Billy Graham (November 7, 1918 – February 21, 2018) was an American evangelist, a prominent evangelical Christian figure, and an ordained Southern Baptist minister who became well known internationally in the late 1940s. One of his biographers has placed him “among the most influential Christian leaders” of the 20th century – Did you know that he came and shared the Gospel in South Africa? 

Dr. Corne Bekker, dean of the School of Divinity at Regent University who hails from South Africa, recalled when Graham refused to preach in that nation unless blacks and whites could sit together. “Christianity is not a white man’s religion,” Graham said. “Christ belongs to all people.”

Graham finally preached at fully-integrated crusades in both Durban and Johannesburg in 1973, some 20 years after receiving the initial invitations to preach there.  

Mike Browne, the official photographer from the crusade at Wanderer’s Stadium in Johannesburg, has shared some of the photos from the event with us:

1.The picture of the dignitaries on the podium feature from left to right (in the front row):
Gary Player
Dennis House who headed Youth for Christ (YFC) for South Africa
Prof. Dr. Louw Alberts Vice-President of the Atomic Energy Council
Billy Graham

  1. The picture with Billy Graham and the lady in red is of him autographing a Bible with the text Philippians 1:6 – “being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete ituntil the day of Jesus Christ”.

  1. Billy Graham preaching

  1. The rest are of the crowded stadium and the empty stadium during clean-up
    Watch the video below that highlights parts of Graham’s message from this crusade in Joburg in 1973:

Mike Browne is a local South African photographer. To contact him, email him on mike@browne.co.za, or call him on 082 800 8007.

Compiled by: Gillian Fraser
Images: Mike Browne