Evangelist Will Graham Preaches the Hope of Christ in the East African Country of Tanzania

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Contact: Erik Ogren, 704-401-2117, eogren@bgea.org

CHARLOTTE, N.C., July 6, 2015 /Christian Newswire/ -- Evangelist Will Graham recently returned to Africa for the Arusha Love and Peace Celebration in the city of Arusha, Tanzania. Approximately 27,200 attended the three-day outreach, June 26-28, with more than 1,700 responding to the invitation to make a commitment to Jesus.

Graham consistently focused on the hope of Christ throughout the course of his messages at the Railway Ground, an outdoor field at the center of Arusha.

"It is Christ's resurrection that saved us and gives us hope. We can receive this hope as a gift," said Graham. "Salvation is not a deed or ritual. Salvation is a person, and that person is Jesus Christ."

Arusha is a major Tanzanian city with a population of more than 415,000. Located some 100 miles from the base of Mount Kilimanjaro, it is a popular tourist destination that serves as a starting point for both mountain expeditions and safaris.

Graham's Celebration in Arusha was his first outreach on the African continent since preaching to 21,000 over the course of three days in Kisumu, in neighboring Kenya, in June 2013.

Graham's grandfather, Billy Graham, spoke in Moshi, Tanzania (then called Tanganyika), 55 years ago as part of tour of African countries in early 1960. Approximately 40,000 attended the one-day event on Feb. 28, 1960, with 5,211 making a commitment to Christ following the message.

The Arusha Love and Peace Celebration was Graham's fourth outreach of 2015, following Celebrations in Tacloban and Cebu, Philippines, in March, and Owensboro, Ky., in April. In February, Graham spoke in multiple locations in China, including Huai'an, the city in which his grandmother Ruth Bell Graham was born while her parents served as medical missionaries. Later this year he will hold events in Huntington, W.Va., and in multiple Canadian communities.

Media Note: High-resolution photos from the Arusha Love and Peace Celebration in Tanzania are available for download at https://bgea.box.com/WillGrahamTanzania. Please credit the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association when using the images.

About Will Graham:

Will is the third generation of Grahams to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ under the banner of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA). He also serves as vice president of the BGEA, and as executive director of the Billy Graham Training Center at The Cove in Asheville, N.C. Follow Will on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/WillGraham4 and on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/TellaGraham.