Local pastors praise 'a phenomenon'.

Byline: Randi Bjornstad The Register-Guard

Denomination aside, the same two words - `integrity' and `simplicity' - come up repeatedly when local pastors sum up the life and ministry of super-evangelist Billy Graham, who, because of age and ill health, began what may be his last big "crusade" Friday in New York City to usher people into the fold of Christianity.

"He's always been honest and integrity-filled - he's the real deal, not a fake" like some well-known evangelists who sullied their reputations by preaching one way and living another, said Terry Dawson, senior pastor at the Countryside Christian Fellowship. `He's been the most influential person (in American Christianity) in the past century - there's not even a close second.'

Graham's "moral uprightness" provides a much-needed example to everyone, regardless of religious affiliation, said Pastor Corey Zanotti of the East Side Baptist Church.

"He has been careful to protect his character - he's been married for many years to the same woman, and I've heard he is never alone with other women," Zanotti said. "His life matches his religion."

He's "a phenomenon," agreed Steve Overman, senior pastor at the Eugene Faith Center. "I have never heard of anything wrong in his life - he seems to be an honest guy who lives according to his principles."

Although not part of an evangelical tradition himself, Overman says he's seen Graham's TV crusades, watched interviews with the popular religious leader and has been affected by his ministry.

"He's always seemed to be a learner," Overman said. "If he hasn't studied something, he says he needs to learn about it. He's humble and open. And he always has kept to the same simple message, the straightforward gospel of Jesus Christ as he understands it. As a Christian leader myself, I've been touched by that."

Of course, Graham's piercing eyes, square jaw and thatch of thick, wavy hair undoubtedly contribute to his hold on both live and television audiences, but without the message, even those attributes wouldn't be enough to keep packing people into stadiums and glued to the TV, the ministers agree.

"I don't know that he's really all that charismatic," Dawson said. "I think it's just that he was willing to be obedient to what God called him to do, and he has never wavered from the same simple message, and people respond to that. You can see the passion in his eyes - there's a real transformation in men and women who choose to put their faith completely in God."

The pastors all describe Graham's brand of evangelism in different words, but Dawson summed it up neatly: `From him, people hear the `Good News' - the Gospel - that life isn't purposeless, it isn't empty, it isn't going nowhere,' he said. "They don't have to live a superficial, meaningless existence. They can give themselves to Jesus Christ, and they can have eternal life."

It's Graham's seeming lack of ego that endears him to Pastor Ron Rasmussen of the Garden Way Church.

"He's been friends with leaders all over the world, but he's always steered clear of being influenced by that," Rasmussen said. `He doesn't put himself in the way of his message - he doesn't say, `I say,' he says, `The Bible says.' '

Even for churches far from evangelical in their approach, Graham's ministry has been valuable, said the Rev. Ted Berktold of St. Mary's Episcopal Parish.

"Despite the differences in our faiths, whenever he had a crusade anywhere nearby, I was there," Berktold said. "He certainly awakened in many Episcopalians a renewed call to personal commitment."

After attending Graham's crusades or watching them on TV, many people who had fallen away from church attendance returned to the Episcopal church and probably to many others, Berktold said.

`Think about the sheer power of what (Graham) does,' he said. "Go into a small church with a few people singing quietly with their heads in their hymnals, and that's not very energizing. But get thousands of people in a stadium together with that music and that message - just like a football game in Autzen Stadium - and that's a real turn-on."

It could be a long time - if ever - before evangelism has another "star" of the stature of Graham, Berktold predicted.

"It's almost like following Elvis or the Beatles - how do you do that?" he said. `There probably will be someone like Billy Graham - maybe his son (Franklin) - but it won't be Billy Graham.'