The Letter

A MOMENTOUS CALL FROM THE GARDEN

When Jack Wyrtzen's letter came in May 1957, it was the last thing that I was expecting. Jack, you may remember, was the director of Word of Life Ministries in New York. As evangelists and radio broadcasters, Jack and I had a lot in common. We had become good friends while I was in New York, but I hadn't spoken to him for a long time, so I was pleasantly surprised to see his name in the left corner of the envelope.

   In his letter Jack explained that he had recently had breakfast with America's most prominent evangelist, Billy Graham. At that time Billy had just begun his massive New York crusade in Madison Square Garden. During his meeting with Jack, Billy lamented the fact that in the opening days of his crusade the crowds had been virtually all white. How could that be in a city as diverse as New York? The minority turnout had been dreadful, and Billy, who had pledged never to conduct another segregated crusade following the 1954

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Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka Supreme Court ruling against segregation in public schools, wanted to practice the social justice he had been espousing.

   Billy already had integrated his team with Akbar Abdul-Haqq, a gifted preacher from India, but now he wanted to add a black team member to his lineup — which he knew was a riskier proposition.

   "Do you know of any Negro evangelists whom we can add to our team?" Billy had asked, knowing Jack was firmly plugged into the New York Christian community. Implicit in his question was the idea that this Negro evangelist had to be someone who could transcend racial boundaries; someone whose theology was sound and whose approach was non-threatening; someone who understood the subtle intricacies, the manner and vernacular of white evangelical culture. In short, someone who was safe.

   It didn't take Jack long to submit his recommendation. "Billy, you need to get Howard Jones," he said.

   "I think I've read about him in Time magazine," Billy said. "Could you help me contact him?"

   And that is where I entered the picture.

   I was thrilled to receive the letter, because Wanda and I were planning a trip to New York anyway to visit our old church, Bethany Alliance, and share with them stories of our exciting campaign in Africa. I said to Wanda, "While we're there in New York, we should go to Madison Square Garden one night and listen to this man, Billy Graham."

   I contacted Billy's office and arranged a meeting with him for the night that we would be at the crusade. I had no clue at the time how significant and far-reaching that meeting would be.

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MEETING BILLY

   Returning to New York was a moving experience. We were able to catch up with our old friends and colleagues, plus we checked in on how the various ministries we'd left behind were doing. God, of course, was faithful. Bethany Church, Soldiers for Christ, and the Bible Society had continued to grow and prosper after our departure. It was a bittersweet visit. While we were happy to see our friends and the fruits of our work, we also felt a twinge of sadness that we were no longer there. Still, we knew God had moved us on for a reason. And our recent trip to Africa was a vivid indication of that.

   Wanda and I were privileged to attend one of the early meetings of the Madison Square Garden crusade. We sat in the arena taking in the marvelous sights and sounds. We enjoyed the inspiring praise songs of the crusade choir led by Billy's music director and emcee, Cliff Barrows, and we were blessed by the wonderful singing by Billy's longtime soloist George Beverly Shea. To hear Billy's preaching and see the tremendous crowd that came forward after his invitation to receive Jesus Christ as Savior was an unforgettable experience.

   When we arrived at the Garden, I had made it known to the crusade officials that I was present, and Grady Wilson, one of Billy's chief team members, came to me and said, "Howard, Billy would like to see you in his office after the conclusion of tonight's meeting."

   So Wanda and I were escorted to Billy's temporary New York headquarters, and there I saw him lounging in a chair, relaxing after that evening's understandably exhausting presentation. He jumped up to greet us, and I immediately was

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taken with how tall and handsome the man was. He walked over and gave me a big bear hug and warmly shook Wanda's hand.

   "God bless you, brother," he said in his distinctive North Carolinian drawl. "We've heard about your great meetings in Africa, and I am so happy you could come." He motioned for us to sit down and asked his assistants to bring us some water.

   "I want to tell you about the burden that is on my heart," Billy continued, as he returned to his chair. "We are having a fantastic crusade here in New York City. We had planned to go two weeks and are now into the fifth week of meetings. It just looks as if God wants us to go on. As you know, I don't like the fact that our crowds have been all white, and I want to integrate these meetings. But I don't know how to do it." He looked at me enthusiastically. "Would you be willing to come here and work with us for a few weeks to help us with this issue of integration?"

   My eyes lit up. I was frankly overwhelmed by such an incredible opportunity. But almost immediately, I thought of my parishioners at Smoot Memorial Church.

   "Billy," I said, "I am humbled by this tremendous invitation. But I have been away from my church for three-and-a-half months, and I don't know how they will react if I ask them to give me more time away from the church."

   He paused for a long moment, and then it was as if a light bulb went on in his mind. "Would it be all right if I wrote them a letter requesting your presence here?" he finally asked.

   "Well, sure," I said.

   We spent several minutes praying over the matter, and

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then he promised that he'd send the letter to us very soon. He hugged us, and we departed.

THE CHURCH VOTE

   As Wanda and I traveled back to Cleveland, we both remarked at how impressed we were with this man's sincerity and love and his passion to reach all people. We recalled the news report about the tense moment a few years earlier when Billy courageously tore down the ropes that separated the races at a Mississippi crusade and declared his intention to never hold segregated meetings again. What a bold and prophetic stand.

   In my heart, I was ecstatic about the possibility of helping Billy advance his work in New York. But my heart was torn. What about my people at Smoot Memorial?

   When I returned to Smoot's pulpit the next Sunday, I asked that all of our members remain in the sanctuary after the morning service.

   "I have some very important business that I want to discuss with you," I told them. Then I read the letter that Billy had addressed to the church. When I was finished, I said, "You can see here that Reverend Graham has asked me to join the team as his first Negro evangelist, to help him break down racial barriers at his New York crusade. It is true that I have been away three-and-a-half months, but I would like to go and work with Reverend Graham. Nevertheless, I have to bring this before the church, the board, and all of you. What is your pleasure?"

   I waited anxiously, not knowing how they would respond. Then, after a full thirty seconds, one of the chief men in the

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church stood up and said, "Well, speaking for myself and, I hope, on behalf of our church, I am just thrilled! I think as a church we ought to be honored that the world's great evangelist, Billy Graham, would invite our pastor to work with him in the New York crusade.

   "Now it's true that our pastor has been away for more than three months," the man continued, looking at the congregation, "but I am sure we can get some preachers to fill the pulpit while he is away. I would like to put forth a motion for the church to let Pastor Jones go to New York to do the work that God is calling him to do."

   Another member seconded the vote, and everyone agreed. The church voted unanimously to send me back to New York.

Chapter Twelve  ||  Table of Contents