On Thursday, May 21, 2009, Dr. Rolf K. McPherson, son of the founder and the president emeritus of the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel, passed away at his home in Los Feliz, California. He was 96 years old.

Rolf Kennedy McPherson was born March 23, 1913 in Providence, Rhode Island to Harold S. and Aimee Semple McPherson. As a small child he traveled to the West Coast with his mother, who evangelized her way across the country to Los Angeles, where she established Angelus Temple in the Echo Park area of Los Angeles.

Upon the death of Aimee Semple McPherson in 1944, Rolf McPherson became president of the four corporate entities she had established: Echo Park Evangelistic Association, The Church of the Foursquare Gospel, International Church of the Foursquare Gospel, and LIFE Bible College. In addition, he became the pastor of Angelus Temple.

For 44 years, Dr. Rolf K. McPherson led the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel, expanding its ministry into 63 countries around the world; the number of churches worldwide grew to more than 19,000 (Currently there are almost 60,000 Foursquare churches and meeting places in 144 countries.). Dr. McPherson retired from the presidency of The Foursquare Church in 1988, but he remained president emeritus. He was also pastor emeritus of Angelus Temple, having retired from actively directing the affairs of the church in 1997.

He is survived by his wife, Evangeline Carmichael McPherson; his daughter, Alicia McPherson Santacroce; three grandchildren; a niece, Victoria Salter; a step-daughter, Carol Parks; and two step-granddaughters. He was preceded in death by his first wife, Lorna De Smith McPherson, and a daughter Marlene McPherson LaRue.

A memorial service will be held at Angelus Temple on Saturday, May 30, at 11 a.m. A viewing will be held at Forest Lawn Glendale on the evening of Friday, May 29.

Obituaries have been posted in the Los Angeles Times, Christian News Wire, and Foursquare News Service. See also the Arrangements for the Memorial Service with addresses to send memorial contributions.

Cyril A. McLellan, a name synonymous with the former Assemblies of God Revivaltime Choir, passed away on Tuesday, May 19th in Springfield, Missouri, after an extended battle with cancer. He was 81.

Born and raised in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, McLellan’s musical pedigree was impressive. He held a performance degree from the London Royal School of Music, bachelor of arts degrees in music from Central Bible College and Evangel University, and a masters degree from the University of Missouri-Kansas City in violin pedagogy, where he also excelled in choral conducting. In 1958, McLellan became an ordained AG minister. Being an accomplished violinist, he was also a member of the Springfield Symphony.

Cyril took over the Revivaltime Choir from his brother Vernon in 1952, after he moved to Missouri from Canada to teach at Central Bible Institute (now Central Bible College). He directed the Revivaltime Choir for 43 years, starting even before C. M. Ward became the Revivaltime speaker. He continued as director until the broadcast ended in 1995. According to Barbara Cavaness, a former choir member, “McLellan demanded and trained for musical excellence, but the emphasis of every practice seemed to be the prayer that each note would be anointed by the Holy Spirit.” Lee Shultz, the producer and narrator of Revivaltime for 25 years, said: “He gave his heart and soul to produce the kind of music that reached people. The quality was uncontestable; so many tried to imitate it.”

McLellan traveled with over 100 choir tours and participated in approximately 1,700 radio broadcasts. He produced 35 Revivaltime Choir albums and led more than 800 Revivaltime choir members. He completed more than 170 choir arrangements, including 75 octavos and 24 books as well as personal recording projects.

McLellan received prestigious honors over the years, including: Central Bible College Alumnus of the Year, an award for artistic ability and leadership in music from Word Records, a SESAC award for outstanding achievement in music and ministry, a commendation for music and ministry at the AG 45th General Council (1993) in Minneapolis, and in 2001 he was inducted into the Assemblies of God Music Hall of Honor.

He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Beth; two adult sons, Steve and Bruce; his brother, Arnold L. McLellan; and five grandchildren. Visitation will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. on Monday, May 25, in Greenlawn Funeral Home North, in Springfield, Missouri. The funeral will be at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, May 26, in Central Assembly of God, in Springfield. Alumni of the Revivaltime Choir will be singing “Room at the Cross” and “All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name” at the funeral service.

