Peter Beck, professor of Christian Studies at Charleston Southern University, grew up watching Graham’s crusades on television.
“He was in many ways the heartbeat of the evangelical movement in the mid-20th century to the end. He was the face,” he said. “Most people are going to label him today the greatest evangelist or the greatest revivalist of the 20th century, and I think those are fairly accurate descriptions.”
That said, Beck noted that neither his children nor his students are aware of Graham. “He’s been retired longer than they’ve been alive.”