A. Larry Ross–Billy Graham's Bridge Over Troubled Waters

Whatever the future outcome for Protestant Christianity in America””and no matter how murky the present landscape””one would be remiss to overlook the unique legacy of evangelist Billy Graham, whom Scheussler invokes to illustrate the mobilization of evangelicals against mainline-endorsed leftist causes in the 1950s; Graham comes off the page as little more than a firebrand polemicist.

Quite to the contrary, Graham’s impact on American Protestantism has been one of inclusion””building bridges of understanding to unite ecumenicals and evangelicals and, in latter years even Catholics””in evangelism. Using a football metaphor, if leaders of diverse Christian confessions were perceived to be playing between the ten-yard-line and the goal at either end of the field, Graham brought them mid-field between the two forties.

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