A memorial service for healing
evangelist Oral Roberts will be held Monday at the Mabee Center in Tulsa, Okla.
The service will be broadcast live online beginning at 2 p.m. Central.
In the hours after Roberts died
Tuesday of complications from pneumonia, Christian leaders began reflecting on
his legacy, calling him a pioneer in televangelism and healing ministry whose
impact transcended generations.
Evangelist Billy Graham said Roberts was a longtime friend whom he invited to speak at a conference in Berlin in the 1960s.
“I loved him as a brother,” Graham said. “Just three weeks
ago, I was privileged to talk to Oral over the telephone. During the short
conversation, he said to me that he was near the end of his life’s journey. I
look forward to the day that I will see Oral and Evelyn Roberts again in
heaven—our eternal home.”
Roberts rose from humble beginnings to become one of the
most influential Christian leaders of the 20th century. Before his life ended,
he had written more than 120 books, pioneered American television evangelism,
bolstered belief in divine healing and founded his Oral Roberts University, which
is now one of the nation’s leading Pentecostal colleges. (Read about Oral Roberts’ legacy.)
Trinity
Broadcasting Network President Paul Crouch said Roberts was an enthusiastic
supporter of the broadcast ministry he and his wife, Jan, founded.
“We … will forever treasure the messages of inspiration he gave to Jan and me
personally as he encouraged us to expand the vision and outreach of TBN to
reach the whole wide world,” Crouch said. “His prayers and wisdom helped
strengthen our faith in times of trial and difficulty.”
Evangelist
Benny Hinn said Roberts was “a true pioneer for the gospel of Jesus Christ.”
“Only heaven will reveal how many hearts he has
pointed toward heaven, how many homes have been revolutionized through
his
seed-faith teaching, and how many ears have heard his faith-filled
phrase, ‘Expect a miracle!'” Hinn wrote in a statement on his Web site
Tuesday. “God has used him to open doors that were once
considered closed to the miracle-working power of the gospel, and
wherever I
travel, I have been ever thankful for the trail he blazed.”
Bishop T.D. Jakes, pastor of The Potter’s House in Dallas, said Roberts
was “a forerunner of Christian ministry whose message of
total healing transcended the generations.”
“His tents no longer flap in the wind; today they are pulled up by the
stakes leaving only the echo of his distinct voice reverberating in the hearts
of all those who admired him,” Jakes said. “The world has lost a treasured gift
from God embodied in the man Oral Roberts.”
To read more Christian leaders’ reflections on Oral Roberts,
and to view video clips of him speaking as well as a photo gallery, visit Charisma‘s
special tribute.
