195.Dulles calls for “dynamic faith.” John Foster Dulles, War or Peace (New York: Macmillan, 1951), pp. 251–56, cited in Mark Silk, Spiritual Politics (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1988), pp. 91–92.
195.Telegram from Eisenhower, Dulles’s advice. From a letter from Billy to Ruth Graham, quoted in “The Sweep of God in India—Billy Graham’s Diary,” Christian Life, July 1956, pp. 14–19. In CN 74, MF Reel 1, from Box 299, (Pre-Presidential Papers of Richard Nixon, National Archives and Record Service).
195.Dulles: India needs message of authority. Burnham, To the Far Corners, p. 14.
196.“Beggars were all around in Bombay.” Quoted in ibid., p. 21. Throughout this book, Burnham quotes from what is ostensibly “Billy’s diary.” Graham claimed the quotations were not from a diary but from letters he wrote to Ruth, which Burnham obtained and used, presumably with permission. BG later wrote, “I am sorry Mr. Burnham was able to get hold of [this material].” Graham, Letter to Editor, Madras Daily Journal, February 24, 1957.
196.Riots laid to Communists. Burnham, To the Far Corners, pp. 18–19.
196.“I smiled and they smiled back.” Noel Houston, “Billy Graham,” Holiday, March 1958, p. 81.
197.Bombay press conference. Pollock, Authorized Biography, p. 162; Chuck Ashman, The Gospel According to Billy (Secaucus, N.J.: Lyle Stuart, 1977), p. 107; Marshall Frady, Billy Graham: Parable of American Righteousness (Boston: Little, Brown, 1979), p. 339. Accounts of journalists’ reception to BG vary wildly. Pollock, the authorized biographer, asserts that BG was responding to a spiritual hunger the reporters manifested. Ashman asserts that reporters complained the press conference had been like a sermon. Frady speaks of “venomous” accounts. Articles in English in the scrapbooks in the BGC Archives differ little from those written about BG in other foreign countries during this period.
197.“the tramp, tramp, tramp of bare feet.” Pollock, Authorized Biography, pp. 162–63.
197.“Dr. Graham can be dreadfully effective.” P. Lai, “Billy Graham in India,” The Nation, April 7, 1957, pp. 276–77, quoted in Frady, Parable, p. 336.
198.Bishop Jacob’s cobras. The Reverend A. Jack Dain, oral history, December 1, 1971.
198.Kottayam services. Dain, oral history and interview. Dain recalled that no food or drink was available other than what people had themselves brought. Pollock, Authorized Biography, p. 163, speaks of food vendors falling silent during the service.
198.BG follows Bishop from platform. Graham’s “diary,” in Burnham, To the Far Corners, p. 49.
198.Hindus more open than Muslims. “Billy in India,” Time, February 13, 1956, p. 72.
199.BG quiets crowd at Palamcottah. Burnham, To the Far Corners, pp. 53–54.
199.BG confronts worshiping crowds. Ibid., pp. 54–55; Houston, “Billy Graham,” March 1958, p. 81.
200.Reserved seats in New Delhi. Hindustan Times, February 5, 1956.
200.BG in Benares temple. Burnham, To the Far Corners, pp. 43, 79–80.
200.Nehru’s lack of enthusiasm about BG. Noel Houston, “Billy Graham,” Holiday, February 1958, p. 138.
200.Nixon’s role in arranging the appointment. Letter, BG to Nixon, January 7, 1956; Cable, Nixon to Cooper, January 20, 1956. A cable from New Delhi, January 24, 1956, confirmed that the appointment had been made.
200.Encounter with Hammarskjold. Burnham, To the Far Corners, pp. 60–61.
200.BG’s meeting with Nehru. Ibid., pp. 61–63; Houston, “Billy Graham,” February 1958, p. 138.
201.Nehru seen as pro-Christian. Burnham, To the Far Corners, p. 58.
