DID BEATLE GEORGE HARRISON die saved and a CHRISTIAN? See the evidence for it below!
The following post gives a bit of history on George Harrison and his remarkable legacy with The Beatles, but it also explains his spiritual journey into Eastern religion and Hinduism. And at the bottom of this post, you'll SEE A LINK to a very interesting video that details the little-known story of his conversion to Christianity, as he spent his very last days dying of cancer.
George and The Beatles
Around the world, George Harrison blazed into pop music history with the legendary group, The Beatles. From their "moptop" years of "Beatlemania," to their radical musical shifts of later, incredible LPs like Revolver and Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, they changed musical history and influenced countless thousands of bands around the world. Known as the "quiet" Beatle, George was the youngest of the four and spent much of the Fab Four's recording career in the shadows of his mates John Lennon and Paul McCartney. And yet, his contributions to their sound, instrumentation as lead guitarist, and especially his Eastern musical influences, were staggering. He had first become fascinated by the sitar during the filming of the 1965 Beatles film, Help. And his first musical contribution using the instrument was on Norwegian Wood, a Lennon composition on the Rubber Soul album. Before he left the band, after its relatively brief, yet amazing, seven-year recording career, George also contributed his compositions of Here Comes the Sun, Taxman, While My Guitar Gently Weeps, and the stunning, India-inspired masterpiece, Within You Without You.
Harrison's Journey into the World of Mysticism and Hinduism
Of course, having traveled the country and studied sitar with its master, Ravi Shankar, George's influences from the culture and religions of India went far beyond the Indian-inspired instrumentation within his music, as he became deeply affected by its Hindu beliefs, spirituality and mysticism. He had first traveled to India with his first wife, model and photographer Pattie Boyd. There, he met various gurus and visited several holy places. And then, in a shocking trip splashed across world-wide media, Harrison encouraged his Beatle bandmates to travel to Rishikesh, in northern India, to study meditation with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi at his ashram. Before leaving, the rest of the Beatles quickly rejected him as being a fraud, as they didn't see him as being particularly spiritual. When the Maharishi asked Lennon why they were leaving, he responded, "Well, if you're so cosmic, you'll know why." In fact, Lennon began his White Album song, Sexy Sadie - which is about the Maharishi - with the following lyrics:
Sexy Sadie, what have you done
You made a fool of everyone
You made a fool of everyone
Sexy Sadie, ooh, what have you done
But DID George become a Christian in his dying day? The evidence suggests so!
While the other Beatles failed to buy into the Eastern spiritualism the Maharishi was selling, George never faltered from completely embracing its basic, New Age tenants and mysticism - at least not until near the very end of his life.
Some Harrison quotes about his spiritual beliefs
“All religions are branches of one big tree. It doesn't matter what you call Him just as long as you call. The Lord is in everything that’s in creation. So, when you look at a tree, it’s really a reflection of God. You see it in other people – that’s Him too, you know?"
"You go on being reincarnated until you reach the actual Truth. Heaven and Hell are just a state of mind. We are all here to become Christ-like. The actual world is an illusion."
"The Greek word for Christ is Kristos, which is, let's face it, Krishna, and Kristos is the same name actually."
"All religions are branches of one big tree. It doesn't matter what you call Him just as long as you call."
By 1997, George was entering the final phase of his life. He had discovered a lump on his neck that tests showed were cancerous - which he directly contributed to a lifetime of smoking the "ciggies." While he stopped smoking, in 2001, cancer had returned in the form of a brain tumor, and he died in 2001 from it. The question is, what DID he believe in his dying days? As so much of the world believed, as he long had and many still do - that whether its Buddha, Allah, Krishna, or Jesus, there are many paths one can take to gain Heaven. Yet, the Bible teaches there is only ONE way to God and Heaven, through faith in Jesus Christ as Lord (John 14:6, ETC). As well, the teachings of all of the major religions have key tenants that insist heaven is attained in very different ways - meaning, something is seriously in error with the "many pathways" belief that millions embrace. So, the mass media portrayed George having died at peace, as a "deeply spiritual man," having embraced the New Age teachings of Hinduism and Eastern religion. And, very likely, as he lay near death, even Harrison's own family might not have known of his conversion - or perhaps thought he'd not been in his right mind when doing so - that is, IF they even knew about it. And George, weak, exhausted, and near death, likely didn't have the ability or desire to debate or explain, what to him, would have been a brand new faith that was a very personal and sudden decision, which he had only just begun to understand and experience.
The story of Harrison's conversion to Christ
By 1977, George had slowly developed a great love for Brazil, its culture, and especially, Formula One racing. And in 1979, he traveled there to film a video for his then-latest single, Faster - which was written in honor of his friends in the racing world. And it was his immersion into this sport's world that he met and became close friends with Emerson Fittipaldi, a now-former Brazilian racing driver and motorsports executive who won two Formula One championship titles and 14 Grand Prix races across 11 seasons. Fittpaldi is also an evangelical Christian! And after having had deep spiritual conversations with Harrison, Fittipaldi has testified that he led Harrison to embrace Christ in his last, dying days. But where is the evidence that this actually occurred - SEE BELOW!
IN THIS VIDEO,
New Zealand evangelist Ray Comfort relates that while he had heard of the story of Harrison's conversion to Christ, he was very skeptical of it. And so, he began a deep dive of researching whether it actually happened. The video reveals what he uncovered. It appears very likely that George, after a lifetime of spiritual dabbling in religions beliefs of the Far East, finally found the REAL God! But is it TRUE? The evidence suggests so. Harrison, knowing he was close to death, certainly had the motivation to be open to the truth. He definitely had shared a close friendship with racer and evangelist Fittpaldi. The fact is, IF George embraced and committed himself to Jesus, in heart and mind, all Christians will share their eternity with him. While we can't know for sure - God knows! But what Ray related in the attached video (above), definitely gives me hope that Fittpaldi related exactly what transpired before George breathed his last breath.
Also, watch all of the video while watching Ray Comfort as he seeks to evangelize a woman on the beach, as he begins by asking her what she believes and about her spiritual understandings. Ray is one bold and convincing fellow!
Philip