Billy Graham’s New Evangelical Manhood

For many American evangelicals, Graham modeled how to be a man in the rapidly changing world of modern America. This chapter contends that Billy Graham’s success as an evangelist derived partly from his personification of evangelical manhood in three distinct ways. First, he cultivated a chaste sexual appeal, an image of an off-limits sexual icon. Second, he retained certainty about his faith, combining the surety required of conservative Protestants with the charisma and good looks demanded by a celebrity-obsessed culture. Finally, he embraced modest changes in his gender politics and his views on nuclear disarmament, displaying flexibility that kept him in good graces with a large swath of American Christians. As Americans grappled with feminism, the sexual revolution, and the threat of nuclear annihilation, Graham provided an example of how a man could navigate through a shifting cultural landscape while remaining anchored to the rock.