Franklin Graham Interview With Newsweek

[NATO AIR]

very interesting, I admire Rev. Graham very much and am happy to count him an ally in the struggle against genocide in darfur

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6730092/site/newsweek/
WEB EXCLUSIVE

By Brian Braiker
Newsweek
Updated: 8:04 p.m. ET Dec. 17, 2004Dec. 17 - More than 300,000 faithful turned out for the Greater Los Angeles Billy Graham Crusade over four days at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena last month. One of those people was William Franklin Graham III, Billy's self-described prodigal son, who runs the day-to-day operations of the Charlotte, N.C.-based Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. After a wild youth that he touts in his memoir "Rebel with a Cause," Graham has come back into the fold. Himself a preacher, the junior Graham runs charity missions to—and preaches the gospel in—Sudan, Russia, Colombia and Iraq. Most recently, he spearheaded a Christmas campaign to send gift-filled shoe boxes to children in the world's most war-torn and storm-battered corners. "If you look at the life of Jesus Christ," he tells NEWSWEEK, "he is our example, he is our role model. He used his power as the son of God to bring healing to people’s lives."

But Graham, who is 53 and goes by Franklin, is also no stranger to controversy. A man who often says just what is on his mind, he drew fire from around the world when, in the wake of 9/11, he called Islam "an evil and wicked religion." Today he tempers his remarks about Islam, but he is outspoken in his condemnation of homosexuality and of sex in the media. His liberal critics charge that in addition to his charity work in Iraq, he is out to convert Muslims, undermining the Bush administration's claims to respect Islam. Graham, who is also president of Samaritan's Purse, a nondenominational evangelical Christian program founded in 1970 that serves the poor, refugees and others at home and abroad, recently spoke with NEWSWEEK about his work in Iraq, gay marriage and the role of evangelism.

NEWSWEEK: Do you think that the media and entertainment industry is not reflective of the religious values people say they have? Twenty-two percent of voters put moral values as their top concern in this election yet “Desperate Housewives” is a hot show. Do you see any disconnect there?
Franklin Graham: You can put any kind of smut on television and you’ll get a lot of viewership. I have not seen this program but any time you have something that’s racy, you’re going to attract an audience. No question: there is a disconnect with the entertainment industry and the values of America.

The president seemed to signal that he was OK with civil unions in the last weeks of the campaign. Is your objection to marriage as a word?
This was an issue that I think in this election where people finally said, “I’ve had it. I don’t want that agenda being forced and pushed and mandated on me.” You can’t legislate morality. A homosexual’s sins are no different than a heterosexual’s sins. If I go out tonight and I sleep with someone who’s not my wife, it’s just as great a sin as gay people [having sex]. Sin is sin.

(2 more pages of the interview, no registration required)