A last crusade in a career that reshaped American religion

In many ways, Graham's simple message of peace and reconciliation, rather than the more contentious approach of other fundamentalist evangelicals, helped revive the evangelical optimism that had shaped a broad American self- understanding since the time of the Puritans. America was a land of innocence and purity, a "city on a hill," as an early Puritan minister famously proclaimed.

At the same time, Graham was the first to employ electronic media in a way no one had before. His "Hour of Decision" radio broadcast, first aired in 1950, became the most listened-to religious program in the world - a position unchallenged for decades.

"He came to prominence at a unique moment in history," says Mr. Balmer, "when various media technologies were just emerging in the country. And he, and more particularly his associates and his team, jumped on them and exploited them brilliantly in order to advance his career."

At first a country preacher, dressed in pastel suits and flashy ties, Graham transformed himself in the 1950s, taking on a more conservative, middle-class attire. By the time he came to New York in 1957, and began the era of televangelism, he conveyed an image that many Americans would find appealing.

"Perhaps influenced by the entertainment industry in California, the site of his first crusades, he began to adapt himself, or at least his image, to broader American popular cultural tastes," says Dr. A. Daniel Frankforter, a church historian at Penn State Erie, the Behrend College. "He began to look more like a businessman. He combined that image, that popular image of respectability and prosperity, with a version of Christianity that affirmed it."

Yet, like most iconic figures, Graham struck a complex pose, and he could be both prophet and healer, brilliantly combining the threat of judgment and promise of salvation in his sermons. His optimism was still rooted in traditional Protestant teaching - an integrity that was part of his appeal.

As his popularity grew, evangelical Protestants, too, began to emerge from their protective pose. Here was one of their own being courted by US presidents and other world leaders. Though many criticized his accommodating style, evangelicals began to engage culture in way they hadn't for decades.

By the 1970s and '80s, Graham's influence began to extend worldwide. He was able to preach in countries hostile to the US, becoming the first Christian minister of any kind to preach publicly behind the Iron Curtain.

He persuaded repressive regimes in China, Hungary, and the Soviet Union to allow giant gatherings for his sermons - events normally never allowed.

"In terms of his statesmanship, Billy managed to travel the world without becoming an ugly American," says Marshall Shelley, coauthor of the forthcoming book "The Leadership Secrets of Billy Graham." "He managed to travel to all of these countries - many of them with heightened political sensitivities - and by and large manage not to inflame the situation, but to be an ambassador of peace and reconciliation."

Now that Graham's career is at its close, few see any other ministers able to match the charisma and widespread appeal that made him such an important figure in American religious history.

"The reach of his preaching - nobody has ever come close, and I suspect no one else ever will," says Balmer. "His people claim that he has preached to more people than anyone else in history, and I don't know anyone who would seriously dispute that claim."

Page: 1 | 2