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HomeBeliefsFranklin Graham: “We have turned our backs on God”

Franklin Graham: “We have turned our backs on God”

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In an exclusive interview with Newsmax TV last week, Rev. Franklin Graham, son of evangelist Billy Graham, said the country is in the economic shape it is in because, “we have turned our backs on God.”

“The more we turn our backs on God, the bigger our problem becomes,” he said.

“I didn’t hear any of the candidates say that we needed to call our nation to prayer. I didn’t hear any of the candidates say that we needed to ask God for help,” he added.

“We still think that we can work our way out of this problem – and I don’t think we can,” he told Newsmax. “I don’t have confidence in the Republican Party right now, and I don’t have confidence in the Democratic Party.”

He went on to say that America needs God's help to solve her problems, but Obama's re-election has put the country further down a “path of destruction.”

“In the last four years,” he said, “we have begun to turn our backs on God.”

“We have taken God out of our education system. We have taken him out of government. You have lawyers that sue you every time you mention the name of Jesus Christ in any public forum.

“What has happened is we have allowed ourselves to take God out everything that we do – and I believe that God will judge our nation one day,” he warned, adding that God may “have to bring our nation to our knees – to where that we just have a complete economic collapse.”

Graham discussed a number of issues in the interview, including the controversy surrounding the resignation of General David Petraeus and the treatment of Christians in Iran.

Graham also addressed a complaint filed with the IRS by the Freedom from Religion Foundation. The Wisconsin-based group objected to a full-page ad put out by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association encouraging Christians to vote for biblical values.

Graham called the complaint “ridiculous.”

“The African-American churches do this all the time. Candidates go to their churches and stand in the pulpits and give political messages and sermons. Why can’t we do the same?” he asked.

“We didn’t tell anybody how to vote for a candidate. We told them how to choose candidates – and made that plural – who backed Biblical principles. There are a lot of Republicans, Tea Party people, Democrats that we focused these ads on,” he added.

But Graham said the complaint is part of a larger effort by the radical anti-Christian left to silence evangelical Christians.

“They want to shut the mouths of evangelicals. They want to shut the mouths of Christians,” he said.

Thanks to a complaint filed with the group earlier this year, the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission investigated Prudhomme’s Lost Cajun Kitchen in Columbia, Pa., for offering a discount to patrons with church bulletins.

The group also targeted a water park in Little Rock, Ark. for offering a church discount.

Last Christmas, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott sent the group a simple message when it went after a nativity scene in Henderson County: “Don't mess with Texas.”

Graham, however, said that he would not be silenced.

“I’m going to continue to speak out,” he said. “I’m not afraid. I’m not worried.”

Joe Newby
Joe Newby
Joe Newby is an IT professional who also writes as a conservative columnist for Examiner.com covering politics, crime, elections and social issues, and offers hard-hitting commentary at his blog, the Conservative Firing Line.  

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Eric Blauer
Eric Blauer
11 years ago

This type of stuff irritates me and propels me to live out a non-nationlist faith in Jesus.

God isn’t ruling and witnessing through nations anymore but through His son.

He isn’t building temples and palaces anymore but through the people of God by His Spirit and word.

God isn’t writing law in stone but spirit in hearts of flesh.

He isn’t the God of Palestine but of the whole world.

His house is a house of prayer for all nations.

Evangelicals have a big problem construing eschatology, patriotism vs nationalism and law vs grace. The gospel mandate isn’t a nation building enterprise.

God’s kingdom is built on or through the Constitution.

Sodom would of been saved with a handful of righteous people are you telling me God’s judgement on America and the world she supports is coming because of an election? When will people see that this type of rhetoric isn’t based on New Testament understanding of grace through faith but OT works based on law.

We have not come to Mt. Sinai but Mt. Zion….the difference will liberate people from fear and power plays by politicians and preachers.

