'Stand for the Gospel': Franklin Graham Launches Group to Defend Religious Liberty in UK

The Rev. Franklin Graham announced over the weekend the launch of the Billy Graham Defense Fund, a legal support group advocating for Christians facing religious freedom challenges in the United Kingdom.

“There are so many problems in our society, and people are looking for hope,” Graham said in a statement shared with CBN News. “We know that true hope can only be found in Jesus Christ, so we need to support one another in getting the Good News of Jesus Christ out — whatever it takes.”

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“It is my prayer that this will encourage Christians across the U.K. to keep living out and sharing their faith freely and boldly,” the evangelist added.

The announcement came as Graham was in Glasgow as part of his God Loves You Tour. Hundreds of people made decisions to follow Jesus Christ during his outreach there:

He further stated, “We took a stand for the Gospel and for freedom of religion in the U.K. Now we’re going to use these funds that came from this battle against cancel culture to help other Christians who may be threatened into silence.”

Graham is referring to the opposition the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association faced when the ministry first launched the God Loves You Tour, originally scheduled for 2020.

The BGEA took legal action after venues in the U.K. began canceling Graham’s planned events. And in the fall of 2022, as CBN News reported, Graham won a “clear victory” when a court in Scotland ruled Graham and the BGEA were discriminated against after the Scottish Event Campus (SEC), the largest event space in the country, canceled a 2020 ministry gathering. Ultimately, the court awarded $109,927 in damages to the U.S.-based ministry, which maintains an office in Coventry, England.

That was just one of a host of rulings that all ended favorably for Graham and the BGEA.

In total, the BGEA received nearly $650,000 from its legal battles, which started in 2018, when it was unlawfully forced to remove bus advertisements in Blackpool, England, promoting another evangelistic event.

Graham is slated to return to the U.K. next year for another tour beginning in London.

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