American missionary Franklin Graham, son of renowned evangelist Billy Graham, is bringing his evangelistic tour to the ExCel venue London this June – despite recently provoking concern among some UK evangelicals.
The event comes as part of Graham’s God Loves You Tour, which aims to partner with local churches to share “the simple message of God’s love”. The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) are hoping to draw thousands to the venue, as they did when it was last held there in 2023.
“London is an extremely influential and important city, and every time I’m here it feels like we’re barely scratching the surface. This is why we are bringing the God Loves You Tour back to London for a third time. There is such a need and hunger for the gospel in this global city,” Graham stated.
The evangelist, described by The Times as America’s ‘commander-in-belief’, has come under scrutiny for his close relationship with Donald Trump – he prayed with the President just minutes before he was sworn in, and has been a vocal and staunch ally of many of the President’s policies since, praising, for example, his pause on foreign aid.
Causing further consternation, in April Graham was also quoted in The Times as stating that the UK is “like Russia at the height of communism” with regards to freedom of speech.
Responding to the news of Graham’s tour, John Stevens, director of the Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches (FIEC), stated on social media: “I agree with so much that Franklin Graham believes, and he undoubtedly preaches the gospel. It is a shame that he has so allied himself to the Republican political cause and is willing to excuse even the indefensible about Trump and his character. His assessment of the UK as ‘like Russia at the height of communism’ is simply laughable – it neither reflects the reality of the UK nor of the USSR.”
Meanwhile Graham Nicholls, director of evangelical umbrella organisation Affinity, told en: “Franklin Graham is a Christian who wants to tell people about the new life and forgiveness we can have in Christ and is uncompromising about God’s word being our final authority. As a fellow believer I want to pray that the mission meetings planned for the UK are fruitful.
“Personally, I have some concerns about his apparently unqualified support for Trump, but I am not part of the inner circle to know what conversations are really happening there. His language about the UK being like Russia may have been exaggerated, but if you were viewing the UK from afar, you’d be worried about people being locked up for free speech issues and make a similar parallel without saying it’s exactly the same situation and state. I also hope this might make us more cautious in making generalisations about American evangelicalism which might be equally uninformed.”
Ryan Burton King, a pastor in London, is thankful that the BGEA are seeking to partner with local churches during the tour and has sent two church members to serve as counsellors during the event. He commented: “Whatever perceived differences in soteriology, evangelistic methodology, or political engagement have come to mind, I have rebuked any spirit of objection arising in my heart with the apostolic testimony: ‘Christ is proclaimed, and in this I rejoice.’ I have every confidence that thousands will hear the gospel and pray many respond with genuine repentance and faith.”
