| date: | Tue, Mar 24, 2015 at 11:44 PM | ||
| subject: | Fwd: FW: Einstein and Billy Graham |
Subject: Einstein and Billy Graham
Billy Graham is now 96 years-old with Parkinson's disease. In January 2000 leaders in Charlotte, North Carolina
invited their favorite son, Billy Graham, to a luncheon in his honor. Billy initially hesitated to accept the invitation because he struggles with Parkinson's disease. But the Charlotte leaders said, 'We don't expect a major address. Just come and let us honor you.' So he agreed. After wonderful things were said about him, Dr. Graham stepped to the rostrum, looked at the crowd, and said, "I'm reminded today of Albert Einstein, the great physicist who this month has been honored by Time magazine as the Man of the Century. Einstein was once traveling from Princeton on a train when the conductor came down the aisle, punching the tickets of every passenger. When he came to Einstein, Einstein reached in his vest pocket. He couldn't find his ticket, so he reached in his trouser pockets. It wasn't there. He looked in his briefcase but couldn't find it. Then he looked in the seat beside him. He still couldn't find it. "The conductor said, 'Dr. Einstein, I know who you are. We all know who you are. I'm sure you bought a ticket. Don't worry about it.'
Einstein nodded appreciatively. The conductor continued down the aisle punching tickets. As he was ready to move to the next car, he turned around and saw the great physicist down on his hands and knees looking under his seat for his ticket.
"The conductor rushed back and said, 'Dr. Einstein, Dr. Einstein, don't worry, I know who you are; no problem. You don't need a ticket. I'm sure you bought one.' Einstein looked at him and said, "Young man, I too, know who I am. What I don't know is where I'm going.”
Having said that, Billy Graham continued, "See the suit I'm wearing? It's a brand new suit. My children, and my grandchildren are telling me I've gotten a little slovenly in my old age. I used to be a bit more fastidious. So I
went out and bought a new suit for this luncheon and one more occasion. You know what that occasion is? This is the suit in which I'll be buried. But when you hear I'm dead, I don't want you to immediately remember the suit I'm wearing. I want you to remember this: I not only know who I am. I also know where I'm going. May your troubles be less, your blessings more, and may nothing but happiness, come through your door. Life without God is like an un-sharpened pencil - it has no point."
"Amen and peace, my friends. And may each of us have lived our lives so that when our ticket is punched, we don't have to worry about where we are going."
Even at his age and with Parkinson's Disease, he could still deliver a powerful sermon !
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11 comments:
He's now 96 years old. OK. He wasn't 96 years old in 2000, yet this apocryphal story attempts to give the impression that it's really remarkable that a man who is 96 years old and feeble now could have given an articulate speech fifteen years ago, when he was neither 96 nor feeble.
And no, Billy Graham doesn't have the slightest clue where he's going. Neither does anyone else.
If god is omnipresent, then life without god is impossible. So stop worrying about the scary atheists.
Um... what?
He lost a ticket and had a suit for his funeral or... huh?
Einstein didn't know where he was going? Yeah, right.
And btw, this does a dis-service to those struggling with Parkinsons. I have a friend with early onset Parkinsons, and he continues to work full-time and is quite articulate. Does RWD realize that Parkinsons is not the same thing as dementia or Alzheimers?
How Billy Graham's alleged Parkinsons relates to Einstein on a train is one of those WTF moments.
Meh.
@fershitz,
The only thing I can think of is that they believe it's miraculous that BG could deliver such a "powerful sermon" with Parkinson's. However you already addressed the fact it's not like dementia so they sort of missed the boat if that's the intent of even bringing up the Parkinson's.
It's meant to be a feel-good story I guess and if some gain some feeling of comfort from it, so be it.
It's meant to be a feel-good story I guess and if some gain some feeling of comfort from it, so be it.
Feel good stories have a place, but this one is filled with lots of false and/or mis-information. At least write a feel good story that's reasonably factually correct, not totally made up nonsense.
That's why RWD is such a noodlehead - fact free nonsense like this does no one any good, imo.
@hooray,
True. I didn't make reference to there being any factual information it it because let's face it...it's a RWD forward so I figured that was moot. A lot of feel-good stories are made up...just sayin.
Billy Graham may have Parkinson's, but MRWD probably has some dementia if he thinks that this silly attempt to show superiority of religion over science is even remotely inspiring.
I actually can belive the fact that Einstein was a little lost. I have read in various reputable publications that although he was a genius, he had difficulty with directions and had even gotten lost riding his bicycle home on a few occasions.
Indeed, losing one's sense of direction on a regular basis is an early sign of the onset of stage 1 Alzheimer's disease.
Einstein, although being considered a "genius" by many, couldn't walk and chew gum at the same time.
Mike Hawk
"Billy Graham is now 96 years-old with Parkinson's disease."
Why doesn't the Jebus cure him? And what did he do to piss the Jebus off?
A.J.
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