{"id":12957,"date":"2018-01-24T13:23:59","date_gmt":"2018-01-24T18:23:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/?p=12957"},"modified":"2018-01-24T13:25:33","modified_gmt":"2018-01-24T18:25:33","slug":"netflixs-the-crown-shares-billy-grahams-real-life-friendship-with-queen-elizabeth-ii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/idolchatter\/2018\/01\/netflixs-the-crown-shares-billy-grahams-real-life-friendship-with-queen-elizabeth-ii.html","title":{"rendered":"Netflix\u2019s \u201cThe Crown\u201d Shares Billy Graham\u2019s Real Life Friendship with Queen Elizabeth II"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"queen-1024x683\"<\/a>
Billy Graham with Queen Elizabeth II in 1989.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Season two of the hit Netflix series \u201cThe Crown\u201d features Queen Elizabeth II with many famous visitors, including the Kennedys to former King Edward VIII. However one of the most interesting and meaningful cameos comes from the American evangelical Reverend Billy Graham.<\/p>\n

During the sixth episode, the Queen is captivated while watching Graham\u2019s sermon on television with the Queen Mother. She becomes completely enchanted by the young preacher. The Queen invites Graham to give a sermon in Windsor Chapel and then hosts him for lunch at the palace. They later share a few poignant chats about the Queen\u2019s desire to be a \u201csimple Christian\u201d and her struggles with forgiveness. In season one, Elizabeth’s role as the leader of the Anglican church impeded her sister’s marriage to Peter Townsend, but this is the first time the show has delved into her faith.<\/p>\n

“The Billy Graham episode is about Elizabeth wanting to deepen her Christianity,\u201d shows creator Peter Morgan told Vanity Fair. \u201cShe stops reflecting on forgiveness as a central tenant of Christianity at precisely the time that she\u2019s asked whether she can or can\u2019t forgive her uncle for [meeting with Nazis and a general inclination toward appeasement]. The two story themes dovetail quite nicely. It\u2019s the best bit of writing in the season.\u201d<\/p>\n

The pair shares a special friendship in real life, as well. Graham, now 99 years old, has spoken out about his friendship with the Queen before, detailing their meetings in his autobiography Just As I Am<\/em>. Whenever Graham came to the U.K., the Queen would invite him to preach, and when she traveled to the U.S., she would often visit him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI believe one reason for the Queen\u2019s spiritual interest was the warm faith of her mother, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n

\u201cI always found her very interested in the Bible and its message,\u201d he continued. \u201cAfter preaching at Windsor one Sunday, I was sitting next to the Queen at lunch. I told her I had been undecided until the last minute about my choice of sermon and had almost preached on the healing of the crippled man in John 5. Her eyes sparkled and she bubbled over with enthusiasm, as she could do on occasion. \u2018I wish you had!\u2019 she exclaimed. \u2018That is my favorite story.\u2019”<\/p>\n

As head of the Church of England, the Queen has never hidden her strong Christian faith, but it is rare for royalty to speak openly about their religious beliefs.<\/p>\n

“Her official position has prevented her from openly endorsing our Crusade meetings. But by welcoming us and having me preach on several occasions to the royal family at Windsor and Sandringham, she has gone out of her way to be quietly supportive of our mission,” he wrote.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe has always been deeply religious,\u201d Robert Lacey, who is the show\u2019s historical consultant and author of The Crown: The Official Companion<\/em>, told PEOPLE. \u201cShe was close to the Rev. Billy Graham in his prime…Her Christian faith is fundamental to her in an old-time evangelical way, deriving from the example of her mother, who knelt at her bedside every night to say her prayers. It is said that the Queen does the same.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Season two of the hit Netflix series \u201cThe Crown\u201d features Queen Elizabeth II with many famous visitors, including the Kennedys to former King Edward VIII. However one of the most interesting and meaningful cameos comes from the American evangelical Reverend Billy Graham. During the sixth episode, the Queen is captivated while watching Graham\u2019s sermon on…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":600,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6,7,1],"tags":[1633,2541,3602,3601],"class_list":["post-12957","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-celebrities","category-entertainment","category-television","tag-billy-graham","tag-netflix","tag-queen-elizabeth-ii","tag-the-crown"],"yoast_head":"\nNetflix\u2019s \u201cThe Crown\u201d Shares Billy Graham\u2019s Real Life Friendship with Queen Elizabeth II<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The popular TV series on Netflix, "The Crown", touches on the real friendship that was shared between Billy Graham and Queen Elizabeth II.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, 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