Billy Graham
He told them the end was near.
On October 2, 1955, at the midway point of his first Canadian crusade, the Reverend Billy Graham came to Maple Leaf Gardens, where he was welcomed by a crowd that filled the arena and overflowed onto the sidewalks outside. Loudspeakers were set up at the corner of Church and Wood streets to broadcast Graham's sermon.
Throughout its history, the Gardens was the site of many religious gatherings, some organized by the traditional churches, some featuring touring evangelists like Jimmy Swaggart.
But few if any had the drawing power of Graham, the charismatic, lantern-jawed preacher from North Carolina who would become one of the most influential spiritual leaders in the history of the United States.
Graham's first Toronto visit came ten years into the nuclear age, in the tense days of the Cold War. He told his flock that world events confirmed what the prophets had said - and that even doubters and non-believers were beginning to understand that the day of reckoning was imminent.
"The intellectual leaders have laughed. The philosophers have laughed. The scientists have laughed. But now the scientists are beginning to out-shout the preachers about the end of the world coming."
The faithful had to be steadfast like Noah, Graham said, building his ark in the face of ridicule because he understood God's will.
"Noah was led by fear," Graham said. "Noah was terrified of the judgment of God. You must fear the judgment of God."
Graham concluded his sermon, as always, by asking the crowd to make a "decision for Christ." More than 500 came forward that night.
-Stephen Brunt
Plaque via Alan L. Brown's site Toronto Plaques. Full page here.