The son of Rev. Billy Graham, Rev. Franklin Graham, declared on National Public Radio this weekend that pedophiles deserve the death penalty. He also declared that we are a nation of laws.
Not only is Rev. Graham’s first statement outrageous, it is undermined and contradicted by his second statement. Why? Because the laws in many states do not include the death penalty. Furthermore, most of the 31 states that do have a death penalty law do not apply that law to an individual who is convicted solely of a sex offense.
It is noteworthy that Rev. Graham made this outrageous statement during an interview that was not on the topic of either pedophiles or the death penalty. Instead, the topic of the interview was advertised as an evangelist’s view of President Donald Trump.
It is also noteworthy that Rev. Graham’s views on pedophiles appear to be based upon a common mistake. That is, he appears to believe that the term pedophile is synonymous with the terms sex offender, child molester, sexual predator, etc.
It is a mistake made by many people who should or actually do know better including at least one Superior Court judge in Long Beach, California. That judge, in fact, declared in a public court hearing that all of the terms were synonyms. He then added that if he asked 10 people on the street, 9 people would have agreed with him. He also said that all such individuals are monsters, they always do it again and there is no cure.
An important question for society is why educated individuals, including but not limited to, ministers and judges feel comfortable making such outrageous statements in very public places. The answer may be that those who know the truth — that pedophilia is a medical diagnosis and not a crime — are afraid to speak out.
Another important question is why educated individuals would advocate the death penalty for someone diagnosed with a medical condition. Do they advocate that individuals diagnosed with other medical conditions such as cancer and diabetes also deserve the death penalty? Of course not! Instead, they advocate for adequate medical care and attention. It’s time to speak out on this important topic.
It’s time to speak truth to power. You can do so by writing toRev. Franklin Graham at the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, 1 Billy Graham Parkway, Charlotte, NC 28201 or calling him at (704) 401-2432.
Click here to listen or download to the radio broadcast
His comment is at 10:00 in the downloaded recording
My, my. How Christian of him. What a hypocrite!
“Do they advocate that individuals diagnosed with other medical conditions such as cancer and diabetes also deserve the death penalty?”
To an extend, yes, yes they do. Many people, particularly those deep in religion, still believe being gay is wrong and fully support “conversion therapy” or worse. I wouldn’t expect them to be any more enlightened when it comes to pedophilia as a diagnoses, let alone an actual conviction. I still constantly run into user comments that re-offending is super high and people can’t be rehab’d. Even worse, is when I see law makers spout these lies either out of ignorance or malice.
Until we can have all lawmakers actually acknowledged all the evidence (studies) that pretty much everything pertaining to sex offenses as “common knowledge” is wrong, I don’t expect more from those that don’t actually have the power to make laws that kick us out of our homes.
Jesus would be so proud of the compassion the noble Mr. Graham keeps in his heart.
Graham Jr. is not an authority on this subject, but that didn’t stop him from using his bully pulpit to exploit unwarranted fear in an attempt to appear relevant! Another “Christian” hypocrite exposed.
Please let’s us no longer ignore the regime’s intention to move the country toward the ultra-right. Let us not confuse where the first large database infrastructure was erected in a state well known for its religious conservatism. Those folks think sex is solely reserved for the marriage bond. IMLs ANGEL WATCH is housed in the same facility.
Michigan’s legislature has not moved at all in the two years since the ruling, why?
They stuck up against the deep state who desires continued unfettered USE of the databases.
There is no way to leave a message so I hit 1 and spoke to the poor lady accepting spiritual request calls. She was taken aback when I said, “I wish to leave a message for Mr. Franklin Graham. He should get some education before wanting to kill people.” I had to repeat it. The poor woman was flabbergasted. I bet she is on a rotating list to receive calls for spiritual guidance (that probably usually ends with a request for a donation).
