Posted: 2018-03-03 08:16:35

Posted March 03, 2018 19:16:35

Billy Graham's children have remembered "America's Pastor" as a man living his life at home as he preached it in stadiums, with a personable humility and an unwavering focus on his faith.

Mr Graham, who died last month at his home in Montreat, North Carolina at 99 years old, had suffered from cancer, pneumonia and other ailments.

He reached multitudes around the globe through public appearances and his pioneering use of prime-time telecasts, network radio, daily newspaper columns, evangelistic films and satellite TV hook-ups.

By his final crusade in 2005 in New York City, he had preached in person to more than 210 million people worldwide.

"The Billy Graham that the world saw on television, the Billy Graham that the world saw in the big stadiums, was the same Billy Graham that we saw at home. There weren't two Billy Grahams," eldest son Franklin Graham told the funeral congregation.

Franklin Graham's funeral message followed shorter remarks by his siblings in a service that lasted just over an hour before an invitation-only crowd of approximately 2,000.

"I believe, from Heaven's perspective, that my father's death is as significant as his life. And his life was very significant. But I think when he died, that was something very strategic from Heaven's point of view," said his daughter Anne Graham Lotz.

"I believe God is saying: 'Wake up church! Wake up world!'"

The congregation included President Donald Trump and Vice-President Mike Pence.

Neither spoke during the service that was streamed live online, but had met privately with the family beforehand.

The funeral came at the end of more than a week of mourning that included crowds lining the road for a procession from Mr Graham's home in the mountains to Charlotte, where he grew up.

Approximately 13,000 people — including former presidents George W Bush and Bill Clinton — filed past his casket during a public viewing in Charlotte.

On Wednesday, Mr Graham became the first private citizen since civil rights icon Rosa Parks in 2005 to lie in honour at the Capitol Rotunda in Washington.

He was buried next to his wife in a memorial prayer garden at the Billy Graham Library.

AP

Topics: death, religious-leaders, evangelism, united-states

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