Memorial music scholarship contributions may be given to Central Bible College or Evangel University.

Obituaries have been posted in the
Springfield News-Leader, in AG-NEWS, and in CBC Alumni News.

It’s Tough being Pentecostal!
By Garry E. Milley

I grew up among the Newfoundland Pentecostals. That tells you a lot about me! I was raised in a pastor’s home and cut my teeth on the back of a pew when it wasn’t popular to be a Pentecostal. Pentecostalism now numbers close to one half a billion world wide—half the size of Roman Catholicism in one tenth of the time! The bulk of the growth is in Asia, Africa and South America. I lived through the transition from persecution to popularity, poverty to prosperity. We are celebrating what the early Pentecostals could only dream about. However, we are our own worst enemies here in North America.

It seems that no one knows about us here until some TV evangelist gets his fingers caught in the cookie jar or we are publicly embarrassed by media exposé of secret goings-on inside Pentecostal institutions. I do not want to be defined by the worst among us but, as they say, we can select our friends but we are stuck with our relatives. For better or for worse I am a Pentecostal.

But, preachers who blow people down, promise miracles for money, or who encourage strange behavior as proof of God’s work, embarrass me. I tire of being tyrannized by every religious fad. I am sick of the thin theological gruel dished out by the religious media. I want to be loyal to my roots without being blind to past errors. I oscillate between recovering the original vision and transcending traditionalism. I want the revival to mature as an expression of historic Christianity and not fossilize as a monument to the past.

I want to be positive about what is going on in the broader Christian world without being gullible and I want to offer advice on questionable issues without being merely opinionated. I, too, am a pilgrim in search of a city. I don’t have all the answers. But I’m fearful of remaining silent when something needs to be said. It’s tough being a balanced, sympathetic but self-critical Pentecostal.

Modern Pentecostal Fads
Popular piety left unchecked often results in distortions of the faith, which become so ingrained they are accepted as orthodoxy. An entire generation of Pentecostals has been sold a popular distortion of the Christian faith. Distortions of the faith that have become the new orthodoxy in some quarters include the following ideas:

• You are a hurting individual, inherently good, and deserving of all you desire. Everything is yours and you can have it all. Financial adversity and suffering are never God’s will.
• The Bible is a book of secret health laws and success formulas made known only to certain select teachers. Get their tapes and books to discover the secrets.
• Your problems are the results of inherited demons from your ancestors. Your sins are not your fault.
• Tradition smashing and denomination bashing are signs of openness to the moving of the Spirit.
• Anti-intellectualism is a virtue. Accept all new things. They may be fresh manifestations of revival. If you ask questions you might miss God’s best.

Authentic Christianity
In contrast to these recent distortions of the faith, early Pentecostals had much more in common with the broader Christian tradition. Early Pentecostals emphasized the following themes, which are deeply rooted in the historic Christian tradition:

• Sin reigns deep in the human heart and we stand in the need of God’s mercy that is graciously offered to the penitent in Jesus Christ. Be humble and grateful.
• Daily we are called to spiritual battle against the world, the flesh and the devil. We will lose some and win some but all our victories are Christ’s victories. Give God all the praise.
• As sinners saved by grace we are constantly dependent upon Christ. Be faithful in prayer and obedience.
• We are pilgrims on this earth. Live simply and don’t get too attached to this world.
• The Bible is a lamp and a light, a chart and a compass. Judge everything by the God’s Word and stay true to the faith.

Call to Maturity
These two positions – 1) modern Pentecostal theological fads, and 2) authentic, historic Christian beliefs – are not the same, nor are they equally acceptable. Theology may be a matter of emphasis but the truth lies closer to those beliefs held by early Pentecostals. I resist the ideology of pluralism that argues that all viewpoints are equally acceptable. This effectively leaves no room at all for dialogue or improvement. If we accept this ideology of pluralism and relativism, we can never question bad preaching, shallow worship, inadequate scholarship, misguided counseling or anything else. Growing up is often painful but necessary. We must not stay in theological adolescence when God calls us to maturity.

