The Beatles

World-renowned musician and songwriter George Harrison shot to fame as the lead guitarist in history’s most successful rock group ‘The Beatles‘. He wrote some of the band’s best known songs in their later years, including ‘Here Comes the Sun’, ‘Something’ and ‘While My Guitar Gently Weeps.’ The songwriting duo of John Lennon and Paul McCartney dominated The Beatles albums, but George generally contributed one of two compositions even from the early days and his song ‘If I needed Someone’ on The Beatles ‘Rubber Soul’ album became an early hit for British group The Hollies.

After The Beatles disbanded in 1970, George became a very successful solo artist. Later, in the 1980s, he formed the supergroup ‘The Traveling Wilburys’ with Jeff Lynne, Tom Petty, Bob Dylan and Roy Orbison. George released 12 solo albums including the chart-toppers ‘All Things Must Pass’ and ‘Living in the Material World.’ He is also credited with writing and releasing the world’s first charity single ‘Bangladesh’ and live album ‘Concert for Bangladesh’. By 1985 George’s fund had raised 12 million dollars for the work of UNICEF in Bangladesh.

The spiritual seeker

George is also known as a spiritual seeker who embraced eastern mysticism for many years during the 1960s and 70s. But this was just a part of his spiritual journey. It seems that all along he was seeking the One True God rather than just a ‘religious experience’. George committed his life to Jesus Christ in the final year of his life on earth.

Author Bob Spitz wrote in his book; ‘The Beatles: The Biography’

“Later in life he [Harrison] would become a vegetarian, consult an astrologer, and devote himself to Transcendental Meditation before embracing traditional Christianity.”

When asked for the source of his statement, Spitz stated

“As for the source of George’s return to traditional Christianity, the source was the man himself, conveyed to me some months before he died.”

The cross

George’s last album was called ‘Brainwashed’. On the cover, he signed his name, followed by two little hand drawn symbols, one a Hindu symbol and the other a Christian cross. The man so well known for following Hindu teaching since the 1960’s was now affiliating himself with Jesus Christ and the Christian faith.

This all backs up what UK evangelist Melvin Banks told me in 2005. Knowing that I was a fan of The Beatles, Melvin said,

“Did you know that George Harrison of The Beatles became a Christian shortly before he died?”

Melvin went on to explain what he had heard from Louis Palau, the well respected international Christian speaker who held large Billy Graham style meetings in stadiums across the world. Louis related the story of how George Harrison had become a Christian following an encounter with a Christian friend at a racetrack.

The Belfast Telegraph

The story surfaced again in an article published in The Belfast Telegraph on 26th April 2003 by Derrick Bingham. The writer stated,

“A friend of mine was at a dinner at which the speaker was the international Evangelist Dr Luis Palau. He said that a Christian man was at a Formula One racetrack one day and saw the late George Harrison of The Beatles there.

He happened to have a Christian Devotional in his pocket called “Daily Bread” and decided to give it to George as a witness. He also gave him his name and telephone number and told him to get in touch if he wanted to talk.

George read the Devotional and was deeply interested. He rang the gentleman in question who later prayed with George, leading him to personal faith in Jesus Christ. Palau also maintains that George Harrison said that he wanted to dedicate his song ‘My sweet Lord’ to Jesus. I have often heard the song and the haunting beauty of its chords and wondered who the song was about… Now, to borrow a line from George Harrison’s song my desire is: ‘I really want to see you, Lord!’ That moment is what I and millions of others across the earth look forward to more than life itself.”

Friendship with Emerson Fitipaldi and Dr Deepak Chopra

George became interested in Formula One motor racing in the late 1970s and developed a deep friendship with Christian racing driver Emerson Fitipaldi. Emerson won the F1 World Championships in 1972 and 1974. He also won 14 Grand Prix races over 11 seasons with the Lotus and McLaren teams. Emerson has revealed that he prayed with George when he decided that he too wanted to become a Christian.

Further information has come from Dr Deepak Chopra, a Hindu who is known for his interest in many religions including Christianity. Deepak was a lifelong good friend of George Harrison and spoke of the ex-Beatle and his Christian conversion experience;

“So he [George] was living a very simple kind of lifestyle. When he would engage in conversation it was all about spirituality. He was a very, very avid reader and not just an avid reader of Eastern spirituality, but a very avid reader of the Gnostic gospels, the other versions of the historical Christ, the Gospel of Thomas. When he signed a letter he would always put an eastern symbol and also put a cross. He very much had a relationship with Christ as well…  All along, he had a very personal relationship with Christ. When he signed off to his personal friends he would always put a [cross] symbol.”

Seeking Christ

Close friends have revealed that George was a seeker of Christ for some time before he met Louis Palau. Although always a fan of Christ the teacher, it appears that in his final year he embraced Jesus Christ as the one he claimed to be, God the Son, the Saviour of all people who turn to him. In the Bible, God states,

“Those who seek me will find me.” (Jeremiah 29:13, Proverbs 8:17, Luke 11:10)

The media representation of George is generally of a spiritual seeker who embraced Eastern Mysticism. But this was only a part of his journey. It seems that all along he was seeking the One True God rather than just a ‘religious experience’, and George found him in the person of Jesus Christ. George’s wife Olivia said that the last words George spoke before he died were, “Everything else can wait, but the search for God cannot wait, and love one another.” The last three worlds George uttered were the words of Jesus recorded in John 13:34, where Jesus told his disciples,”Love one another.”

My Sweet Lord

George’s beautiful, timeless single ‘My Sweet Lord’ was originally written in praise of the Hindu god Krishna. It reached number one on singles charts across the globe in 1971. After his Christian conversion, George changed the emphasis. He told the evangelist who prayed with him that he was re-dedicating the song to Jesus Christ. Following George’s death in November 2001, the song was re-released and topped the charts for the second time in the UK and Canada, 30 years after it was originally released. This time it was in praise of Jesus Christ, God the Son, the Saviour of the World!

 

Story by Ralph Burden

Photo: George Harrison at the 1987 Princes Trust Concert. Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

Related Posts

« John Mahoney, More Faith on Frasier Eric Liddell – A Double Miracle at the 1924 Paris Olympics »