Billy Paul Branham
Billy Paul Branham, William Branham's oldest son and longtime partner with Joseph Branham in distributing Branham's recorded sermons through Spoken Word Publications and Voice of God Recordings, became an important figure in preserving and spreading the Message movement after his father's death. Government records connected to Billy Paul's birth and marriage create problems for Branham's later autobiographical claims, especially the conflicting birth years Branham used for himself and the timeline surrounding Billy Paul's disputed early marriage to Ollie May Christopher. Billy Paul also became part of Branham's failed Los Angeles prophecy tradition, since Branham and later Message leaders connected the city's destruction to Billy Paul's lifespan, a prediction that failed as Billy Paul lived until 2023. His death from complications involving diabetes, coronary artery disease, abdominal pain, pancreatic cancer, and tobacco-related factors closed the life of one of the central family figures responsible for carrying Branham's cult legacy into the modern era.
Billy Paul Branham (September 13, 1935 – 2023) was William Branham's oldest son. He conducted his business operations through Spoken Word Publications and was named a partner of Voice of God Recordings, along with his brother, Joseph Branham. Billy Paul and Joseph worked to distribute the recordings of William Branham and other cult propaganda throughout the world.
Government records related to Billy Paul Branham create significant problems for later versions of William Branham's stage persona, particularly regarding his birth year. In his post-1945 stage persona, Branham claimed that everywhere he went, fortune tellers informed him that stars and planets aligned when he was born, and the date mentioned was April 6, 1909.[1] This date, however, does not match the 1908 year that William Branham used on government documents[2] or the 1907 birth year that appears to be the actual year of his birth. When Billy Paul Branham was born on September 13, 1935, William Branham listed his age as "27" on the birth certificate. This would place his birth year in 1908, which matches the date Branham used on his marriage certificate to Hope Brumbach.
When Billy Paul married Ollie May Christopher, he listed his birth year as September 13, 1934.[3] If this date were correct—and considering the date of William Branham's marriage to Hope Brumbach—it would mean that Hope was already pregnant with Billy Paul at the time of their marriage. William Branham claimed to have annulled the marriage between Billy Paul and Ollie May Christopher.[4] Government records confirm, however, that Ollie May sued Billy Paul for divorce on September 23, 1953.[5] Billy Paul's birth certificate suggests that he was dishonest about his birth year in order to advance his age from 17 to 18. For this reason, the marriage was annulled.
Los Angeles Prophecy Connection
Similar to the dates given in Branham's failed doomsday predictions, Billy Paul's age placed a date and timeline on Branham's failed Los Angeles prophecy. According to Pearry Green,[6] Billy Paul, and other cult leaders, William Branham told Billy Paul that Los Angeles would sink before Billy Paul was an "old man." Branham himself claimed to have been old at age 45,[7] which would give the timeline for the Los Angeles prophecy between 1965 and 1980. The average life expectancy at the time Branham made the prediction was approximately 71 years, which means that the prophecy would have failed long before 2006.