Originally published in Good Tidings, March-April 2009. Posted with permission.

Dr. Garry E. Milley is Senior Pastor of Park Avenue Pentecostal Church in Mount Pearl, Newfoundland, and is a member of the General Executive Committee of the Pentecostal Assemblies of Newfoundland and Labrador. Email: garrymilley@nf.aibn.com

Dr. Stanley Horton extemporaneously addressing participants at A House No Longer Divided, Timmons Temple COGIC, Monday, April 13. Horton was explaining that his father was pastor of a multiracial church in Arroyo Seco, Los Angeles, in 1926-1927. Members – half were black, half were white – would eat dinner together after every Sunday service. (Photo courtesy of Ken Horn)

Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center Co-sponsors Demonstration of Unity, Marking Unlikely Dual Anniversary of Springfield Lynching and Azusa Street Revival

On April 13-15, 2009, people from various ethnic, social, and denominational backgrounds gathered in Springfield, Missouri, to celebrate their unity in Christ. This demonstration of unity, dubbed “A House No Longer Divided,” was sparked by the unlikely dual anniversary of two events — the horrific Springfield Lynchings and the beginning of the multiethnic Azusa Street Revival, which has become a worldwide symbol for racial reconciliation. The meetings were held each evening from 7-9 pm at Timmons Temple Church of God in Christ (April 13-14) and at the William J. Seymour Chapel at the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary (April 15).

On April 14, 1906, three African-American men were lynched by a mob on the Springfield town square. The lynching of Horace Duncan, Fred Coker and Will Allen led to the flight of possibly hundreds of blacks to less hostile areas. The ethnic makeup of the community, to this day, reflects that horrific event. The African-American community in Springfield remembers the event much like Jews remember the Holocaust.

That same day, on April 14, 1906, William J. Seymour began holding services at the run-down mission at 312 Azusa Street in Los Angeles. The interracial Azusa Street revival, which emerged from meetings in a home on Bonnie Brae Street, became a focal point for the emerging Pentecostal movement. Azusa participant Frank Bartleman famously exulted that “the color line was washed away in the blood.” A little more than one year later, Rachel Sizelove, a Free Methodist-turned-Pentecostal evangelist, brought the movement to Springfield from Azusa Street and started what became Central Assembly of God.

“A House No Longer Divided” featured special speakers, preaching, and music. Timmons Temple Pastor T.J. Appleby emceed the services, and speakers included both seasoned and young ministers. Organist Beverly Daniels and the Timmons Temple gospel choir led participants in worship each evening. Half of each evening was devoted to gospel music, which was interspersed between speakers (each was given either 10 or 30 minutes to speak).

Student organizers for the “A House No Longer Divided” were: John F. Wheeler (Central Bible College), Dan Morrison (AGTS), and Michael Ryswyk (Evangel University). This event was birthed out of John F. Wheeler’s desire to build bridges across racial and denominational divides. Wheeler is the great-grandson of Church of God in Christ founder Bishop Charles H. Mason. The event was sponsored by Timmons Temple Church of God in Christ, Kingdom Movement Ministries, the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center, and the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary.

According to Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center Director Darrin Rodgers, “April 14, 1906 was witness to both the darkness of humanity and the light of God. It is important that we not only remember, but also overcome, our painful history of racial disunity. ‘A House No Longer Divided’ offered an opportunity to tell the world that, just like at Azusa Street, ‘the color line has been washed away in the blood.’”

Overview of events

Monday, April 13, Timmons Temple
Scott Temple (Director of Intercultural Ministries, Assemblies of God US Missions) recounted the events surrounding the lynchings, and Darrin Rodgers traced the history of the Azusa Street Mission, as well as the ensuing racial unity and division within the Pentecostal movement. Evangel University student Natasha Dash also delivered a sermonette, noting that her own status as an African-American female who is credentialed by the AG is evidence of progress made on racial inclusion. Dr. Stanley Horton, the 92-year-old eminent Pentecostal theologian who is a child of the Azusa Street Revival, offered his own remembrances of the early days of the revival. Elder T.J. Appleby (Timmons Temple Church of God in Christ) concluded the meeting with an impassioned plea for unity – suggesting that the Pentecostal church should be the antidote for racism. The Timmons Temple choir led lively worship, and a blind Central Bible College student, Adam Willis, rocked the house when he led the congregation in singing some rousing gospel songs.

