Franklin Graham surprises with newly announced conversion ... to veganism

Evangelist Franklin Graham has converted to one of the last things his largely conservative following would have imagined: a modern American vegan.

The son of Billy Graham announced to his 747,000 Twitter followers that he is adopting a vegan diet in the new year, which means he will not eat animal products. This includes no butter, eggs and milk.

Graham is taking the vow seriously enough to post daily images of his vegan meals on Twitter. He has also included at least one image of something disgusting that he claims he used to eat: a pig’s head.

News of Graham’s vegan switch is just the latest in a series of surprises from the man who heads both the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and Christian international relief organization Samaritan’s Purse.

Last month, he made headlines around the world for claiming it was God and not Russian hackers who had a hand in the surprising victory of Donald Trump.

He has also been selected by President-elect Donald Trump’s inaugural committee to be among six faith leaders who will say prayers at Trump’s and Vice President-elect Mike Pence’s swearing-in later this month.

The website Christian Today quoted Graham as explaining his vegan diet is “something drastic” to control his weight and reclaim his health.

VegNews – the nation’s “premier vegan lifestyle magazine” – was among the first to take note of Graham’s new diet, reminding him that there are plenty of “God-given” non-animal proteins that will keep him satiated.

It also suggested he eat plenty of potatoes and legumes.

This story was originally published January 4, 2017 at 1:50 PM with the headline "Franklin Graham surprises with newly announced conversion ... to veganism."