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BILLY GRAHAM: Mr. Peterson,
Mr. Moses, General Potter, ladies and gentlemen. It is a great
privilege for us here today. We could have had many more people
attending this groundbreaking ceremony but we planned it once
before and because of illness I was not able to come. We deeply
appreciate your coming and we thank Mr. Moses, and the officials
at this great World's Fair, for inviting us to participate.
We are living in a world of
continuing crises and tension. Millions of people of all races
are consciously or unconsciously searching for truth and reality.
The New York World's Fair will provide an unparalleled opportunity
for the Christian faith to present its message of peace and hope.
We have accepted the invitation of the World's Fair to build
an Evangelistic Pavilion where we can present the biblical message
with the evangelistic emphasis that has characterized our ministry
through the years. We do not intend to duplicate the effort of
others.
Our pavilion will be unique
in its simplicity; It
is our fervent prayer that people from all walks of life and
faiths will come, and will leave the pavilion profoundly impressed
and strengthened by the message of Christ. Our pavilion will
be unique in appearance; Mr. Edward Durell Stone has spared
no effort in making it an architectural jewel in the heart of
the greatest concentration of architectural designs in modern
history.
It will be unique in its
appeal; we intend
to minister to all races and all cultures. There will be various
rooms within the pavilion dedicated to nearly every part of the
world. As the millions of visitors pour through these gates in
1964 and 1965 to attend the greatest Fair in history, they will
be reminded of the moral and spiritual strengths that lie at
the foundation of this republic.
This pavilion will also be
a call to renew our faith in God, whether we be of Jewish, Catholic
or Protestant faith, or whatever religious affiliation. We believe
that man stands at the crossroads of eternity. A decision of
vast importance must soon be made by the human race. Will it
be the road of war and destruction, or the road to peace?
We are approaching the threshold
of a materialistic paradise on earth, created by science or by
an incomprehensible hell. We are hopeful that this pavilion will
make some small contribution toward helping the world choose
God and His road to peace. I have asked my long time friend Dr.
Stephen Olford, who is the minister of the Calvary Baptist Church
on 57th Street in Manhattan, if he will lead us in a prayer of
dedication for this pavilion.
DR. STEPHEN OLFORD: Almighty
God, Creator of all men, in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ
we thank Thee for all the circumstances that have combined to
bring about this solemn and happy occasion and for the significance
of that which we are about to do.
We thank Thee for the vision
Thou hast given to those who invited Dr. Graham to come to the
World's Fair. As we dedicate the ground for the building which
is to rise on this site, our prayer is that it may be a temple
of peace for those who are distressed; that it may be a pavilion
of salvation to those who are lost and need a Transforming Savior.
May it be a center of fellowship to those who have found no purpose
in life.
And so we pray Thee that Thou
wilt build this house. We thank Thee for the architects, for
those who are responsible for the organization, for all those
here who will be involved in conducting the meetings and the
films. Our prayer is: "Except the Lord build the house,
they labor but in vain to build it." We are asking Thy blessing
upon this ceremony, upon the building that is to arise and upon
the millions who will be touched through the outreach of this
ministry.
The Lord bless this building
in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
We dedicate everything to Thee. May Thy smile and favor be upon
the entire enterprise, from beginning to its completion. We ask
this in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord -- Amen. May the grace
of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship
of the Divine Spirit abide with us this day and forevermore.
Amen.
RICHARD PATTERSON: Ladies
and gentlemen, I should like to present for bows, two of Mr.
Moses' colleagues. The first is Edward Durell Stone, world-famous
architect of this pavilion. Mr. Stone.
The next colleague of our
president is General William Potter, former governor of the Panama
Canal Zone, and now executive vice president of the World's Fair.
General Potter.
And now I give you another
world figure, the Honorable Robert Moses.
ROBERT MOSES: Welcome, friends.
I suppose I have said over and over again and most of you have
heard that we regard this fair as a sort of "Olympics of
Progress." We want all of the nations of the world to bring
their best products here. This is not a diplomatic venture; it
is not a matter of protocol; it's a matter of friendship. Of
course high in the list of exhibitors are the religious organizations.
Now I've said previously that
there has been some criticism on whether we are going to have
a Coney Island at the Fair. We are not going to have anything
remotely like it. There will be amusements; a Fair has to have
well selected amusements.
Various religious organizations
are represented here. Yesterday we had a meeting with Cardinal
Spellman and his associates in connection with the Pieta and
the other exhibits in the Vatican Pavilion. The Protestant churches
are well represented. I am sorry to say that for reasons which
I am unable to fathom, there seems to be no exhibit of the State
of Israel.
I doubt whether anywhere there
is anybody who hasn't heard about Billy Graham, and we are delight
to have him here. He's got a good location and he's going to
attract a tremendous number of people. We shall do anything we
can to aid him in making a great success of this pavilion. All
I can say is that this is a great day in the history of the Fair.
Thank you.
RICHARD PATTERSON: Thank you,
Mr. President.
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