franklin graham god loves you tour york pa

Franklin Graham brings ‘God Loves You Tour’ to York Expo

• Published: Sep. 25, 2022, 8:38 p.m.

Franklin Graham, president and CEO of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, was greeted by more than 9,000 people Sunday at York Expo.

• Paul Vigna | [email protected]

Franklin Graham brought his “God Loves You Tour” to the York Expo Center on Sunday where he was welcomed by more than 9,200 spectators.

“God loves you. If you don’t remember anything else — remember God loves you,” Graham, president and CEO of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, told the crowd.

More than 190 churches in the York area partnered with this event, and more than 970 churches across all six cities are supporting the 1,000-mile “God Loves You Tour,” according to a press release from the organization.

Scheduled to perform on tour are the Newsboys, who have had 33 No. 1 radio hits, four Grammy nominations and two American Music Award nominations; Spanish-speaking Christian artist Marcos Witt, who has received five Latin Grammys and two Billboard awards; and award-winning musician Dennis Agajanian.

After stopping in Allentown on Saturday and York on Sunday, the tour will continue to the following destinations:

• Youngstown, Ohio (Tuesday)
• Flint, Michigan (Thursday)
• Waukesha, Wisconsin (Oct. 1)
• Rochester, Minnesota (Oct. 2)

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Evangelist Franklin Graham bringing his tour to York

Nationally known and sometimes controversial evangelist Franklin Graham is bringing his tour to York County.

Graham, son of the late evangelist Billy Graham, will speak as part of his "God Loves You" tour at the York Expo Center on Sunday.

The tour, set to begin Saturday in Allentown, will feature music from Christian performing artists, including Newsboys, as well as remarks from Graham. Other tour destinations include Youngstown, Ohio; Flint, Michigan; Waukesha, Wisconsin; and Rochester, Minnesota.

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Earlier this year , Graham toured the United Kingdom after previous efforts in 2020 were opposed by LGBTQ activists, petitions and outcry over Graham's past comments calling homosexuality a sin.

Graham also came under fire in 2021 when an Ohio woman claimed the minister, who had been counseling her, encouraged her to reconcile with her allegedly abusive husband.

And thousands of Christians signed a petition in early 2021 demanding Graham be dropped as president of the Samaritan’s Purse aid organization and as CEO of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association for supporting Donald Trump's false claim that the 2020 election was stolen from him

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The York Expo Center event is free and open to the public.

— Reach Matt Enright via email at [email protected] or via Twitter at @Matthew_Enright. 

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Thank you for your interest in U.S. Franklin Graham God Loves You Tour 2022 . You’ll find everything you need to cover the Tour on this page, including event details, media contact information, downloadable high-res photos and b-roll, as well as other helpful links.

Press Release

Franklin graham launches god loves you tour 2022 in allentown.

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Aug. 25, 2022 — Franklin Graham is sharing a message of God’s love in six cities stretching across 1,000 miles this fall, and to kick off the opening night of the five-state tour, he’s holding an evening of music and hope in Allentown. MORE…

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Franklin Graham coming to York Sunday. A Christian organization says the tour is 'unholy'

Franklin Graham’s “God Loves You” tour starts in Pennsylvania Saturday, but a Christian organization is asking event organizers in York and Allentown to refuse what it’s calling a partisan and “unholy” event targeted at key swing states just six weeks before the mid-term elections.

Faithful America, an online Christian, grassroots organization, has 17,000 signatures on a petition that asks event organizers to refuse the tour and Graham’s “hateful rhetoric, anti-democracy misinformation, and distortion of the Christian faith.”

The tour kicks off in Allentown Saturday, then heads to York Expo Center on Sunday . Attempts to reach Expo Center Executive Director Bryan Blair on Friday and Monday were unsuccessful.

Graham, son of the late world-renowned evangelist Billy Graham, leads religious tours like this one as well as running the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and the highly successful philanthropy Samaritan’s Purse, a disaster relief and humanitarian organization with a budget of more than $700 million.

“He has the humanitarian work, his father’s legacy and these evangelistic tours that look like his dad’s, and they’re kind of used as a smokescreen to help him spread his anti-gay and now anti-democracy agenda that really hurts people. It makes him one of the most insidious political operators in the country,” said the Rev. Nathan Empsall, executive director of Faithful America. Empsall would not provide the list of signatures to the petition because the signers had not agreed to public disclosure of their names.