201.Men are the same the world over. BG often made this observation. This particular formulation is quoted in Houston, “Billy Graham,” March 1958, p. 81.
201.“average Communist in India doesn’t know what it’s all about.” Burnham, To the Far Corners, pp. 68–69.
202.Indians thrilled at personal visits. Ibid., p. 60.
202.A Cadillac for Nehru. Ibid., pp. 71–72. This suggestion drew a withering blast from the Christian Century, which charged that BG “hasn’t a glimmer of a notion about what is really going on in the world. . . . If there were any sense at all of the real nature of the world’s revolution, a man couldn’t even think of such irrelevances as a train or a car, much less utter them. . . . [I]t is wretched politics and impossible Christianity.” “Whose Ambassador?” Christian Century, February 29, 1956, pp. 261–63. Filipino newspapers also scored the evangelist heavily, damning him for “insulting the Indian sense of values” and charging that he was a “publicity-mad preacher,” a Liberace of the religious world who was trying “to sell American friendship to India in the same manner that she sells, say, toothpaste or brassieres.” Manila Chronicle, Herald, and Daily Mirror, all quoted in Christian Century article.
202.BG chooses Abdul-Haqq. Pollock, Authorized Biography, p. 164.
203.“like the prophet Elijah.” See I Kings 19.
203.Indian resentment of Burnham’s book. “Billy Graham Answers His Critics,” Letter to the Editor, Madras Sunday Standard, February 24, 1957. Also, Pollock, Authorized Biography, p. 165.
203.“Everything has been perfect.” Burnham, To the Far Corners, pp. 154–55. The commentator was Marshall Frady, Parable, p. 342.
203.Never had better platforms. Billy Graham (interview), “Asia Can Be Won,” U.S. News & World Report, April 6, 1956.
204.Ruth builds a house. Ruth Graham, oral history, CN 141, Box 4, Folder 8, BGCA; Patricia Daniels Cornwall, A Time for Remembering: The Ruth Bell Graham Story (San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1983), pp. 111–21; personal observation.
205.“quiet it down and go easy.” Letter, Frank W. Boykin to Eisenhower, March 19, 1956, CN 74, Box 1, Folder 1, BGCA.
205.Eisenhower’s letter to BG. Letter, March 22, 1956, CN 74, Box 1, Folder 12, BGCA.
206.BG agrees to help. Letter, BG to Eisenhower, March 27, 1956, ibid.
206.BG’s progress report to Eisenhower. Letter, June 4, 1956, ibid.
206.Gradual repentance of racism. One of BG’s 1956 Hour of Decision sermons was entitled “The Sin of Tolerance.”
206.Niebuhr chides BG. See particularly Reinhold Niebuhr, “Literalism, Individualism, and Billy Graham,” Christian Century, May 23, 1956, pp. 640–42; “Proposal to Billy Graham,” Christian Century, August 8, 1956, pp. 921–22.
207.Life article about racial problems. Billy Graham, “Billy Graham Makes Plea for End to Intolerance,” Life, October 1, 1956, pp. 138–40.
Chapter 13: New Evangelicals, Old Fundamentalists
208.“go ahead and buy it.” John Pollock, Billy Graham: The Authorized Biography (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1966), p. 170.
209.T. W. Wilson joins BGEA . . . “more like a gentleman.” T. W. Wilson, oral history, January 30, 1971, CN 141, Box 4, Folder 46, BGCA.
209.Leighton Ford. Jean Graham Ford, oral history, July 7, 1976, CN 141, Box 3, Folder 44, BGCA; Leighton Ford, oral history, July 7, 1976, CN 141, Box 3, Folder 43, BGCA.
211.“It is wrong to abdicate responsibility.” H. J. Ockenga, quoted in David Moberg, The Great Reversal: Evangelism Versus Social Concern (Philadelphia: Lippincott, 1972), p. 228–29.