Tuesday, April 14, Timmons Temple
Five young ministers delivered ten-minute sermonettes, interspersed with gospel music provided by the Timmons Temple choir and the Iglesia del Pueblo (AG) (Springfield, Mo) worship team. Dan Morrison (Assemblies of God Theological Seminary) delivered the opening message, showing “the Holy Spirit as the great equalizer among people, no matter your gender, ethnicity, or social class,” drawing from the account in Acts 10 of the conflict between Gentiles and Jews and their ultimate reconciliation. Ryan Beaty (Royal Rangers National Office) brought the crowd to its feet with a stem-winding admonition to be “men and women full of the Spirit and of wisdom.” Ben Jury (Central Bible College) and Michael Ryswyk (Evangel University) both spoke from Philippians, identifying ways Christians should love each other. John F. Wheeler (Central Bible College) brought the concluding message, showing that Christian unity is based on “one Lord, one faith, and one baptism.” The evening concluded with an extended time of prayer at the altar.

Wednesday, April 15, Assemblies of God Theological Seminary
Following robust worship, Gwen Marshall (Deliverance Temple, Springfield, Mo) addressed the importance of identifying and empowering the next generation of leaders. Sophia Garcia (Iglesia del Pueblo) provided special music and led those gathered in singing The Comforter Has Come, the hymn often sung at the Azusa Street Mission. Winston Larry (Assemblies of God US Missions) provided the capstone message for the event, emphasizing that the various parts of the Body of Christ need each other. He stressed the need for participants to get out of their comfort zones and to form ongoing relationships, which is the only way to tear down the current walls of separation. The three-day demonstration of unity concluded with the breaking of bread.

Charisma magazine and the Springfield News-Leader published stories about A House No Longer Divided.

With a grant from the John Templeton Foundation, the Center for Religion and Civic Culture at the University of Southern California has launched the Pentecostal and Charismatic Research Initiative (PCRI). The initiative will provide up to $3.5 million in grant funding to support social science research on Pentecostal and charismatic Christianity in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the former Soviet Union. PCRI will award up to seven grants to regional centers and fifteen grants to individual scholars or small research teams. Please visit www.usc.edu/pcri to find out more about the initiative and download the request for proposals. Letters of intent are due by August 1, 2009.

To honor Dr. Stanley M. Horton’s remarkable service to AGTS, to the Assemblies of God, and to the greater Pentecostal community over the past seven decades, the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary has initiated the Dr. Stanley M. Horton Scholarly Resources Endowment Fund, in conjunction with the Pillars of the Faith initiative.

You are invited to help AGTS reach its goal of $25,000 for this endowment. For those who contribute $125 or more, AGTS will send a complimentary copy of Dr. Horton’s forthcoming biography, Stanley M. Horton: Shaper of Pentecostal Theology, by Lois E. Olena with Raymond L. Gannon.

Interest from this endowment will be used to purchase scholarly resources for the Cordas C. Burnett Library at AGTS — specifically biblical-theological and biblical language resources, as these areas have been so important to Dr. Horton over the years.

Please go to this link at the AGTS website for more information, to contribute to the endowment, and to reserve your copy of Dr. Stanley Horton’s biography. (The book releases in April and will be shipped in May to those who contribute $125 or more to the Dr. Stanley M. Horton Scholarly Resources Endowment.) For a $250 gift, AGTS will send you a copy signed by Dr. Horton. Contributions can also be made by mailing or calling the AGTS Development Office, 1435 N. Glenstone Ave., Springfield, MO 65802; ph. 1-800-467-2487×1012.

