Dozens of lawmakers and faith leaders gathered in the United States Capitol on May 16 to celebrate the installation of a statue honoring evangelist Billy Graham, whose likeness now represents his native North Carolina in the building’s Statuary Hall.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, himself an evangelical Christian, spoke multiple times during the unveiling of the 7-foot tall bronze statue, which features Graham gesturing with one hand toward an open Bible in his other.
Johnson noted that Graham, who died at age 99 in 2018, is one of only four people who have received all three of the highest honors Congress can offer: the Congressional Gold Medal, lying in honor at the Capitol and having a statue of their likeness erected in the building.
Wayne Atcheson, senior ambassador and historian for the Billy Graham Library and Archive Center, said the statue’s prominence continues the evangelistic legacy of Graham.
“The 13 Colony states have the choicest position in Statuary Hall, and Mr. Graham will be one of the 13 persons so honored here. We believe it will be a powerful witness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ,” Atcheson said in an email.
Graham, a preacher who once drew crowds of hundreds of thousands at his revivals, or “crusades,” now joins the ranks of Presidents Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan, as well as Rosa Parks.
Later in the program, Johnson noted that the Bible in the statue is open to Galatians 6:14: “May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.” Johnson then grew visibly emotional as he lifted aloft Graham’s personal study Bible, its pages marked with handwritten notes, open to the same verse.
“This is the verse that Reverend Graham put on the banner of his life and in his final years,” Johnson said.
Scripture references
In his own address to the assembly, Graham’s son the Rev. Franklin Graham praised the inclusion of Scripture along the base of the statue — John 3:16 and John 14:6 — but said the sculpture would likely have made his father “a little uncomfortable.”
“He would want the focus to be on the one that he preached,” the younger Graham said. “He would want the focus to be on the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God.”
Another speaker, North Carolina Sen. Ted Budd, also referenced the Scripture passages along the bottom of the statue, and appeared to embrace the elder Graham’s evangelistic fervor.
“Friends, God’s grace is undeserved,” Budd said as he concluded his remarks. “But through righteousness, it is freely given and it is by trusting in Christ’s sacrifice that we are saved. If you’ve not made that decision for yourself, I hope, I pray that you will.”
Multiple speakers pointed out that the process of establishing the statue took years, but Johnson noted that the artist who made it – Charlotte-based sculptor Chas Fagan – also fashioned a nearby likeness of Reagan.
“That’s pretty awesome,” Johnson said.
EDITOR’S NOTE — This article was written by Jack Jenkins for Religion News Service. Read the full article here. TAB Media contributed to this article.
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