Just as I am

JUST AS I AM
By Billy Graham
Harper Collins. 738 pages. £20.00
ISBN 0 55103 116 6

Recently, BBC Wales' All Things Considered devoted its half-hour programme to a commemoration of the 50th anniversary of Billy Graham's first visit to Britain.

'Billy Graham has travelled the world preaching to millions. He has been received by royalty and has served as a confidant of every American president since Harry Truman. He's the man that presidents turn to when they feel the need of prayer. He was called to George Bush's side on the eve of the Gulf War and prayed at Bill Clinton's inauguration.

'Unlike many tele-evangelists, Graham has an untarnished personal reputation. He heads a multimillion dollar organisation but draws a salary in line with that of an American church pastor. Happily married for over 50 years, he says that he never eats alone with a beautiful woman, apart from Mrs. Graham, of course! He even turned down Hilary Clinton's invitation to a private lunch.

'In 1954, Graham took Britain by storm with the 12 week mission to London, which culminated in a final meeting at Wembley Stadium packed by nearly 140,000 people. Through the growing power of TV, Graham's electronic congregations have now swollen to epic proportions.'

In his aptly entitled, monumental autobiography, Graham tells his absorbing story to which the above is but a starter. The book has gained access to places evangelical books never tread. For example, it features in the World Books Club September 1997. It gets first page attention and priority review over such competition as Adam Faith, Winston Churchill, Andrew Neil, the Duchess of Windsor, The Queen Mother, Sarah Miles and Roy Strong.

'For 50 years, Billy Graham has been touching the hearts of countless people across the world with his message of unshakable faith. Now, for the first time, he tells the story of his remarkable spiritual journey. He writes movingly of his everyday joys and sorrows, his deep commitment to his wife and family, and his encounters with many of the world's most powerful leaders. A truly inspiring biography from a wise, very humble man.'

After John Stott had taken Graham to see C.S. Lewis, Lewis said: 'You know, you have many critics but I have never met any critic who has known you personally'. Reading the book will help you decide whether to remain a critic - if you are - or not.

He was born the week the First World War ended. With humour and candour, he tells of early days as a farm boy. He memorised the Westminster Shorter Catechism before he was ten and was saved at 16. He was called to preach and was an evangelist by 1943. We follow him to Britain in 1946 and 1947 where he said that he learned 'a deeper spiritual life' from such as Stephen Olford and developed a deeper hunger for the Word of God. 1949 was his watershed in Los Angeles leading to the whirlwind of overwhelming crowds.

The 1950s saw 'breakthrough' in London 1954, which gave him confidence to go worldwide. He gained his first presidential friendship with Eisenhower, who found peace with God through Graham's witness. In his 1953 Tennessee crusade, he personally tore down the ropes separating the white from the black sections - causing the chief usher to resign on the spot, with Graham refusing to back down. In the 1960s and 1970s, he calls the world in upheaval - increasingly he evangelised to the ends of the earth, related to youth culture earthquakes like the Miami Rock Festival and met personally with so many world leaders that Nixon said he knew more of them than he did. With the opening of new frontiers of evangelism behind the Iron Curtain from 1977, including China and North Korea, the reading of the book begins to feel like a history of the late 20th century. In his engaging final reflections, he says: 'The best is yet to be ... most of all I look forward to seeing Christ and bowing before him in praise and gratitude for all he has done for us and for using me on this earth by his grace - just as I am.'

Geraint Fielder

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