In conjunction with the release of Dr. Horton’s biography, the 2009 issue of Assemblies of God Heritage will include an article by Lois E. Olena called “Stanley M. Horton: A Pentecostal Journey,” which outlines his rich Pentecostal heritage and the unfolding of his life to become Pentecostalism’s “premier theologian.” A related article slated for the 2009 issue is “The Social Conscience of Stanley Horton” by Martin William Mittelstadt and Matthew Paugh.

Posted by Glenn Gohr

Dr. Ogbu U. Kalu (1942-2009) passed away on Wednesday, January 7, 2009, at age 66 from complications from pneumonia. He had served as a faculty member at McCormick Theological Seminary in Chicago since 2001. He also served as the director of the Center for Global Ministry. Dr. Kalu is respected internationally for his scholarship and church leadership, and his death is a great loss to many around the world.

Kalu had been a member of the Society for Pentecostal Studies for several years and was a prominent scholar of Pentecostalism in Africa. At the time of his death he was the Henry Winters Luce Professor of World Christianity and Mission at McCormick Theological Seminary.

Kalu came to McCormick in 2001 from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, where he had served as Professor of Church History for over 25 years. Holding an M.Div. from Princeton and a Ph.D. from the University of Toronto, he became a visiting professor at several institutions, including Harvard, University of Bayreuth, University of Toronto, McGill University, University of Edinburgh, University of Pretoria, and the Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Seoul.

He authored or edited 16 books, including Power, Poverty and Prayer: The Challenges of Poverty and Pluralism in African Christianity, 1960-1996, History of the Church in the Third World: Vol. III, and African Christianity: An African Story. He also edited and published more than 150 articles in journals and books. In October 2008, Dr. Kalu was honored at the 26th Annual meeting for the Association of Third World Studies as one of two winners of the Toyin Falola Award for the best book on Africa published during 2007-2008. This was for his most recent book, African Pentecostalism: An Introduction (Oxford University Press, 2008).

Dr. Kalu was not only a world-class scholar but also a man of deep Christian faith and conviction. He served as an elder in the Presbyterian Church in his home country of Nigeria. He also held various national leadership positions in the denomination including membership on the General Assembly Board of Faith and Order. As a resident of Chicago, Dr. Kalu was a member of Progressive Community Center – The People’s Church, where he worshiped regularly and taught adult education classes

Dr. Ogbu is survived by his wife, Dr. Wilhelmina J. Kalu, and four children.

For additional information, see Kalu’s bio and memorial at the McCormick website.

Posted by Glenn Gohr

Dr. Gary B. McGee, longtime Assemblies of God educator, slipped from this life into the arms of his loving Savior shortly before noon today, December 10, 2008. McGee was hospitalized on November 13 with complications due to a bacterial infection and a weakened immune system from a long fight with cancer. McGee was released from the hospital yesterday and passed away at home with his family present.

Few Assemblies of God educators have attained the breadth of influence achieved by McGee. His extensive college and seminary teaching experience spanned five decades (1967-2008). He was a prolific author, and he helped to build bridges through his leadership in numerous professional and interchurch organizations. He was Distinguished Professor of Church History and Pentecostal Studies at the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary, where he taught since 1984. He previously taught at Central Bible College (1970-1984) and Open Bible College (1967-1970).

McGee authored seven books, edited and contributed to three books, and he wrote chapters in fifteen books, 41 journal articles (since 1993), and 129 articles in twelve dictionaries. He was a frequent contributor to denominational publications, including Today’s Pentecostal Evangel, Assemblies of God Heritage, Advance, Enrichment, and Paraclete. He is probably best known for his two-volume history of Assemblies of God World Missions, This Gospel Shall Be Preached (GPH, 1986, 1989), for his biographical approach to Assemblies of God history, People of the Spirit (GPH, 2004), and for coediting the award-winning Dictionary of Pentecostal and Charismatic Movements (Zondervan, 1988). He completed his last book, Miracles, Missions, and American Pentecostalism (Orbis Books, forthcoming 2009), just weeks before his death.

