Procession planned for ‘America’s Pastor,’ Rev. Billy Graham

MONTREAT, N.C. — The Rev. Billy Graham, the magnetic, movie-star-handsome preacher who became a singular force in postwar American religious life, a confidant of presidents and the most widely heard Christian evangelist in history, has died. He was 99.
"America’s Pastor," as he was dubbed, died at 7:46 a.m. Wednesday at his home, where only an attending nurse was present, said Mark DeMoss, spokesman for the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. Both the nurse and Graham’s longtime personal physician, Dr. Lucian Rice, who arrived about 20 minutes later, said it was "a peaceful passing," DeMoss said. Graham had suffered from cancer, pneumonia and other ailments.
More than anyone else, Graham built evangelicalism into a force that rivaled liberal Protestantism and Roman Catholicism in the U.S. His leadership summits and crusades in more than 185 countries and territories forged powerful global links among conservative Christians and threw a lifeline to believers in the communist bloc.


 Source : tampabay