The Jerusalem of the East: When Billy Graham Visited Pyongyang
In the fall of 1991, Rev. Billy Graham, the American evangelist, received an unexpected invitation from Pyongyang. “It will be a great joy to welcome you to our church,” read the letter, which was sent by leaders of North Korea’s
In the autumn of 1991, Billy Graham, the renowned American evangelist, received an unexpected invitation from Pyongyang. The letter was sent by leaders of North Korea's state-sanctioned Protestant and Catholic churches, extending an invitation for the septuagenarian Graham to visit their church. At the time, Graham had preached the Christian gospel to an estimated 215 million people during his evangelistic "crusades," reaching countless more through his televised rallies.
He had the ear of multiple U.S. presidents dating back to Harry S. Truman, and was widely regarded as embodying twentieth-century American Christianity.
Graham, known as "America's Pastor," was accustomed to preaching in unusual settings, including trips to the Soviet Union during the Cold War and to countries behind the Iron Curtain. Regardless of political ideology, history, war, famine, genocide, or other hardships, Graham's message of personal salvation remained consistent: that God had sent his only begotten son for the redemption of humankind.
The invitation from Pyongyang was peculiar, as North Korea had not demonstrated any signs of political change since its emergence as a satellite state of Moscow after World War II. Kim Il Sung, the founder of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, had ruled without interruption for nearly half a century, displaying no signs of ill health or challenges to his rule.
Unlike other Communist bloc countries that had undergone revolutions in the aftermath of the Berlin Wall's fall, North Korea remained steadfast under Kim Il Sung's leadership.
Kim Il Sung's power and cult of personality appeared to only strengthen over time. Portraits of him adorned homes and classrooms, and he was depicted as a god in daily photographs on the front page of the country's main party newspaper. Citizens even pinned lapel badges featuring his image over their hearts. Foreign visitors were shocked to learn that Kim Il Sung was revered as a divine figure, the "Sun of Korea."
State media regularly celebrated citizens who sacrificed their lives to protect Kim's images, even in the face of natural disasters.
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