McGee traveled extensively and also taught at Asia Centre for Evangelism and Missions, Singapore; Continental Theological Seminary, Brussels, Belgium; Evangelical Theological Seminary, Osijek, Croatia; Kiev Bible Institute, Kiev, Ukraine; Romanian Bible Institute, Bucharest, Romania; and Southern Asia Bible College, Bangalore, India.

McGee emerged as one of the most highly-respected and loved educators in the Assemblies of God, as well as one of the most articulate voices concerning the history of Pentecostal missions. In the academic community, McGee was best known for his publications on the history of early Pentecostalism and missiology. His family and friends knew him as a man of sterling character, good humor, humility, spiritual sensitivity, and personal warmth. According to fellow historian Grant Wacker, McGee “was always ready for a joke as well as a prayer.”

Gary McGee’s family came into the Pentecostal movement after his maternal grandmother accepted Christ in an Aimee Semple McPherson evangelistic campaign in Canton, Ohio, in 1921. The family became faithful members of Bethel Temple Assembly of God in Canton. McGee was born on April 22, 1945, the second oldest of five children.

Upon his graduation from Central Bible College in 1967, he began teaching at Open Bible College (Des Moines, Iowa). He received his ordination from the Iowa District Council in 1969. He returned to Springfield, Missouri, in 1970, where he would become a fixture for the rest of his life. He began teaching at his alma mater, Central Bible College, and in 1971 completed the Master of Religious Studies at Concordia Theological Seminary (St. Louis, Missouri). McGee completed his M.A. in Religious Studies at Missouri State University (Springfield, Missouri) in 1976, and his Ph.D. in Church History at St. Louis University in 1984. Upon completion of his doctorate, McGee began teaching at the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary. He was named Distinguished Professor of Church History and Pentecostal Studies in 2006. In March 2008, the Society for Pentecostal Studies conferred on him the Lifetime Achievement Award.

McGee demonstrated how a holy man – a man of God – can die well. During the last ten years of his life he suffered from cancer and arthritis, but McGee did not complain. Instead, he joyfully focused on other peoples’ needs and labored to complete the tasks he believed the Lord had given to him. Former student Jennifer Strickland Hall wrote, “Watching the grace and beauty you have displayed in the midst of your suffering over the years has taught me more than any book on the subject.” And McGee did, by the way, write a book on the subject: How Sweet the Sound: God’s Grace for Suffering Christians (GPH, 1994). Just before his final hospitalization, he finished the manuscript for his last book. In the past two weeks, McGee tied up loose ends, said goodbyes, and did not show despair, but faith in his great God. This has been a difficult, but beautiful, time.

McGee leaves behind a wife, Alice; two daughters, Angela Brim and Catherine McGee; and two grandchildren, Bailey and Marshall Brim, all of Springfield, Missouri. Other survivors include his mother, Velma L. Davis; two brothers; two sisters; and a host of other relatives.

Visit the AGTS website for more information about McGee’s funeral. Readers are encouraged to send messages to the McGee family, either by posting them on the AGTS website or by mail: Alice McGee, 1920 E. Sayer Circle, Springfield, MO 65803

By Darrin J. Rodgers

Lois Hodges, the widow of leading Assemblies of God missiologist Melvin L. Hodges (1909-1988), celebrated her 100th birthday on September 23, 2008. Darrin Rodgers, director of the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center, recently sat down with Sister Hodges and recorded an oral history interview.

The interview was recorded in two parts. In part one, Sister Hodges discussed her childhood as well as the background of her husband. Melvin Hodges’s father, Charles, was a 1902 graduate of Boston Theological Seminary (now Boston University School of Theology), the oldest Methodist seminary in the United States. While pastoring in Washington State, he grew disenchanted with “ecclesiasticism,” cast his lot with the Pentecostals, and ultimately joined the Assemblies of God. His son, Melvin, was called to the ministry at age 10, learned Greek from his father at age 13, and matriculated at Colorado College at age 15. A precocious young man, Melvin’s theological knowledge and preaching skills became widely noted, including by a young woman named Lois from Fort Collins, Colorado. Melvin and Lois married in 1928.

