The Magazine

Reverent Billy

The meaning and message of 'America's pastor.'

May 12, 2008, Vol. 13, No. 33 • By LOREDANA VUOTO
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Billy Graham

His Life and Influence

by David Aikman

Nelson, 352 pp., $24.99

Never mix religion with politics. But for Billy Graham, using religion to shape domestic and international affairs has been his forte, and in Billy Graham: His Life and Influence, David Aikman sheds much new light on Graham, the man, and his impact on America.

As Aikman shows, Billy Graham had a unique gift for captivating millions of Americans--as well as befriending presidents. In his time, Graham preached to more people around the world than anyone else, and his simple message of repentance had an "electric" effect: More than three million people who attended his crusades are said to have become Christians, and it is estimated that Graham reached a total of more than two billion people with his television and radio appearances.

Aikman outlines Graham's transformation from North Carolina farm boy to high-profile evangelist. At the age of 16 he made a "personal commitment to follow Christ" after attending revival meetings in Charlotte led by Mordecai Ham. He later majored in anthropology and entered the seminary at Illinois's Wheaton College. In 1939 Graham began his career as a Southern Baptist minister. In Florida he cofounded Youth for Christ, with evangelist Charles Templeton, and by 1949 had risen to national prominence after leading a series of crusades in Los Angeles. During the Cold War he was the first evangelist to preach to large audiences throughout Eastern Europe and in the Soviet Union, and held revivals in North and South Korea, China, and Africa.

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