In Defense of a “Heretic”: Racist, Bigoted, Right-Wing Populist or, None of the Above?

Conclusion

I didn’t write this article primarily to defend Graham or his actions. I am no fan of revivalism or televangelism. I wish he would have been a stronger ally of the Civil Rights campaign. I wish he would have put his son in line. Rather, I write this primarily to call the progressive side of the theological aisle to a posture of love and respect, away from this collective schadenfreude at the death of the last Revivalist.

The irony of this farce is that Billy was not your enemy. His legacy is a casualty of the partisan war. We can dig up the same sort of dirt on any figure in history. Graham is a convenient target in the progressive crusade against the religious right. He simply had the misfortune of having the wrong followers—but he did not look much like them.

Graham deserves both praise and criticism—like all of us. I hope my legacy is not tarnished by the fact that I believed some things that some people didn’t like. I hope yours isn’t either. But I have to find rest in the knowledge that when I die, God will be more gracious than the gatekeepers—of the right or the left.

This post was written by Tylor Standley, you can check more of his writings out over on his personal blog (tylorstandley.com) or follow him over on in the Twittersphere.