Displaying items by tag: Franklin Graham

Evangelist Franklin Graham has criticised the UK Methodist Church for its new Inclusive Language Guide, which advises avoiding gendered terms like 'husband' and 'wife’. Graham, the CEO of Samaritan’s Purse, expressed his disapproval on social media, emphasising the biblical significance of these terms and the importance of adhering to scriptural teachings rather than conforming to cultural shifts. The guide, updated every six months, aims to promote inclusivity, especially for LGBT+ people, by recommending terms like 'parent’, 'partner’, 'child', and 'carer' as alternatives. It also suggests using language and pronouns preferred by individuals. The Methodist Church defended the guide, stating it facilitates respectful conversations without making assumptions or unintentionally causing offence. This initiative aligns with the church's efforts to include LGBT+ individuals, as indicated by references to organisations like GLAAD and Stonewall in the guide. However, the denomination's Book of Discipline still prohibits LGBT-identified clergy from ordination and bans same-sex marriages. A significant legislative gathering in spring 2024 is expected to address these contentious issues further.

Less than half of the population across England and Wales call themselves Christian. In a largely secular society, where more than one-third claim no religion at all, Franklin Graham is sharing the hope of Jesus Christ in the God Loves You tour on 26 August in London. This is the culmination of months of prayer, planning, and training to equip the local churches. The event is free to attend and will be held at the ExCel London. With over 900 churches partnering in this outreach, more than 125 buses will bring thousands to London, some coming from several hours away. The Lord has placed a burden on Franklin’s heart to proclaim Jesus Christ across the UK, and that sense of purpose and evangelistic passion has continued to grow over the years.

Rev Franklin Graham told Liberty University graduates that America is dominated by a ‘culture of confusion and lies, coming from Hell’. He was the keynote speaker for their graduation ceremony. He said, ‘ I pray this class will stand for truth, as America changes so fast. I think the heart of God is grieved as He looks at our world today. I love our country, but it's in a downward spiral morally, spiritually, economically, and politically. The nation is in a freefall because we turned our back on God and His truth.’ He urged the graduates to be a beacon of light, standing on the Word of God while living in a culture of confusion and lies. Graham declared, ‘The Bible doesn’t contain truth, it is the truth, and every word of God is true. Truth is not what you say it is, but what God says it is.’

‘I recently returned from an incredibly fruitful trip to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, where God opened the door for me to preach the Gospel during the Spring Love Festival. It is very unusual for an evangelistic event to be held in Vietnam. What a blessing it was to watch thousands come forward at the invitation to repent of their sins and receive Jesus Christ as Lord of their lives. There is so much ministry under way right now, and none of it would be possible without prayerful support.’

Some worshippers left the chapel of Trinity College Cambridge in tears after guest speaker Joshua Heath explained how Jesus could have been transgender. Joshua, whose PhD was supervised by former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, showed the congregation three Renaissance and medieval paintings of Jesus and the 14th-century Prayer Book of Bonne of Luxembourg to defend his point. The dean of Trinity College said such a view was ‘legitimate’, but US evangelist Franklin Graham said the comments were ‘repulsive and shameful’. ‘To insinuate that Jesus Christ, the Holy Son of God, is transgender or to sexualise in any way his sacrificial death on the Cross for the sins of mankind is utter heresy.'

The postponed Lambeth Conference should take place this summer, with Anglican bishops and archbishops coming to Canterbury for a once-in-a-decade event. Divides over sexuality indicate that some African bishops will boycott it. Same-sex partners of gay bishops are asked not to attend. Pray for Justin Welby to use Lambeth to foster greater unity. After two years of cancellations, Spring Harvest, New Wine and other Christian festivals plan to go ahead, after suffering huge financial losses. Persecution of religious minorities will be addressed as the UK hosts a global gathering of ambassadors for religious freedom. Pray for good to come from it. Evangelist Franklin Graham’s 2021 UK tour had to be cancelled following complaints that he spoke negatively about homosexuality and Islam. The tour is back on. More protests are to be expected, but Graham promises to speak of God’s love and nothing else.

Last year you prayed for justice for a Franklin Graham event after posters for Graham’s ‘Time For Hope’ event were banned from Blackpool buses. Nevertheless, thousands heard him speak at the town's Winter Gardens, and hundreds responded to his altar call. Blackpool council refused the posters because of concerns that he would incite hatred because of past comments he had made about Islam and homosexuality. This week the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association was awarded over £100,000 in damages as the council said they accepted the advertisements were not offensive, and in removing them they did not take into account that this caused offence to other members of the public. They also regretted they did not consult with the organisers before taking their decision.

