Billy Graham sounds good in those older clips.  His speech is weighty and forceful and you're right, he's not just some old guy our parents respect.  He's done invaluable work for the kingdom and for that he should earn our respect. But at the same time i can't help but wonder what it is that makes him so different now.  I mean, he sounds nothing like he did in those old clips as he does in the newer clip you linked to.  Something changed.  Is it that he is so old now that he just doesn't know what it is he is saying or what?  I'd like to excuse it, but I can't so I guess what I really want is for him to just talk publicly as little as possible or not at all right now.  I don't know. 

But as far as whether or not this glorifies Billy Graham more than God - I mean, this is Rick Warren all over again (http://www.notconformedthoughts.com/displayone.cfm?docid=2688).  Right now Rick Warren is used to people asking him what the purpose of
life is.  I noticed a few years ago the same thing happened with James
Dobson.  Don't get me wrong.  Nine times out of ten I like James
Dobson.  But I cringe when I see how many people follow him and when I
see them raise him up on the pedestal he is raised up on.  He has some
good things to say.  But I don't trust him to tell me the purpose of
life.  With everything that he has said, like the Bereans in Acts 17,
  we should be studying the scriptures to see if it is actually the truth
instead of automatically accepting it as the truth and having it spoon
fed to us off of a silver platter.  For instance, I have very serious
convictions when it comes to teaching my children about Santa Clause.
I don't believe I should lie to my kids about a man who comes on
Christmas, a man I can talk to throughout the year about how good I
am, a man who brings gifts and cheer to the world.  What will happen
when my children find out I have lied to them?  What will my children
think of me then?  How will they be able to trust me when I try to
tell them about another man who came on the first Christmas, a man we
should all talk to throughout the year, a man who brought the greatest
gift of all, and a man who brought cheer and peace to all the world?
This is something I cannot reconcile doing.  But because James Dobson
told us a few years ago that not only is it okay for us to teach our
kids about Santa Clause, it is actually good to do so, thousands of
his followers across the country are teaching their kids about Santa
Clause.  In spite of Paul admonition to keep away from even a hint of
sexual immorality, James Dobson has also endorsed masturbation as an acceptable acta mong teenagers.  Again, thousands of his followers across the country are teaching their kids it is okay to masturbate.  Then people started asking him
about things that are not even in his field as a psychologist to talk
about.  They started asking him about creation.  And Dobson actually
embraces a form of theistic evolution.  So naturally, now we have
thousands of his followers that embrace certain forms of evolution,
even though it goes against the testimony of scripture, and even
though it flies in the face of all major scientific evidence.  Now
people are asking Dobson, who the next president of the United States
should be.  When will it end?

So I guess the main problem I have with honoring someone before they
are dead has to do with the people they could possibly lead on the
wrong path.  Were I in Dobson or Warren's shoes I wouldn't want anyone
to believe me just because I said so.  I would want them to think for
themselves, read the Bible and find out for themselves who the next
president should be.  I would want my followers to consistently
challenge me to back up everything I say with the declaration of
scripture or the use of reason.   This is why I commented in my
previous statement that I was sad our great giants are being replaced by
paper ones.  Martin Luther and all the others went through a great
deal of pain (I say pain because I can't imagine doing that much
writing without a computer.  Also the persecution some of them
underwent.) to show us what scripture really said.  And by allowing us
to see for ourselves, we have found the proof is in the pudding.

When I use the term "giants" and talk about the giants of our time, I'm not usually referring to every great man of God or knowledgeable man of God who has ever lived.  I think we all know men personally who are great men of God, extremely
knowledgeable and prolific in the word of God, that I will never
consider a giant, according to how I'm defining the term.  My father,
for instance, is a good example.  I can't think of anyone in my entire
life who has had as big of a positive impact on me as he has.  He's
extremely wise, he's extremely knowledgeable and devoted to his study
in the Word, and it would be hard to think of anyone who is more
passionate about pleasing the Lord in everything he does.  And yet, as
Godly as he is, he is very old and could die anytime.  Will anyone other than his family members remember him after he is gone?  Probably not on this side of Heaven.
And as time goes by, as I get old and will one day die, my fathers
memory will fade even more and more until one day he is nothing more
than a name in the genealogical record.  And in a way it's sad.  But
in another way that is the way it has always been.  99.99% of all
Christians who have ever lived will receive their big rewards in
Heaven, even if on earth no one knew who they were.  So in spite of
the fact that I look up to my father for his spiritual devotion to
God, he is not someone that I would lump into the same category as
Martin Luther.  He's not someone I define as a spiritual giant.  I
guess in my mind the only difference between the two men (Martin
Luther and my father), the thing that makes Martin Luther a spiritual
giant and not my father is the public spot light.  It's the fact that
my father has led his wife and four children spiritually and Martin
Luther has led a googolplex.

