By Ruth Peacock
The American evangelist Franklin Graham, who believes Donald Trump defends the Christian faith, now confirms that Trump definitely lost the 2020 election.
Trump, who has consistently claimed the election was “stolen” by Joe Biden, is now facing 91 criminal charges, including trying to subvert democracy, risking national security secrets and falsifying business records in connection with hush money to a porn actress.
Mr Graham, in an interview with Roger Bolton for the Religion Media Centre, said: “Of course he lost the election. There’s no question about that,” although he recognised that millions of people did not believe that.
In recent years, Mr Graham has been known as a supporter of Trump, who — he said — defended the Christian faith even though he was not the best example of it. He had called for a day of prayer to protect Trump from his enemies and he offered a prayer at Trump’s inauguration, so his statement about the outcome of the 2020 presidential election was unexpectedly clear.
Mr Graham, the son of Billy Graham, is returning to Britain for a rally at the Excel Centre in London on Saturday, 26 August. It is entitled “God Loves You” and promises to be similar to the rallies his father put on in Britain from the 1950s, with music, prayers and a long address ending with an altar call for people to come to the front if they want to “give their lives to Jesus”.
In his interview, Mr Graham made clear his unchanging views on the infallibility of the Bible, the need for conversion, the certainty of hellfire for unbelievers and a prohibition on gay sex.
He was asked to expand on his view that “we’re about to lose this country”. He said the United States had many problems with borders that were broken and cities falling apart. “We don’t have good leadership and that’s the problem,” he said. He added that millions of Americans felt they had good leadership under Trump.
Mr Graham did not know if he would support any candidate for election in 2024. But he believed that Christians should be speaking out on moral issues, as happened with the abolition of slavery. “We’ve tried to elect politicians that will support those moral issues that we believe are important,” he said.
He is president and chief executive of the charity Samaritan’s Purse, which has distributed 17 tons of supplies to Hawaii after wildfires obliterated Lahaina, where the human tragedy was devastating. And in Ukraine, it has distributed 200 million pounds in weight of food in the past year, much of which goes to the front lines where people are living in cellars.
In Britain, Franklin Graham’s views against gay sex and about Islam have caused controversy. In 2020 protesters successfully blocked his engagements in seven cities, saying his views were divisive and could cause a breach of the peace.
His organisation took legal action which he won, and now many of those same venues have re-booked him. This weekend, he returns to the Excel centre and next year he will be at OVO Hydro, in Glasgow, on 22 June, after a decision at Glasgow Sheriff Court that its earlier rejection of the event was wrongful discrimination.
Roger Bolton asked him why he wanted to return to Britain and he replied: “I want to warn people of the fire that is coming. Hell is coming for people who refuse God, turn their backs on God, and I want to warn them. I want them to know they can have a relationship with God and that’s through faith in his son Jesus Christ.”
He made it clear that his views on homosexuality remain the same. “I believe the Bible teaches that homosexuality is a sin. Murder is a sin. Adultery is a sin. taking God’s name in vain is a sin. We’re all sinners and none of us can stand before God without sin. We’re all condemned.”
He clarified that the sin was in the sex act. If you were gay and celibate, you were not sinful. “If a person says I’m a gay Christian, OK great, God loves you, but you have to turn from your sin.”
His view of what the Bible teaches is based on the inerrancy — the infallibility — of scripture: “I believe that it was holy men that were inspired by God that wrote the scripture, and I believe it’s without error.”
Mr Graham says he respects other people’s faiths, but there was only one way to God and that was through Jesus Christ. He was asked whether he regretted earlier statements that Islam was a religion of hatred and war.
This, he said, was something he announced after the 9/11 attacks of 2001 and a lot had changed in 20 years, but he did not regret them: “Because what I’ve said is true and there are millions and millions of Muslims out there that I believe love God and love peace. But I want the Muslims to know that the only way to God is through Christ.”
Mr Graham, 71, has a punishing schedule around the world. After London, he has rallies in Rome and Germany and diary bookings for the next two years.
The format remains the same, with music from Christian musicians, who in London include the Australian rock band Newsboys, American gospel singer CeCe Williams and the singer Michael W. Smith, who has won three Grammy awards.
Mr Graham believes that God had called him to preach, but he does not regard himself as special to other evangelists, although his events attract many thousands of people: “I’ve tried to use these opportunities in life that God has opened up and use them for his glory,” he said.
Read our factsheet on Franklin Graham here