In this feature article, Jason Mandryk from Operation World, also a member of the IPC’s Leadership Team unpacks a number of growing issues affecting the United Kingdom that have been highlighted by Franklin Graham’s planned evangelistic visit. 
A number of secular UK venues have refused to host Graham’s events.

While the flooding and inexorable spread of CoVid into the U.K. hold the attention of most of us here, the reaction to the planned Franklin Graham tour should not go unnoticed. All of the original venues booked to host Graham’s preaching tour have cancelled, after numerous complaints of the American preacher’s alleged homophobia, Islamophobia, and right wing politics.

A Creeping Prejudice

We are seeing the accelerating trend of Christians being the ones against whom such discrimination is happening. Some have argued convincingly that the cancellations of venues on Franklin Graham’s crusade are examples of such discrimination, and of violations of religious freedom/free speech. Can there truly be free speech when a self-labeled ‘inclusive’ worldview bans people who have convictions different from their own? When we (in this case, Christianity in a nation with centuries of having a state-sponsored Church) are no longer the bully but the bullied, there is a powerful cognitive dissonance. This is happening, not just in the U.K., but across much of the English-speaking world.

Christians in the U.K. should be alarmed at the rapidity of this reversal, and indeed the willingness – eagerness even - of secular society to look the other way, or to pile on, when it’s Christians suffering discrimination. History has taught us, that when these things turn, they often turn fast.

Astute observers will also have noted that there has been a rapid tonal shift from the LGBTQ+ activists. Only a few years ago, such activist groups were pointing out cruel violence and persecution against a small minority, and asking to be allowed to simply exist, to be left alone, to be accepted for who they were. Today, entities like Stonewall and PinkNews are on the offensive. They demonstrate no mercy to those who do not agree to their manifestos. Savvy manipulation of our media and of outrage/victim culture, the weaponization of vocabulary and of Karl Popper’s “Intolerance Paradox”  are just some of the tools of the trade.

How, then, do we respond? Well, tens of millions of Christians who have lived in countries with fundamentalist Muslim, Hindu or atheistic governments are deeply familiar with the experience of persecution and of suffering at the hands of an intolerant majority. Some have endured for generations, or even centuries, in these contexts. It may be that in the years to come we will have much to learn from these brave sisters and brothers in Christ. It may be that our recourse to lobby groups, legal actions, and culture wars will be exposed as fruitless. It is likely that our most important lesson will be to learn how to turn the other cheek, and how to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us (Matt 5:44).  Jesus did promise his disciples, “you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake” (Matt 24:9). 

However, the disruption to Franklin Graham’s intended crusade cannot be laid entirely at the feet of those who oppose his visit.

Franklin Graham is not his father

There are two important aspects to Franklin Graham’s approach that are worth noting. Firstly, how the two men made their choices about where and when to do preaching tours differs. Church of England ministers Ian Paul and Paul Eddy write about how Billy Graham “would only go preach in cities after considerable prayer, and after invitations from a wide spectrum of churches in those cities.” An admirable, spiritual, consultative process! The article goes on to explain that the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) no longer operate that way. It appears that Franklin Graham’s decision to come to the U.K. was a private decision between him and God, rather than a relational process involving the U.K. church.  The lack of an outcry about the cancellations by the U.K. church is hardly a surprise, then.

Public politics is another issue where the two Grahams significantly differ. One of the hallmarks of Billy Graham’s preaching is that he focused on the gospel.  Billy learned to avoid most politics and kept the main thing, the main thing (after well-publicized and painful lessons through his relationship with Richard Nixon).  It is a part of why he had the respect of and access to so many communities and leaders around the world. Who else could have had the chance to share his faith personally with everyone from Queen Elizabeth to Johnny Cash to Martin Luther King Jr. to Kim Il Sung to the King of Jordan?

Politics and religion

Regardless of whether you agree with his convictions or not (and he makes no bones about hiding them), it is undeniable that Franklin Graham has very deliberately chosen to mix his politics with his faith. This politicization of religion is controversial enough in America; it sits less well in a Europe that suffered through some incredibly destructive religious wars before the USA even existed. In addition to his right wing politics, Franklin Graham has also been outspoken on his views about LGBTQ+ and on Islam – two already charged issues.