In a statement via email, Graham said: “Opposition like this is nothing new, and it doesn’t discourage me — because the opposition ultimately isn’t against me — it’s against what God says in the Bible. More than 885 churches have joined with us and are supporting the 'God Loves You' tour. I want people to know that God cares for them and has a plan for their lives. Everyone needs to hear this Good News. Those who oppose are welcome to come and hear the message for themselves.”

Empsall said: "That’s blasphemous. Franklin Graham is not God. There is one God, and that's not Franklin Graham."

Graham, who has moved into the political world in a way that his father never did, has been a strong supporter of former President Donald Trump. His father, a lifelong Democrat, promoted religious and political unity, attracting time with both Republican and Democratic presidents.

Franklin Graham recently drew fire for admonishing the FBI for entering Trump’s Mar-A-Lago home to retrieve classified documents, saying: "If they felt that he had something that belonged to the government, they certainly could have asked him and then he would have returned it."

One week after rioting at the U.S. Capitol, Graham posted a message on Facebook criticizing the 10 Republicans who voted for Trump’s impeachment, aligning them with the man who led to Jesus’ death, saying, “It makes you wonder what the thirty pieces of silver were that Speaker Pelosi promised for this betrayal.” Thirty pieces of silver was Judas’ price for betraying Jesus, according to the Bible.

According to Billy Graham biographer Grant Wacker , Franklin Graham “has politicized the message in a way that his father, at least in his later years, would find abhorrent, and that aspect of Franklin Graham’s work will harm the legacy.”

Empsall said the political rhetoric has escalated to the point that the FBI and other government agencies are being threatened.

“It’s the time to be decrying violence and following the prince of peace: Jesus,” he said.

Kim Strong can be reached at [email protected].

Franklin Graham God Loves You Tour

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Franklin graham announces the dates for his "god loves you" tour.

Evangelist, social activist, author and preacher Franklin Graham announces that he will be embarking on the God Loves You Tour this fall. Graham will be speaking in 6 cities in the U.S.. In each meeting, he will share a message from the Word of God. Meanwhile Newsboys, Marcos Witt and Dennis Agajanian will be providing the music in selected cities. All seats are FREE.  

Graham writes, "I hope you'll mark your calendars and make plans to come. SHARE this with your family and friends-and pray for God to work in a mighty way as the Gospel is proclaimed." September 24: Allentown, PA September 25: York, PA September 27: Youngstown, OH September 29: Flint, MI October 1: Waukesha, WI October 2: Rochester, MN 

Franklin was elected to the Board of Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) in 1979 and conducted his first evangelistic event in 1989. Since then, Graham has proclaimed the Gospel in 49 countries and all 50 states. He succeeded his father as BGEA president in 2000.

Through his work with the BGEA and Samaritan's Purse, Graham has been instrumental in helping people affected by crises including the 9/11 terrorist attacks, wars in Iraq and South Sudan, the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, and disasters including earthquakes in Haiti, Indonesia, and Japan to hurricanes in the Caribbean and the United States. Franklin has also been instrumental in bringing critical medical care to patients during the COVID-19 global pandemic, including response efforts in Italy, the Bahamas, and New York City. He has met privately with six U.S. presidents as well as world leaders from Europe, Africa, Asia, Russia, and Latin America.

As a speaker and author, Graham addresses current moral and social issues, calling Christians to stand for Biblical values and challenging them to make a difference in the world for the sake of the Gospel. He is editor-in-chief of the BGEA's Decision magazine, "The Evangelical Voice for Today."

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God Loves You 2022 Tour With Franklin Graham, Newsboys, Marcos Witt, Dennis Agajanian 9/24 Allentown Fairgrounds

24 september 2022 @ 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm.

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A message of hope.

In 2024, Franklin Graham is hitting the road again to bring the Good News to the southern United States border. Working alongside local pastors, churches, and volunteers, the God Loves You Frontera Tour will feature live music in English and Spanish and boldly share the Name of Jesus in 10 cities from Texas to California. All 10 stops will include a live Spanish interpretation from the stage.

“I can’t think of another region of the nation that needs hope more than this one. Everyone along the border is overwhelmed—churches, law enforcement, residents, as well as the people coming into our country. I’m coming to the border to tell everyone about God’s Son, Jesus Christ, and how He can make a difference in our lives. ”

—Franklin Graham

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Wait for franklin graham’s ‘god loves you’ tour ends for youngstown.

