Billy Graham, who according
to the Gallup Organization was the seventh most admired person in twentieth
century (by Americans), suddenly has become quite political. Earlier this month,
Mitt Romney went to visit him and they prayed together—which certainly was not something
unusual: Graham has known and prayed with every President from Harry Truman to
Barack Obama.
After his prayer with Romney, though, Billy is quoted as
saying to Mitt, “I will do anything I can
to help you.”
A few days later, the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA)
changed a website article, removing the reference to Mormonism as a cult. The website previously read, “A
cult is any group which teaches doctrines or beliefs that deviate from the
biblical message of the Christian faith.”
It went on to state, “Some of these
groups are Jehovah’s Witnesess, Mormons, the Unification Church, Unitarians,
Spritualists, Scientologists, and others.”
It may well be a good thing that the BGEA no longer considers
Mormonism a cult. But the timing is certainly interesting: they made that
change just a very few weeks before the election in which one of the candidates
is a Mormon.
Then last week in the Wall
Street Journal and other newspapers, the BGEA placed a full-page ad that
was an implicit endorsement of the Romney-Ryan ticket. The ad states:
The legacy we leave behind for our children, grandchildren and this great nation is crucial. As I approach my 94th birthday, I realize this election could be my last. I believe it is vitally important that we cast our ballots for candidates who base their decisions on biblical principles and support the nation of Israel. I urge you to vote for those who protect the sanctity of life and support the biblical definition of marriage between a man and a woman. Vote for biblical values this November 6, and pray with me that America will remain one nation under God.
But what are
biblical values? The same Bible (Old Testament) that is used (by some) to
condemn gays (Leviticus 18:22, 20:13) also seems to accept or even to approve
of polygamy (such as in the case of Jacob, for example). It is questionable to
use the first to tout “biblical values” but disregard the many examples of the
latter.
Or why are the two cited
verses from Leviticus used to support a biblical value but the following verses
are not? “Do not take interest or any profit from them, but
fear your God, so that your poor neighbors may continue to live among you.
You must not lend them money at interest or sell them food at
a profit” (Leviticus
25:36-37).
Sanctity of life, I
would agree, is certainly a biblical value. But as I explained in my October
15 posting, abortion done under the right conditions in the first trimester
is not the “taking of life.”
Loving one’s
neighbor as oneself, however, is unquestionably a biblical value if we take the
teaching of Jesus seriously at all. Thus, by implication, such love would
surely include such things as providing universal health care coverage and helping
to provide for the needs of the poor as well as opposing the exploitation of
the poor by the rich.
Sojourners has
produced a very good voters’ guide (available at this link), one that includes
many more vital biblical values than the narrow, and questionable, version offered
by Billy Graham.
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I wonder if the changes are really due to Billy or if it is Franklin who is playing political. The fruit may not fall far from the tree, but in Franklin's case, it seems to have rolled a lot after hitting the ground. Another possibility is senility.
ReplyDeleteIt's well demonstrated that most people pick and choose which passages they follow when appealing to Biblical truth to support their political positions. Those who are socially and politically to the right just seem to be more vocal.
The Sojourners article is an excellent guide that should be more widely used.
Thanks, Thinking Friend (I wish I knew who you are), for your prompt and pertinent reply.
DeleteYes, I feel fairly confident that much of what Billy Graham has recently said publicly (and published) is largely because of Franklin, who clearly seems to be a cut far below his father.
Thanks, too, for your endorsement of the Sojourners guide.
Drop by some time. http://observationsfromthesidelines.blogspot.com/
DeleteYes, I found your blogsite earlier--but I didn't find any information about you.
DeleteGreat column, Leroy. I've again posted it to FB. Thanks for the link to the Sojourners voters' guide.
ReplyDeleteIt seems that what influence Billy Graham has today is largely courteous based on his enormous reputation. But clearly that influence is in the past. Not even Franklin can match it. The world was so receptive to the young and dynamic Billy Graham in the '50s and '60s. He was right for his time. But that time has changed.
ReplyDeleteHonestly, getting religious endorsements makes me less likely to support a candidate these days.
David, thanks for posting your comments.
DeleteI imagine that in spite of all the expense the BGEA has gone to, BG's endorsement is not going to mean much except to those who are already committed to the Religious Right.
My esteemed Thinking Friend in Kentucky, one who often sends brief comments by
ReplyDeletee-mail, writes,
"Right on, Leroy! Billy Graham has done admirable things, for example, in including people of many religious traditions in his crusades. But he has propounded essentially the political perspective of the Religious Right and the Republican Party."
Comments by a local Thinking Friend, Dr. Will Adams:
ReplyDelete"So right as usual! It appalls me (as I think it would appall Jesus) to see those who hold themselves up as spokespersons for Christianity prostitute the faith to the Republican Party, instead of seeking to strengthen the kingdom of Christ. And to support such acts by referring to a few selected Biblical verses while ignoring others is propaganda, not scholarship."
The same people who use the Bible to justify laws against gay people are unmoved by the Bible's views on imigration reform: "You shall not wrong or oppress a resident alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt." Exodus 22:21
ReplyDeleteRight on!
DeleteGood point!
ReplyDeleteHere is the link to a good article about the same subject as the main blog posting: http://www.abpnews.com/blog/social-issues/billy-graham-and-politics-2012-10-26/
ReplyDeleteA few months ago my Sunday School class worked through "Sex, Mom and God" by Frank Schaeffer, the son of Francis Schaeffer, the Evangelical leader. Frank was at one time fairly close to Franklin Graham. In pages 67-72 of his book he has a discussion about being the child of a famous Evangelical leader, with special emphasis on Franklin Graham. The children, who had grew up too close to their famous fathers not to know their every weakness, tended to compensation for doubt with shrillness. Relevant to the current election, he points out in the book (page 70), "In 2010 Franklin even managed to get his father to sign a pro-Sarah Palin endorsement."
ReplyDeleteShaeffer is also hard on himself: "Tragically, I was the person who pushed my father into the antiabortion movement. The more doubts I had, the farther to the Right I moved ideologically, as if shouting loudly enough and demonizing any who disagreed with me could solve my real problem: the growing realization that the Bible is horribly flawed."
This is a recent (2011) book, and well worth the read for anyone wanting a glimpse into the world of high-stakes political Evangelicalism.
I was in this same class, and I also recommend it as a book well worth reading--even though I am not sure any good purpose was served by Schaeffer (the son) writing about his and his parents' sexual activities.
DeleteI recently stopped attending a Bible Studies Fellowship class (BSF)--after gaining quite a bit from it from the past two years. I left because I didn't feel comfortable. It seemed that everyone else attending accepted the word-for-word version of Genesis. Finally, when it came to God's causing untold numbers of people--men, women and children--to drown in the Great Flood, I had to go. My Christianity is pretty simple--I just ask "What would Jesus do?" I don't believe Jesus would do that, I don't believe that God was surprised at how his children turned out and I don't think that God has "grown up" or "learned better" from his mistakes--because I don't think that he in his omnipotence and omniscience can make a mistake. Because I have complete faith in my maker, I have to conclude that Genesis (or at least the versions we have today) are terribly flawed.
ReplyDeleteHere is the link to an excellent article about Billy Graham--and his son Franklin, who is using (abusing?) his father's good name: http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/on-faith/sins-of-the-son-sad-treatment-for-billy-graham/2012/11/08/a31f5de2-29f4-11e2-96b6-8e6a7524553f_story.html?wpisrc=nl_headlines
ReplyDelete(I couldn't make a hyperlink, so you will have to cut and paste the above if you want to read it.)