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Franklin Graham Still Thinks Islam ‘Wicked’
Not everyone is proud of their youth. Sometimes we do and say things we come to regret later in life. So it is with Franklin Graham, the 53-year-old son of legendary Christian evangelist Billy Graham. "He was kicked out of school, hooked on cigarettes and alcohol, and [was] a self-proclaimed thrill seeker," said one news release, describing the motorcycle-riding "Rebel With a Cause" author. That was then. These days, Franklin — himself an ordained minister — is more interested in helping his father fulfill his dream of bringing the Word of God to the masses.

He and those under his charge, who help support the elder Graham, "are committed to my father making sure that whatever is on his heart — for as long as it is on his heart — we're going to be there for him," Franklin told The Los Angeles Times in an interview during his father's recent crusade in Los Angeles. But time and age don't change some things. For Franklin Graham, that includes his opposition to gay marriage and the religion of Islam. The former is contrary to God's law, he said. And though many gay and lesbian couples believe their love is genuine, Franklin told the Times, "there were people who for centuries swore up and down the Earth was flat too. "God says [homosexuality is] a sin," he continued. "Yet God loves sinners." And God, he stressed, is willing to forgive.

As to Islam, right after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, Franklin was quoted on "NBC Nightly News" as saying it was "an evil and wicked religion." And he still feels that way. "I haven't changed my mind," he told the paper. "When people's heads get chopped off and throats are cut and innocent people are murdered and slaughtered, my mind hasn't changed." He added: "I don't believe we should be declaring a war on Muslims. Not at all. We have millions in this country who follow Islam and are good citizens and make their home here and [want] to live in freedom just like anyone else. "But unfortunately, you don't have that in Saudi Arabia," he said. "You don't have that in any country where Muslims have a majority. Christians, Jews are persecuted and in Saudi Arabia, Christians and Jews predated Muslims."
Posted by: Mark Espinola 2004-12-02
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=50217