Franklin Graham is certainly entitled to air his views, and the truth is that many faithful Christians in Europe will actually agree with most of them. Yet there needs to be a recognition that the European context, and specifically the U.K. context, requires its own approach for evangelists, especially for high profile ones. One size never fits all when it comes to spreading the good news of Jesus cross-culturally. This is lesson number one for all aspiring missionaries! You wouldn’t try to evangelize a Muslim while eating a pork sausage and drinking a beer, after all. Europe is profoundly different from America, and our evangelism must reflect that. Remember, this is a Europe that has endured centuries of deep antipathy between religious powers, the spiritual baggage of state churches, and the trauma of state-sponsored atheism.

Franklin promised to focus on the gospel in his evangelistic endeavours in the U.K., and I have confidence that he would keep his word if he gave it. He is a gifted evangelist when he preaches the good news. However, the unfortunate truth is that Graham’s evangelistic platform – in Europe, at least – will never be free from the impact of his very public politics. It appears that influential groups in the U.K. are intent on letting Franklin Graham know that they consider him a homophobic, Islamophobic, right wing, Trump-idolizing crackpot and if that’s the Jesus he offers, then thanks-but-no-thanks.

Europe - white unto harvest?

Yet, the U.K.’s reticence to welcome Franklin Graham’s own crusade should not be associated with a rejection of the gospel of Jesus Christ. True, the fires of religious fervour burn most weakly in Europe among all continents. However, for a number of years, missionaries, ministers, and youth workers in “the prodigal continent” have been saying that there has been more openness to the person of Jesus and the work of the Holy Spirit – especially among the younger generation – than there has been in a long time. This is not even including the many on-fire migrant churches from Africa, Latin America, and Asia, nor the spiritually hungry and desperate migrant populations from places like Afghanistan and Iran (oddly enough, all the above are the groups most likely to resonate with Franklin Graham’s particular blend of religion and politics!) In many places in Europe, the spiritual harvest is ripe. Many who live on this continent will question, though, whether an American mass evangelist with conspicuously right wing politics is going to be the most effective worker in that harvest field.

Franklin Graham has stated that he intends to come to the U.K. anyway. I am glad that my brother in Christ is not cowed into cancelling his campaign simply due to the cancellation of public venues. We can all hope that his visit brings much spiritual fruit, even if the venues are churches instead.

How can we pray?

Pray that U.K. Christians would become aware of the accelerating secularization happening in their midst – not to engage in fruitless culture wars, but to redouble their efforts to fearlessly share the good news of Jesus, no matter the consequences.

Pray that the schemes of the enemy to attack the body of Christ and to degrade British society would be exposed. The devil prefers to fight dirty. May the people of Jesus wage war in the spirit of Jesus, who sent His disciples out “as lambs among wolves”.

Pray for great wisdom, discernment, and humility for public Christian figures in the U.K. This includes people like Anglican Archbishop Justin Welby, Evangelical Alliance CEO Gavin Calver, British evangelist J. John, and even visitors like Franklin Graham.

Pray, as always, for a spiritual awakening in this nation with a history of spiritual awakenings. The U.K. needs revival on the scale of the Wesleyan or Welsh revivals. May the Holy Spirit pour Himself out on His people once again!

Join the discussion at www.ipcprayer.org

Last week a Liverpool venue for Franklin Graham’s UK tour cancelled the booking: now four more of the eight venues booked have cancelled, quoting reports of preaching hate, prejudice and intolerance. PinkNews and Northern Pride have praised the cancellations. Unfortunately Franklin, son of Billy Graham, has been criticised in the past for his attitude towards LGBTQ+ communities. Also, a Christian conference due to have Larry Stockstill preach will no longer be able to do so unless they change venue. According to the Times, he has described same-sex relationships as ‘offensive’, ‘repulsive’, and ‘deeply grievous.’ Larry is a preacher, author, and pastors' mentor who runs a church planting network. He was due to speak alongside Gavin Calver of the Evangelical Alliance at a conference to equip church growth. See

Franklin Graham is scheduled to preach the gospel in eight cities across the United Kingdom later this year, but one of those stops is now in jeopardy after the venue cancelled the 12 June booking over his biblical views on LGBTQ issues. ACC Liverpool, an arena and conference centre, said, ‘Over the past few days we have been made aware of a number of Graham’s statements which we consider to be incompatible with our values. In light of this we can no longer reconcile the balance between freedom of speech and the divisive impact this event is having in our city. We have informed the organisers of the event that the booking will no longer be fulfilled.’ Graham, though, said that everyone is welcome. ‘The Gospel is inclusive, I'm not coming out of hate, I'm coming out of love.’ A Change.org petition that labelled Graham a ‘homophobic hate preacher’ had gathered more than 350 signatures as of 28 January.