211.“an urgent matter.” BG to Eisenhower, June 29, 1953, and September 28, 1953, CN 74, Box 1, Folder 12, BGCA. Unless otherwise noted, further correspondence between Graham and Eisenhower or members of the Eisenhower administration other than Richard Nixon are from this source.
211.“extremely vital information.” White House memo, quoting a message from Betty Lowery, a BGEA secretary, who sought to set up a meeting with the President after BG returned from the Middle East in 1956.
212.“an unforgettable experience . . . GOP-controlled this fall.” BG to Eisenhower, February 8, 1954.
212.“Still thinking you are the greatest.” Letter, BG to Eisenhower, January 7, 1956.
212.“my unqualified support.” Letter, BG to Eisenhower, August 15, 1955.
212.Nixon’s “all-important sense of humor . . . better still
, in Hawaii.” Letter, BG to Nixon, September 13, 1955, in CN 74, MF Reel 1, from Box 299, (Pre-Presidential Papers of Richard Nixon, National Archives and Record Service), BGCA. Unless otherwise noted, all subsequent pre-presidential correspondence between BG and Nixon is also from this source.
212.“Governor Dewey said . . . integrity and Christian principles.” Letter, BG to Nixon, October 8, 1955.
213.“Your political advice was on the beam.” Letter, Nixon to BG, November 7, 1955.
213.“How thoughtful of you.” Thank-you note, BG to Nixon, June 4, 1956.
213.Nixon viewed as “man of the people.” Billy Graham (interview), “Asia Can Be Won,” U.S. News & World Report, April 5,1956, pp. 62–71. The Vice-President’s staff clearly understood the advantages of having Graham on their side. Shortly after the U.S. News & World Report article appeared, an aide wrote to Nixon, “I hope that you also noted the tribute paid to your visit to India by Billy Graham in the U.S. News & World Report. It seems to me that Graham’s statements in this regard could be disseminated more widely.” Memo, Pat Hillings to Nixon, April 10, 1956. A few days later, Nixon dropped Graham a note thanking him for the kind words; Nixon to BG, April 18, 1956.
213.Nixon “a splendid churchman.” Graham, quoted in Newark Sunday News, September 4, 1955, quoted in William G. McLoughlin, Revivalist in a Secular Age (New York: Ronald Press, 1960), p. 118.
213.BG sends speech. Letter, BG to Nixon, July 14, 1956.
213.“three air-conditioned rooms.” BG to Nixon, June 4, 1956.
213.“a cause that cannot lose.” Letter, BG to Eisenhower, August 24, 1956.
214.“Democrats are going to use every trick.” Letter, BG to Nixon, August 24, 1956.
214.Lament over divorced presidential candidates. “The Home,” Hour of Decision, 1956.
214.“possibilities in the making.” Letter, BG to Nixon, November 10, 1956.
214.“talk concerning Bible prophecy.” Ibid. Sometime in 1956, apparently, BG and Nixon had discussed biblical prophecy during a visit in the home of Evangelical senator A. Willis Robertson, father of religious broadcaster and presidential candidate M. G. “Pat” Robertson.
214.“in case added responsibilities are yours.” Letter, BG to Nixon, December 2, 1957.
214.First Presidential Prayer Breakfast. Donald Scott McAlpine, “Mr. Christian of Washington,” United Evangelical Action, July 1, 1954, pp. 266–67.
215.The founding of Fuller Theological Seminary. George Marsden, Reforming Fundamentalism: Fuller Seminary and the New Evangelicalism (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1987), pp. 13–30, 53–54, passim. This meticulous and thoughtful account of Fuller Theological Seminary’s short history provides an excellent window into Evangelical Christianity since the 1940s.
215.Wilbur Smith’s vision of a journal. Letter, Smith to BG, February 22,1951, Smith Papers, Fuller Theological Seminary, quoted in ibid., p. 158.
215.BG begins to plan for Christianity Today (CT). Graham (interview), “In the Beginning,” Christianity Today, July 17, 1981, p. 26.
