Billy Graham was on the wrong side of history

by Matthew Avery Sutton

Matthew Avery Sutton is a Guggenheim Fellow and the author of "American Apocalypse: A History of Modern Evangelicalism." He is the Edward R Meyer Professor of History at Washington State University.

● How Billy Graham's legacy lives on in American life By David Mislin

● Billy Graham forgave Nixon’s sins, blaming them on the ‘demon-power’ of sleeping pills By Michael Rosenwald

When Billy Graham stands before the judgment seat of God, he may finally realize how badly he failed his country, and perhaps his God. On civil rights and the environmental crisis, the most important issues of his lifetime, he championed the wrong policies.

Graham was on the wrong side of history.

The world’s most famous evangelist let his apocalyptic anticipation of the coming kingdom of God blind him to the realities of living in this world.

For Graham, the Bible had a clear message for Christians living in what he believed were humans’ last days on earth. Individuals alone can achieve salvation; governments cannot. Conversions change behaviors; federal policies do not.

These convictions shaped the evangelist’s views on civil rights.

In the late 1950s, Graham integrated his revivals and seemed to support the burgeoning civil rights movement. This is the Graham most Americans remember.

But as the movement grew, expanded and became increasingly confrontational, the evangelist’s position changed. ...

Read entire article at The Guardian