YOUNGSTOWN — Franklin Graham has never had a tour in the Mahoning Valley and has been waiting to bring his “God Loves You” message here.

After being delayed last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association’s tour will be in Youngstown on Sept. 27.

The free event will begin at 7 p.m. at the Youngstown Foundation Amphitheatre, 201 S. Phelps St. Music will begin at 6:30 p.m. Those attending can bring their own lawn chairs or blankets.

Steve Rhoads, vice president of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, said Youngstown was chosen among cities to visit this fall for the tour. Other cities are Allentown., Pa., on Sept. 24; York, Pa., on Sept. 25; Flint, Mich., on Sept. 29; Waukesha, Wis., on Oct. 1; and Rochester, Minn., on Oct. 2.

The tour to the “Heartland of America” will give attendees an opportunity to know Jesus and encourage believers in their faith, its organizers say.

The evening will feature music by guest artists, including those who have been part of the tour in past years, and a message from Franklin Graham, son of the late evangelist Billy Graham, and president and CEO of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association.

Rhoads said the message will be a “A Night of Hope” for people who have faced many challenges in recent years with the COVID-19 pandemic, which created isolation and depression for many people.

“Many families had faced challenges,” Rhoads said.

Continuing the lifelong work of Billy Graham, the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association supports and extends the evangelistic calling and ministry of Franklin Graham by proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus to the public.

“It’s a free event for families. There will be a special message of hope and live music,” Rhoads said.

“Even if someone has uncertainty, we will let each person know God loves them. That is the message in the Bible. That is the message of the tour,” he said.

Rhoads said Youngstown is one city that is considered to be in the “heartland of America.”

“We are excited to be able to have the tour after what everyone has faced with COVID,” he said.

Rhoads said one of the last tours done before COVID-19 was a tour of six cities in Florida in 2019.

The tours had begun in 2016 and included a stop in most of the capitals of each state in the country during one year, he said.

A tour of cities along Route 66 in parts of the country also took place.

Graham’s plan for a tour of Pennsylvania and Ohio was on hold because of the pandemic.

“Many of the tours are for places to reach those where there is a need. We have never had a tour in Youngstown or in this part of the country,” Rhoads said.

BIG CROWD EXPECTED

Jordan Ryan, executive director of JAC Management, which manages the Covelli Centre and the Youngstown Foundation Amphitheatre, said a large crowd is expected for the event. Though he noted there have been well-attended, large-scale religious concerts and services at the amphitheater before, this may be the one that brings in the largest crowd.

“We are expecting a near full-capacity crowd for this. We have had many events that have brought in large crowds but this may be the biggest religious event we have held — which is good,” Ryan said.

Ryan said the amphitheater can hold 4,800 people. He said in the event there are more than 4,800, plans by the Graham Foundation are to have large mobile LED screens set up so people can watch outside the amphitheater.

The event will take place rain or shine. Ryan said unless there is “dangerous weather” such as a thunderstorm with lightning that would put people’s safety at risk, the event will go on. If there is severe weather, Ryan said JAC will speak with Graham Foundation representatives on whether to reschedule.

GRAHAM’S MESSAGE

Graham, in a statement, said “Through the upcoming ‘God Loves You’ tour, I want to join churches, like yours, to proclaim this Good News and tell people across the your community about the hope found only in Jesus Christ. … Together we can reach our communities with the power of the Gospel.”

Graham said that “people across America are hurting. Many are struggling financially and countess others are adrift in life without purpose. Hardships often leave many wondering where God is — and if he’s real and does he ever care?’

He continued: ”Jesus Christ is the only one who can heal hearts , change lives and bring lasting peace.”

The three musical performances are by the Newsboys, and Christian artists Marcos Wit and Dennis Agajanian.

Rhoads said Agajanian has been with the tour before as have the Newsboys, while Witt is new.

Rhoads said people who have attended the tours in various places across the country have remarked that “it was a real eye opener” and enjoyable.

“Many people do not know what to expect and then attend and are very glad they did. They tell me they were glad they were able to be there. People feel there is a sense there is more to life after being here. There is sense of peace and joy for families who get to really know God,” he said.

He encourages those planning to attend to arrive early.

“There will be a large crowd there. So people may want to get there as early as possible and not wait too close to the starting time,” Rhoads said.

He said the tour brings people of different age groups and generations together.

”People are seeking answers and comfort. There is interest from people to be there and hear the message,” Rhoads said.

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