As a recently ordained minister I have different view on the registry and on the death penalty. This video message puts things into perspective:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nK6O5-3pfKc&t=6s
It appears to me that Rev. Graham hasn’t read his bible. Yes that we are all sinners, to look at a woman with lust is just as sinful as the act of adultery…He would also know that We are all saved by Grace. Not some, but all who choose to accept that gift of grace.
I think he also forgot about the story of Joseph, who was accused of rape. There are many sex offenders in the Bible, whom God used. Yep, I don’t think he had read his Bible. I am thinking he is more like one of the Pharisees that Christ rebuked.
I assume he believes God created pedophiles, because didn’t God create everyone? So, God created pedophiles just to be killed. Sounds like Mr. Graham is crazy, not misinformed.
I agree that the terms are not synonymous, but we should be specific in our calling pedophilia a disease and say that is a disease that people would like to be cured of. If we are going to compare it to cancer we should be fighting just as hard to find a “cure”. Many Christians hear it called a disease, and think that is just us saying that it is ok to be this way, and at some point in the near future when that is acceptable, there will be a push for “if they are born this way, why should it be wrong”. They remember when being gay or transgender was a disease “just like cancer” but now they are celebrated. My point is not that being gay or transgender is bad, my point is that we should try to understand where people, who are so misinformed are coming from, and then work to alleviate those fears and show them the truth.
The good news is it was hard to find this info. The only place online I could see was to listen to the actual interview. Thankfully no other media, I think, has picked up on it.
You can download the recording here:
https://www.npr.org/podcasts/458929150/the-new-yorker-radio-hour?t=1536308837039
Skip to 10:25 for his comment: “I now believe that pedophiles need to be dealt with very harshly, I believe not only incarcerated, if they molest a child, I think, they would be probably accounted for the death penalty. You do not under any circumstances as an adult force yourself on a child. I mean that gets me mad.” (interviewer goes back to the family separation and immigration issue).
Consider the psychology and feeble spiritual state of American White Evangelical “Christians”. As their population shrinks, they have chosen to be driven by fear rather than follow the mandate God gave them, which is to reach out in love to others and change their hearts. Instead they prefer to use the easy way of using politics and law to force people to act in ways they want.
Today’s Evangelicals prefer to hide in their confortable bubbles of church activity. They are easy prey to be manipulated by politicians and Religious Parisees like Graham, clicking on the Donate Buttons and Sign Petition buttons in emails that scare them into isolation.
Someday White Evangelicals will experience a backlash for their extremist actions today. It will be interesting to hear their whining when they are on some kind of registry.
Biblical scholars estimate that Mary was 13, 14 tops when she gave birth to Baby Jesus. Making Joseph a pedophile / sex offender of the worst kind. Unless, of course, you think that the Bethlehem PD bought that whole Immaculate Conception tale. Yeah, right. He he.
Which makes one wonder if things went down in that manger because of residency restrictions or the cancellation of the family’s Airbnb account.
Regardless, the SCOTUS decided quite a while ago in Kennedy v Louisiana that capital punishment for offenses not resulting in (intended) death violate the 8th amendment (cruel and unusual punishment).
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kennedy_v._Louisiana
If this preacherman wants to violate the foundations of Christianity, fine. But he is not above the US Constitution. People like him are unamerican and should be stripped of their citizenship.
“An important question for society is why educated individuals, including but not limited to, ministers and judges feel comfortable making such outrageous statements in very public places. The answer may be that those who know the truth — that pedophilia is a medical diagnosis and not a crime — are afraid to speak out.”
One answer:
Psychological and Religious beliefs, do not require scientific scrutiny to be accepted as truths. Both of them
sprinkle enough facts into the mixture to confuse and persuade the gullible masses which allow unscrupulous people to reap the benefits, such as Graham.
I have witnessed members and former members of such communities speak out publicly but their voices are all but muted by the roar of the more popular drummers pandering to the basic emotions of the populous.