Eric Blauer
Eric Blauer
11 years ago

Oops: “God’s kingdom ISN”T built on or through the constitution.”

Aaron Weidert
Aaron Weidert
11 years ago

Eric, I completely agree with you. This stuff drives me nuts too. People have been convinced that the end was near, and God’s judgement was coming soon, literally since Christ was killed. I say this: if we actually believe what we’re preaching, if we really do put our trust in God and His plan, then why don’t we prove that? How about we stop using God as a cudgel to achieve a political end? How about we recognize and allow that things are going to happen according to God’s plan, and in His time, and go about our own business under the assumption that the sun will in fact come up tomorrow?

Bruce
Bruce
11 years ago

I kind a feel bad for Franklin. He’s got some massive shoes to fill, and the world has changed since Billy’s time. Imagine the pressure he’s putting on himself to be another Graham.

Dennis
Dennis
11 years ago

I agree that God hasn’t chosen the United States as He has Israel, but we do have a distinct and unique place in the history of the world. We are the only country, ever, in which the founders of the country deliberately sat down and chose what kind of country and government they wanted to establish. To say that we were not founded on Christian principles and actually relying on the grace of God, and wishing to promote the gospel of Jesus Christ are ignorant of the truth. Our problem is that our own history books continue to be re-written to trash our true noble history and to totally disconnect us from our Christian heritage. Obviously it’s working. God has blessed our nation in the past, and He will turn away if we officially drive every vestige of the knowledge of Him from every single public entity and policy. How arrogant and how dangerous.

Aaron Weidert
Aaron Weidert
11 years ago

Dennis, I’m always curious when I see someone starts talking about our nation being founded by Christians, on Christian principles, to promote the gospel, etc. I’d like to see your sources on that. Because, as someone who has studied quite a bit of history and even considered majoring in it while in college, I’ve never seen any evidence of that. In fact, quite the contrary. Here’s a list of some quotes from the founding fathers about religion.

https://www.google.com/#hl=en&tbo=d&sclient=psy-ab&q=quotes about christianity from founding fathers&oq;=&gs;_l=&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_cp.r_qf.&fp=487a3f713ca0dc01&bpcl=38625945&biw=1600&bih=796&pf=p&pdl=300

Lou
Lou
11 years ago

Joe,

I noticed you just link to a lot of stuff. Do you care to offer any reflections like the other bloggers do?

Dennis
Dennis
11 years ago

Aaron, the timing for this one was providential because I spent 3 mornings last week driving to work listeining to Chuck Missler’s series on Thanksgiving which was, for those 3 mornings a summary of that Christian heritage. He read quote after quote of writings of the founders that showed exactly those founding principles. I don’t have a list, but I will work on it and show links somehow.

Dennis
Dennis
11 years ago

One resource I just discovered is a book compiled by David Barton entitled, “The Founders Bible”. 2272 pages of texts many of which come from Mr. Barton’s own library containing over 100,000 original source documents from the founders era. I plan on looking into it, and you might as well if you’re interested. Blessings.

Joe Newby
Joe Newby
11 years ago

@Lou,

Understand how you feel, but this is an article, not a blog post per se. When I write an article like this, I try to stick to the who, what, where, when and why as much as possible – and I do more than just link to other stuff. I may sneak in some editorial language, and if you look, you’ll find some here as well. The editorial content is quite obvious in other posts, however.

@Dennis, another great resource is “America’s Godly Heritage,” also by David Barton and Wallbuilders. Met Barton once, many years ago in the People’s Republic of California, before his hair turned gray/silver. Excellent speaker.

