Billy Graham: The Grand Old Man of Evangelism Quiz

Answer: Ruth

Ruth Bell Graham was the daughter of missionaries to China. Her father was Dr. L. Nelson Bell, a talented surgeon who dedicated himself to the medical missions. He was head of Tsing Kiang General Hospital founded by author Pearl Buck's father. He also played professional baseball with a farm team in the minors.

Answer: Presbyterian

Billy Graham's, as well as his wife's, childhood church affiliation was with the Presbyterian church. While he was studying at the Florida Bible Institute he changed his church affiliation to Southern Baptist and was baptized by immersion in Silver Lake in 1938.
Mrs. Graham remains Presbyterian and signs her letters PTL (Praise The Lord) but she says it really means "Presbyterians That Last."

Answer: Bunny, Anne, Gigi, Ned and Franklin

His son Franklin has gone on to head the Billy Graham Foundation and is also head of "Samaritan's Purse," an international charitable organization.
His daughter Anne Graham Lotz is a former model and talented speaker and writer of Christian books. Her ministry is called AnGeL ministries which is a play on her initials.

Answer: Mordecai Ham

On November 6, 1935, one day before his 17th birthday (b. Nov. 7, 1918) and on the very night that evangelist Billy Sunday died, the boy that would become the most famous preacher of all time gave his life to Christ.

Answer: Hour of Decision

The name was suggested by Billy's wife. His signature sign-off: "May the Lord bless you, real good."

Answer: True

He was the 1000th celebrity to have received this honor.

Answer: False

No, indeed. He married Ruth Bell on Friday the 13th of August 1943. It must have been a lucky day as they celebrated their 60th anniversary in 2003.

Answer: true

Billy, sometimes called the Protestant Pope, has indeed met with Pope John Paul II.

Answer: evangelical

Evangelicals differ little from Fundamentalists on matters of doctrine. Their strategy as to what to do with the doctrine is the difference. Evangelicals see their job as spreading the gospel, but, for fundamentalists, the job of protecting the purity of the faith is most important. This is most probably a simplistic explanation of the difference.

Answer: All of these

Charles Finney was the first to use the now-familiar invitation; he challenged people to stand or come to the front of the assembly, indicating their readiness to accept Christ.

Billy Sunday had played professional baseball, was flamboyant and entertaining. He coined the term "hitting the sawdust trail", as his specially constructed tabernacles had sawdust spread on the ground.

Moody, along with Ira Sankey, made music an important part of the ministry. He also made revivalism a business by developing a detailed program for organizing and executing revivals.

Answer: Harry S Truman

Interesting, that he was not particularly close to Jimmy Carter, however they were cordial. John F. Kennedy too was not particularly close to Billy however he once stated that he was the only protestant minister that he felt comfortable with.
A faux pas involving the press and a White House lawn prayer meeting permanently damaged the relationship with Truman.

Answer: Charlotte, NC

He was born to Frank and Morrow Graham, a hard working dairy farmer and his wife, who has been described as a classic southern Christian lady. One day in 1924 in a pasture on the Graham farm, a group from Charlotte Christian's Men's Club met for a day of prayer and fasting. Vernon Patterson, the group's leader launched into a prayer that out of Charlotte, the Lord would raise up someone to preach the gospel to the whole world. Pitching hay a few hundred feet away was young Billy Frank Graham. The answer to that prayer would have been a surprise to all.

Answer: Northwestern

On December 6, 1947, Graham became at age 29 the youngest college president in the United States. Northwestern at the time consisted of three schools: a Bible school, a seminary and a brand new liberal arts college. His associates from this time remark that Graham was called to be an evangelist and not an educator; however enrollment at the time jumped from 800 to 1200. An illustration of Graham's affability along with his venture into academia is his appearance at the London School of Economics, known for its secular leanings. Shortly after he was introduced a student crashed through an upper window and stood scratching himself like an ape in an obvious gibe at the Fundamentalist rejection of evolution. Graham instantly made the connection and when he finished laughing quipped: "That reminds me of my ancestors! Of course all my ancestors came from Britain." He brought down the house and was listened to respectfully after that.

Answer: Christianity Today

In 1956 he established what would become the most widely read serious religious journal in the nation. He wanted to give theological respectability to evangelicals. Graham felt that fundamentalism had failed with the "big stick" approach and now it was time for the "big love" approach to the gospel message.
Like many magazines, it at first got off to a shaky start with ads for Vita Safe and Supra Vite, with the promise of bringing "fun and excitement back into your marriage". The ads were soon dropped.

Answer: Dwight Eisenhower

Eisenhower became the first president ever to lead a prayer as part of his own inauguration, and shortly after the inauguration ceremonies ended, the evangelist baptized him in the White House.