So that's my definition of a spiritual giant.  It is as much about the
legacy they leave behind as it is about how Godly they are.  It's when
their legacy lives up to their Godliness, and their Godliness lives up
to their legacy.  And this brings me to my next point about Rick
Warren.  Will he be remembered by anyone after this next generation
passes?  In my opinion, the answer is no because so far he is only a
one hit wonder.  His legacy, in my opinion, is more man made than
God-made.  We are the ones that have put him up on a pedestal and
raised him up as this great Godly man, but when scratched beneath the
surface you and I both know men that are twice the man he is and don't
have a fraction of his legacy.  We have built a paper giant!  Paper
giants fall easier and fall harder.  Paper giants can be torn down and
ripped to shreds.  It has happened before.  History has never showed
us a good example of a paper giant.  These things always end badly.
In the end, they always make the church look worse than it did before
they began their ministry.    So I don't have a problem with anyone looking up to men that have helped them along their spiritual journey.  We can look up to them, and
we can honor them, but I do have a problem with putting men on a
pedestal and raising them up as an icon before they die.  After they
die is a different story.  Because after they die, their life can be
assessed wholly and properly.  You can build a giant and make an icon
out of that person because, since they are dead, they can't do
anything to make you or Christ look any worse than they already have, as I'm sure their dirty laundry will already be hanging out for the world to see what it is.  Instead of building a giant out of paper, you have built something rock solid that is safe to
stand behind and a legacy you know is safe to follow. 

Properly done posthumous memorial = Okay in my book, as is any historical sight or museum

Naming a middle school after a murderer = No way, Jose.

My new computer doesn't have WORD yet so before I posted it I had to type my last comment in the word pad program that my computer came with which is why it looks so messed up.

I added two videos at the end of the post that will hopefully clarify some thoughts.  The first is an official video released by the Billy Graham Evangelical Association that highlights some of the features of the Library and captures the scope of the Library better than mere words and pictures can. 

The second video is a clip from the 700 Club that includes an interview with Franklin Graham.  In the video Franklin states, "When he saw that this could be used as an evangelistic tool, he was all for it.  But he said if it was just going to be a monument to himself, he said he didn't want any part of it. But we assured him that it wouldn't be a monument to himself; it would be an ongoing crusade."

As Christians we definitely need to be on guard against idolatry.  And a place like this demands discernment and careful consideration.  That being said, the BGEA did a fine job making sure that visitors are presented with the gospel numerous times before they leave and the walls are literally covered with Bible verses.  If there is a way to do this sort of thing right, the Billy Graham Library certainly pulled it off. 

I was looking for some information of the Christian view of Santa Claus and was led to this page. I do realize that Santa Claus is not the focus of this blog, but I feel compelled to respond to Stephen.  I grew up believing in Santa Claus. I was not angry at my parents for any deception on their part when I found out the truth.  I was upset that I had discovered the truth because Santa Claus was such a wonderful part of Christmas.  Christmas Eve still is my most favorite day of the year.  I did not nor do I have any trouble whatsoever distinguishiing between Santa Claus and Jesus Christ. I think that some Christians are just a little too self-righteous these days. Maybe you ought to read the Sun's response to Virginia O'Hanlon - the "Yes, Virginia, There Is A Santa Claus" editorial. It was written by Francis Church, the son of a Baptist preacher.  What he says is quite profound.  Santa does exist.  I am Santa Claus to my son.  I don't believe for one second that he'll be angry with me for lying or confuse Santa and Jesus. I personally don't know of anyone who grew up believing in Santa who was angry at their parents for deceiving them.  Is there some Biblical prohibition against make believe? And there IS a difference between make believe and lying.  Santa Claus is most assuredly in the former category.

Becky, thank you for your comments.  I've talked more about Christmas and Santa Claus in this post.

There's a huge difference between make believe and lying.  In make believe, all the parties involved know that something is just pretend and is not real.  If your kids know that Santa Clause is not real, but you all pretend, or make believe, that he is real anyway then that is fine.  Lying, however, is distinct from make believe because it's a form of deception.  If you tell your kids that he is real when he is not, and they believe you, that is a down right lie.  Nowhere in the BIble is that kind of deception ever justified.  It's lying no matter how you rationalize or dice it.

Christmas should not be about anything commercial or material, not about some mythical concept about a man who brings gifts once a year, but about the gift God gave the world when he sent his son to be born in a manger.  This weekend I read stories about a man who was killed by a mob at Walmart - people who perverted the Christmas holiday into one centered around self and materialism. 

We should teach our kids about Christ and the gift of life and stray from any teachings that might cause some to center on how many presents are around the trees - especially ones that involve us lying to our children. 

Where's our freaking morals?

I have a big problem with Western Christianity's celebration of Christmas (Santa Claus etc),  Easter (the Easter Bunny, chocolate eggs etc) and, especially in the US, Halloween which is a pre-christian pagan festival.

I also have a big problem with Franklin Graham's apparant approval of Pat Robertson by appearing on the 700 Club Show.