PASTOR
DESCRIBES
WHY "SPIRITUAL COUNSELOR OF U.S. PRESIDENTS" LOVED RUSSIANS
The well known American preacher, Billy Graham, who died at the age of 99 years, fell very much in love with Russia and its residents after his first visit to the country in 1982, the ruling bishop of the Russian Associated Union of Christians of Evangelical Faith (ROSKhVE--Pentecostals), Sergei Riakhovsky told RIA Novosti.
Graham was considered one of the most influential Christian leaders of the U.S.A. He was famous for mass preaching and campaigns throughout the world. Graham also was an informal advisor to a number of American presidents, for which he received the nickname "conscience of America." He was a pastor of the Southern Baptist Convention—the largest association of Baptists. In decades of preaching his total audience was more than two billion persons.
"Here was a man who always talked only about Christ, only about faith, only about Christianity, only about family and spiritual values," Riakhovsky noted.
He described Graham's first visit to the Soviet Union "in the capacity of a tourist" in 1982 and his worship at the liturgy in the Elokhov cathedral church along with the then primate of the Russian church, Patriarch Pimen.
"This was very powerful: the two largest Christian confessions—protestant and Orthodox—worshiping together in the soviet years. After all, Billy Graham wrote in his books that the soviet system was "a system of evil" and it was from him that Reagan adopted the expression "evil empire." In the Elokhov cathedral Billy Graham and Patriarch Pimen spoke in unison, and from that moment Graham radically changed his attitude toward the people living in the U.S.S.R. He fell very strongly in love with them," Riakhovsky said.
After this, Graham came to Russia several times. In addition, as the head bishop of ROSKhVE noted, he frequently met with Russian clergy. The last of the Russian ecclesiastical leaders who met with Graham, Riakhovsky noted, was the head of the Department of External Church Relations of the Moscow patriarchate, Metropolitan of Volokolamsk Ilarion.
The pastor called Graham a man "of the highest spirit, humility and gentleness," despite the fact that he enjoyed unparalleled popularity, assembling whole stadiums for his preaching. "He did not come to presidents, but presidents came to his home. While diverse persons visited him, both Democrats and Republicans," Riakhovsky emphasized.
According to information of a number of American news media, Graham's funeral will be held on 2 March in North Carolina. (tr. by PDS, posted 22 February 2018)
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