In part two of the interview, Sister Hodges recounted her life and ministry with Melvin, telling stories of how they had to live by faith during the Great Depression — when they did not have a regular income and food was scarce. They pioneered churches in Colorado and Wyoming until leaving for the mission field in Central America in 1935 with three young children. Melvin and Lois returned to Springfield in 1954. From 1954 to 1973, Melvin Hodges served as AG field director for Latin America and the West Indies. He then became a professor of missions at the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary. He was a prolific writer, and many of his publications deal with missions, church growth, and the indigenous church principle.

Click here to listen to PART ONE and PART TWO of the oral history interview with Lois Hodges.

Posted by Darrin J. Rodgers

An early tent meeting in Geneva County, Alabama, about 1913

Rachel Dobson of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, has been researching the early history of the Assemblies of God movement in (mostly) southeast Alabama, for a series of independent study projects in the master’s program in library and information studies at the University of Alabama. She has been collecting documentation on tent revivals, camp meetings, brush arbor meetings (from newspapers, posters, oral histories like those at the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center) that took place from about 1906 (when M. M. Pinson came to what is now El Bethel AG just north of New Brockton) until about 1918 or 1919, in a few counties of southeast Alabama, and possibly northwest Florida. She also has been resourcing information from county histories, church histories, Google Maps, and references such as The First Fifty Years: A Brief Review of the Assemblies of God in Alabama (1915-1965), by Robert H. Spence, 1965.

Her great grandfather, Lafayette Snellgrove, and her great-great uncle, Handy W. Bryant, and their families were born and raised in Coffee, Dale, and surrounding counties in Alabama. They attended many Pentecostal revivals and camp meetings around Wicksburg, New Brockton, Midland City, and as far away as Florala, in the first decades of the twentieth century. Lafayette and Handy were both ordained ministers, and her great-great aunt, Daisy S. Bryant, was licensed to preach. They attended the organizing meetings for the southeastern District in 1915, 1916, and 1917. She also located Handy Bryant’s name on some of the early rosters of the Churches of God in Christ. See links to these rosters at the blog entry for Church of God in Christ and in unity with the Apostolic Faith.

Rachel is especially interested in the early locations of camp meetings and the history of how churches were established because of these early meetings. Her research has taken her to reports of revival services in early publications such as the Word and Witness and the Christian Evangel (forerunner of the Pentecostal Evangel). Recently she posted some photographs of early camp meeting locations and historic churches in Alabama. These photos can be viewed on a photoset at Flickr.com called Early Pentecost in Alabama.

She also has a blog called Wiregrass Journal, which includes some of her own family history, in addition to information on various early Pentecostal revival meetings and camp meetings in Coffee, Dale, Geneva, Houston, and surrounding counties in Alabama.

While in most cases, we know the names of the founding pastors of various congregations in Alabama and other places, as Rachel points out, “An important part of Assemblies of God history that may slip away more easily than the names of the founders are the locations of the early Pentecostal tent revivals and camp meetings—the temporary places where the Holy Spirit changed people’s lives permanently.”

The photos she has posted online of various churches and campground sites in southeast Alabama are part of a project to document the locations of early revivals and camp meetings of the Pentecostal organizations in south Alabama, especially the Assemblies of God and predecessors in the Wiregrass area of southeast Alabama. Sources for related information are also cited. To read details about the project, go to: Wiregrass Journal: Introduction

Her latest blog entry includes photos and additional information that she has found on early revival locations in southeast Alabama. See: Wiregrass Journal: Documenting the Early Days of Pentecost in Alabama

This is an extremely worthwhile project. It is hoped by posting information such as this on the web, that additional contacts can be made with others interested or with knowledge of early camp meetings in southeast Alabama and other places. If you have additional information or questions, please e-mail Rachel at: rdobson@bama.ua.edu. You may also contact Rachel Dobson at P.O. Box 864838, Tuscaloosa, AL, 35486.

Posted by Glenn Gohr