216.BG’s vision of CT’s stance. Letter, BG to Lindsell, January 25, 1955, CN 192 (Lindsell Papers), Box 6, Folder 2, BGCA.
216.The “big love” approach. Ibid.
217.CT in D.C. Graham (interview), “In the Beginning,” p. 27.
217.CT offices in Washington. L. Nelson Bell, oral history, November 8, 1970, CN 141, Box 2, Folder 23, BGCA.
217.“a silent group of non-published men.” Letter, BG to J. Howard Pew, April 13, 1955, quoted in Carl F. H. Henry, Confessions of a Theologian: An Autobiography (Waco, Tex.: Word Books, 1986), p. 146.
217.Pew’s views. See, for example, “The Resourceful Mr. Pew,” Christianity and Crisis, June 11, 1956, p. 75; Also, Pew, draft of speech, included in letter to L. Nelson Bell, May 15, 1959, CN 8 (Christianity Today [CT] collection), Box 1, Folder 57, BGCA.
217.Pew: U.S. should drive Communists from UN. Letter, Pew to Bell, October 5, 1961, CN 8 (CT Collection), Box 1, Folder 57, BGCA.
218.Pew’s contributions to CT. Financial reports in annual meetings of the CT board, for 1955–59, in CN 8 (CT Collection), BGCA. See also Henry, Confessions, p. 145.
218.“Would Carl be ready?” Letter, BG to Lindsell, January 25, 1955, CN 192 (Lindsell Papers), Box 6, Folder 2, BGCA.
218.Henry “too well known as a Fundamentalist.” BG to Bell, June 5,1955, quoted in Henry, Confessions, p. 141.
219.“Liberalism and Evangelicalism do not have equal rights.” Henry to BG, June 20, 1955, CN 192 (Lindsell Papers), Box 6, Folder 2, BGCA.
219.Henry’s questions about capitalism. Ibid.; Carl F. H. Henry, “Christianity and Economic Crisis,” United Evangelical Action, May 1, 1955, pp. 7–11, quoted in Marsden, Reforming Fundamentalism, p. 160.
219.“truth without love will be ignored.” Henry to BG and Bell, August 18, 1955, quoted in Marsden, Reforming Fundamentalism, p. 161.
219.“we will seek it elsewhere.” Bell to Board, quoted in Henry, Confessions, p. 162.
219.A board should trust an editor. Ibid., p. 163.
220.Public notice of CT’s appearance. Ibid., p. 162; Paul Harvey’s endorsement is also mentioned in a letter, Bell to Ockenga, October 1, 1956, CN 8 (CT Collection), Box 1, Folder 56, BGCA.
220.BG critiques first issue of CT. Letter, BG to Henry, October 28, 1956, CN 192 (Lindsell Papers), BGCA.
220.Vita Safe and Supra Vite. Ads and letters contained in report to CT board, May 28, 1957, CN 8 (CT Collection), BGCA.
220.Poor response to circulation efforts. Report of circulation manager Linda Jane Kik to CT board, January 6, 1958. Minutes of board meetings, CN 8 (CT Collection), BGCA. George Wilson had apparently estimated that BG’s appeal might garner fifty thousand subscriptions. Bell to Wilson, March 14, 1958, CN 8 (CT Collection), Box 1, BGCA.
220.CT adopts more effective circulation techniques. Linda Jane Kik report to CT board, June 5, 1958. David Lawrence’s help noted in minutes of board meeting, September 13, 1956. CN 8 (CT Collection), BGCA.
221.Look’s assessment, quoted by Henry, report to CT board, May 28, 1957. NAE assessment cited in Henry’s report, June 18, 1959, CN 8 (CT Collection), Box 1, Folder 56, BGCA.
223.McIntire: NAE little better than NCC. Marsden, Reforming Fundamentalism, p. 49.