Aaron Weidert
Aaron Weidert
11 years ago

Dennis, there’s no question that many of people in that era, including some of the founders were either Christian or looked favorably upon Christian principles. It’s no chore at all to find a list of quotes from them that cast Christianity in a favorable light. However, that’s not at all the same as saying this is a Christian nation, or that it was founded on Christian principles. That is a factually inaccurate statement, and it appalls me how many people believe it simply because they want it to be true. We have extensive, documented proof that this is not the case. Have you ever read the Treaty with Tripoli? It was read on the floor of the Senate in 1797, approved UNANIMOUSLY, and then signed by John Adams. Article 11 of the treaty says, literally, that the government of the U.S. “is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion.” I honestly have no idea how much more clearly anyone could want it spelled out.

Dennis
Dennis
11 years ago

Well, that is usually the problem with these discussions, the continual redefining of the other’s position. First you said there was no evidence of our Christian heritage, and then when I came up with documented evidence that there was, the discussion was redefined. I said at the beginning that we are not a Christian nation, but you inferred that I did. And to say we are founded on Christian principles brought from Bible truth is not factually inaccurate, it is accurate. Do you think it would be more accurate to say we were founded on Hinduism or Buddhism or some other world religion. Of course not, but the re-writing of history to strip us of our Christian heritage continues and as I said before, it is working because we are raising up another generation that is hostile toward Biblical Christianity and if you want evidence of it I’ll post some of that as well.

Aaron Weidert
Aaron Weidert
11 years ago

“To say that we were not founded on Christian principles and actually relying on the grace of God, and wishing to promote the gospel of Jesus Christ are ignorant of the truth.”

And where exactly did I say there was no evidence of our Christian heritage? Because take a look at what I literally said. There’s no evidence that our country was founded by Christians, on Christian principles, to promote the gospel, etc. I said nothing at all of the heritage of Christianity, simply that the heritage of our COUNTRY was not founded on Christianity, which it clearly isn’t, as we can see by looking at historical documents that clearly spell that out.

That was your initial position, and my response. So I’m sorry, WHICH one of us is trying to redefine this discussion?

Dennis
Dennis
11 years ago

You’re right Aaron, I looked back and I didn’t read closely enough. Sorry for mistating your argument. But what are your desires for our country? Do you want it to be atheist, totally secular, what does trying to erase our Christian past accomplish besides that? All of our social indicators are in the toilet, concerning unwed preganacies, drugs and alchohol, gambling and the miseries that brings, racism from both sides, but those are all moral issues that are being redefined just like our history.

Aaron Weidert
Aaron Weidert
11 years ago

Dennis, what I want is the very clear separation of church and state that was intended and set in place by the founders. Those are my desires for the country. I firmly believe that everything about what has made us strong is tied up in that, both philosophically and economically. I love that we have a country that allows us freedom of and/or from religion. We don’t, and shouldn’t, legislate religion. Also, science and technology are huge reason we’ve been as prosperous as we have, and in order for those things to continue we need clear boundaries between religion and politics, as well as religion and science. When I see fundamentalists trying to undermine science and rewrite history to be more “Christian,” it honestly angers and scares me. I think that’s an incredibly self destructive thing to do, and we need to stop immediately. Otherwise you get stuff like this:

http://www.buzzfeed.com/andrewkaczynski/here-is-what-louisiana-schoolchildren-learn-about

Dennis
Dennis
11 years ago

Aaron you and I definitely have a different perspective and world view. I believe there is much undermining of true science by humanists who force others to “tow the line” when it comes to “consensu” about science. Science is a discipline that requires skepticism not concensus. If you can’t prove it by repeatable experiment then it’s not science it’s religion. Many academics today are terrified to even examine real evidence for fear of being proven wrong in many of their pat theories. I know in the depth of my heart that their are atheist scientists out there misrepresenting “science” because of their politics and making sure they get their next grant by “towing the line”.

And when we legislate against religious views and refuse even to acknowledge that our history was very favorable toward Christian faith, just as history, not as religion, then that is being dishonest and is itself re-writing history. There is also proof positive that evolutionists have falsified fossil remains to try to suppor their view. That angers me, because it tries to push a world view and the humanist religion by deception, to those young people least able to discern it.

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