which churchmen should be free to
accept or reject..."
In Graham's 1963 Los Angeles Crusade, Methodist Bishop Gerald Kennedy was chairman of the
crusade committee. Yet, Kennedy has denied just about every one of the fundamentals of the
Christian faith. His printed endorsement is found on the jacket of Nels Ferre's book, The
Sun and the Umbrella. In this book Ferre said, "Jesus never was nor became
God."... Ferre says the idea of Christ's pre-existence "is the nature of the
grand myth which at its heart is idolatry." Ferre wrote another book entitled The
Christian Understanding of God. In this book he said, "We have no way of knowing,
even, that Jesus was sinless." In this book he promotes the theory that Jesus may
have been the son of a German soldier. Yet, Graham's campaign chairman endorsed Ferre and
his book. In fact, Graham said on August 21, 1963, "Bishop Kennedy is one of the ten
greatest Christian preachers in America." The first Sunday of the Crusade, Graham
took ten minutes to eulogize Dr. E. Stanley Jones, who is a deluxe modernist and proves it
in his book on Mahatma Gandhi (E.L. Bynum, Why We Cannot Support the Billy Graham Crusade,
Lubbock, Texas: Plains Baptist Challenger).
Graham's attitude toward modernists is evident in his pleasant relationship with the
World Council of Churches. He has attended all but two of the WCC's General Assemblies.
Consider the following statements taken from the telegram sent in 1983 by Graham to Philip
Potter, General Secretary of the World Council of Churches. Dr. Graham did not appear at
the WCC Sixth Assembly in 1983 because of prior engagements: "Dear Philip: Your
gracious and generous invitation to speak twice in Vancouver was deeply appreciated. ... I
have tried to juggle my schedule but it is just too heavy at this late date for me to make
the drastic changes that would be necessary for me to be in Vancouver. This will be only
the second general assembly of the WCC that I have had to miss. I will certainly miss
seeing you and many other old friends and fellowshipping with those from all over the
world..." (Foundation, Vol. IV, Issue IV, Los Osos, Calif.: Fundamental Evangelistic
Association, 1983). We should note here that Philip Potter is an apostate Christian
leader. He does not believe that those in non-Christian religions are lost, and he
advocates violent communist movements!
These are a mere three examples of Graham's habit of honoring wicked, Bible-denying
modernists.
BILLY GRAHAM HAS PROMOTED PRACTICALLY EVERY PERVERTED BIBLE VERSION TO APPEAR IN THE LAST FOUR DECADES
In 1952 Billy Graham accepted a copy of the modernistic Revised Standard Version and told a crowd of 20,000 people: "These scholars have probably given us the most nearly perfect translation in English. While there may be room for disagreement in certain areas of the translation, yet this new version should supplement the King James Version and make Bible reading a habit throughout America" (Graham, cited by Perry Rockwood, God's Inspired Preserved Bible, Halifax, N.S.: People's Gospel Hour, nd., p. 15).
Graham's endorsement of the Revised Standard Version foreshadowed Evangelicalism's capitulation to the endless stream of modern versions. Graham has endorsed practically every new version to appear on the scene, no matter how flippant and unfaithful.
In his autobiography, modernist Bible paraphraser J.B. Phillips (1906-1982) stated that Billy Graham spoke highly of his work as early as 1952: "I think it was in 1952 that I received a visit from Dr. Billy Graham with his charming and intelligent wife. 'I want to thank you, Dr. Phillips,' he began, 'for Letters to Young Churches'" (J.B. Phillips, The Price of Success, Wheaton: Harold Shaw Pub., 1984, p. 116).
Graham almost single-handedly rescued the Living Bible from oblivion. "The Living Bible might be called 'The Billy Graham Bible,' for it was he who made it the success that it is. According to Time magazine, July 24, 1972, Billy Graham ordered 50,000 copies of the Epistles, and a short time later ordered some 450,000 more, and still later ordered 600,000 special paperback versions for his autumn television crusade in 1972. From that time on, orders began to pour in" (M.L. Moser, Jr., The Case Against the Living Bible, Little Rock: Challenge Press, p. 9).
That was only the beginning of Graham's love affair with the Living Bible. At Amsterdam
'86, Graham allowed Living Bibles International to distribute free copies of the Living
Bible in 40 different languages to the 8,000 evangelists in attendance (Light of Life,
Bombay, India, Sept. 1986, p. 23). Graham distributed 10,000 copies of the Living Bible to
people who attended his Mission England Crusade (Australian Beacon, No. 241, Aug. 1986).
In 1987, Graham appeared in television ads for The Book, a condensed version of the Living
Bible. He said it "reads like a novel."
In an ad which appeared in a 1991 issue of Charisma magazine, Graham said: "I read
The Living Bible because in this book I have read the age-abiding truths of the scriptures
with renewed interest and inspiration. The Living Bible communicates the message of Christ
to our generation" (Charisma, March 1991, p. 98).
Billy Graham is also one of the men who first helped make the perverted Good News for
Modern Man (Today's English Version) popular by distributing it through his Association.
Graham "called it an excellent translation over nationwide television from his
campaign in Anaheim, California." It was then distributed by the Grason Company of
Minneapolis, the distributors of Billy Graham materials (M.L. Moser, Jr., The Devil's
Masterpiece, Little Rock: Challenge Press, 1970, p. 80). The Good News for Modern Man
replaces the word "blood" with "death" in speaking of the atonement of
Jesus Christ, and corrupted practically every passage dealing with Christ's deity. The
translator of the Good News for Modern Man, Robert Bratcher, does not believe that Jesus
Christ is God.