Evangelist Franklin Graham believes God possibly allowed Donald Trump to win the 2016 presidential election to help protect America, telling Religion News Service his take on the matter after it was announced that Graham will take part in the Jan. 20 inauguration.
“I think maybe God has allowed Donald Trump to win this election to protect this nation for the next few years by giving maybe an opportunity to have some good judges,” Graham told the outlet.
While the evangelist won’t be making any cultural or political comments during the inaugural event, Graham, who heads relief group Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, will be reading a scripture of his choice during the event. So far, he hasn’t revealed what those verses will be.
“You want it to be meaningful not only to your president-elect, but you want it to be meaningful also to the nation,” Graham told Religion News Service. “I’m taking time just to pray and ask God to give me wisdom and guidance because it’s a responsibility that I take very seriously.”
In the end, Graham said he had a sense before the election that God was at work in the country, making this assessment based on the many people who came to watch him speak at state capitols across America on his “Decision America” tour. While Graham hasn’t endorsed Trump, he has made it known that some of Trump’s views align with his own.
“Even though Donald Trump has some rough edges, there’s something inside of him that desires the counsel of Christian men and women, and I don’t know one Christian on Hillary Clinton’s team,” he said.
Graham previously told Faithwire in the days leading up to the 2016 presidential election that the showdown between Trump and Democratic rival Hillary Clinton was really “about the Supreme Court.”
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“It’s not about Donald Trump’s bad behavior and his bad mouth,” he said. “It’s not about Hillary Clinton’s lies and deceit and money laundering through the Clinton foundation.”
He continued, “This is about the Supreme Court, and you have to decide who do you trust to appoint the Supreme Court justices … because the Supreme Court is going to affect our life and my grandchildren’s lives.”
Graham also warned that he believes America is “in a crisis,” blaming Christians for not going to the polls in high enough numbers to help stem culture’s changing tides.
Find out more about some of the other faith leaders who will join Graham at the inauguration here.
(H/T: Religion News Service)
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