223.Jones’s criticism of BG. Quoted in R. K. Johnson, Builder of Bridges: The Biography of Dr. Bob Jones, Sr. (Murfreesboro, Tenn.: Sword of the Lord, 1969), pp. 287, 278, 286. Carl McIntire agreed that liberals were exploiting the unwary BG. In the November 22, 1956, issue of the Christian Beacon, he quoted an unnamed official of the World Council who allegedly said, “We do not agree with Billy Graham’s theology, but we are using him to build our churches.”
223.“the more Dr. Bob turned against him.” Several interviewees confirmed this account and interpretation of Jones’s animus against BG.
223.Sword of the Lord, any edition. This is a shortened version of the paper’s official statement of faith. For the longer version, see “The Statement of Faith and Agreement Signed Annually by Directors of The Sword of the Lord Foundation,” Sword of the Lord, September 10, 1954, p. 2.
224.BG endorses RSV. Sword of the Lord, June 17, 1955, p. 9. A year earlier, BG had backed off a bit from a strict Fundamentalist view of Scripture when he told the Methodist Recorder, “What do you mean by a ‘fundamentalist’? Do you mean by that someone who believes God dictated the Bible to certain men as if they were dictaphones and had no part in the matter except insofar as they recorded the words of God? If so, then I am certainly not a fundamentalist. If on the other hand you mean by a fundamentalist one who believes the great fundamental truths of the Bible and man’s need of a savior, then I certainly am!” Methodist Recorder, May 20, 1954, p. 251. Most professors at Fuller Seminary held positive views toward the new book, a fact that reportedly cost Charles Fuller thousands of supporters. Marsden, Reforming Fundamentalism, pp. 136–37.
224.“no one in his right mind.” Robert Leslie Sumner, Man Sent from God: A Biogra
phy of Dr. John R. Rice (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1959), p. 211. Sumner’s account of BG’s remarks is based on a report in the Colgate-Rochester Divinity School Bulletin, referred to without citation.
224.BG at Union. Carl F. H. McIntire, “Billy Graham at Union Seminary,” Christian Beacon, March 16, 1955, pp. 1–2 (Note: this article appeared a full year after BG’s address); John R. Rice, “Billy Graham at Union Seminary,” Sword of the Lord, April 22, 1955, p. 3.
224.“I am neither a Fundamentalist nor a Modernist.” John R. Rice, “Questions Answered About Billy Graham,” Sword of the Lord, June 17, 1955, p. 10.
224.“God has people in all the churches.” Edward B. Fiske, the New York Times, July 17, 1956. The article identifies the statement as having been made after the London crusade.
225.Rice: “No one could possibly say that Billy Graham is a modernist.” Rice, “Graham at Union,” p. 3.
225.“every Christian . . . ought to rejoice.” Rice, “Questions Answered,” pp. 9, 11; Rice, “Graham at Union,” p. 3.
225.Modernist opposition proves BG preaching the truth. “Modernist Critics Beset Fundamentalist Billy Graham,” Sword of the Lord, April 6, 1956, p. 7.
225.Negative mention by nonregular contributors. Chester E. Tulga, “More Than Evangelicals,” Sword of the Lord, July 27, 1956; Tom Malone, “What Do You Think of Billy Graham?” Sword of the Lord, September 14, 1956.
226.“What difference does it make who sponsors . . . ?” “What’s the Next Step?” interview with Billy Graham, Christian Life, June 1956, pp. 20–23, as quoted and paraphrased in Marsden, Reforming Fundamentalism, p. 163.
226.Paul did not give convert names to pagans. Joseph T. Bayly (editor of the Intervarsity magazine, His), letter to Christian Life, August 1956, p. 4, quoted in Marsden, Reforming Fundamentalism, p. 163.
226.“The Sword of the Lord does not speak for you.” John R. Rice, “Which Way, Billy Graham?” Sword of the Lord, November 23, 1956, p. 2.
226.“breaking down of convictions.” John R. Rice, “Billy Graham’s New York Crusade,” Sword of the Lord, April 19, 1957, p. 8.
A Prophet with Honor Page 112