Personally, I believe the most important message that everyone should be broadcasting loud and clear is that most addictions, including sexual, gambling, alcohol, drugs, and etc may not be curable but they can be controlled.
Therefore those who are demonstrating their commitment to becoming a better person should be allowed to do so without any encumbrances. It would be the humane and the intelligent thing to do from my point of view.
I just called the ministry office, the intake official “was not aware of this interview” I gave her this website so they see it first hand. She, also ask me to contact Webmaster of billygraham.org, which, I will and keep you all posted.
Who else thinks this disparaging and hate-driven tirade by Graham Jr. was motivated by the decision not to file charges against Kevin Spacey???
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-da-declines-spacey-seagal-20180904-story.html
I’ve not seen any evidence to indicate Spacey was an influence at all. The Catholic Church scandal is a more likely a source of the resentment, but does he say so? Competing religions too.
I don’t recall the Graham comments being made when he was defending Roy Moore…
Evangelicals simply put, are what’s wrong with this country.
It was strange how Graham just drop that topic out of no where. Was God trying to expose some something about him deep within?
I sent this message to Franklin Graham: I listened to Franklin Graham’s radio interview on The New Yorker Radio Hour and would like to make a comment. I am the mother of an incarcerated son, who is serving time for molesting a child. I am very alarmed by Graham’s blanket statement about pedophiles deserving the death penalty. I have been praying for my son for many years, as he too was the child victim of a pedophile family member. To my horror, he grew up to become a perpetrator of the same thing of which he was a victim. Interestingly, the person who molested my son was also molested as a child by a trusted family acquaintance. There is so much I could say about Mr. Graham’s comments, but let me at least say this…please, please, please don’t make blanket statements about any class of people deserving to be executed. Hearing you say that pierced my already agonized heart. If you believe people can change, why would you want to kill my son before he has a chance to change?
Hmm the bible I read is pretty clear…. John chapter 8 verse 11 states ““Neither do I condemn you. Go and sin no more”
Perhaps Franklin Graham should get out of the religion business. He is clearly not “christian” material. People make mistakes. They are not the sum total of the worst thing they’ve ever done. Church is for the fallen, the down-trodden, those who need salvation more than most. But Mr. Graham would rather kill people than reach out to them. He would rather have a congregation of perfect people. What, then, is the point?
I have to wonder, does he know what a pedophile is? This isn’t a blanket term to cover all sex offenders. Also, pedophilia is a disorder, not a crime. So, he wants to execute ill people. How christian of him.
First of all we all need to remember the purpose of religion.
Control.
Religion has always been a means of control over groups of people. This can be seen through ALL the civilizations that have been made up of human beings. Human beings are opportunists and when the opportunity is so great they are likely to become ‘not nice’ and take advantage. This is what the major and very large organized religions have done over centuries of indoctrination of their congregations.
This is not an insult to the belief in a higher power at all, but only to those that wish to control others, abuse the power that is granted to them as leaders by others, and those that have used the teachings of their chosen religion to inflict harm, start wars, or terrorism in the name of their ‘God’.
Religion/Spirituality is based far more in one’s self than in some pulpit with some self-appointed religious leader that may or may not have gotten there by honest means.
The petty discussions I see here get so mired down in the religion that they don’t see this for what it is, a people issue, religion is only one catalyst in the major problem which is the people in general. Their unwillingness to see beyond their own small world of experiences, afraid to look outside their all to familiar box, and their obstinance when presented with facts that contradict their own belief. This kind of closed mindedness is what has started some of the worst human atrocities ever recorded in human history.
https://yournewswire.com/trump-pedophiles-deserve-death-penalty/
Trump said the same thing..
Donald J. Trump
✔
@realDonaldTrump
Got to do something about these missing chidlren grabbed by the perverts. Too many incidents–fast trial, death penalty.
Wow, I just listened to this guy on the Bew Yorker podcast. Please excuse me while I go vomit! 🤮