Dr. Alexander Vazakas: Early Greek-American Pentecostal, Philosopher, Linguist

This Week in AG History — September 2, 1962

By Darrin J. Rodgers
Originally published on AG News, 03 September 2020

Alexander Vazakas (1873-1965) began life in the Ottoman Empire, where his family suffered persecution on account of their evangelical faith. In 1902 he immigrated to America, where he became a linguist and philosopher. During the last years of his life, he served as a professor at Evangel College (now Evangel University) in Springfield, Missouri, and became well-known for melding his sharp mind with a passion for working with young people.

Vazakas played many roles during his life — persecuted religious minority, immigrant, academic, husband. But the common thread that connected these seemingly disparate roles was his deep Christian faith. His remarkable story was published in the Sept. 2, 1962, issue of the Pentecostal Evangel.

Born into privilege, Vazakas was raised in a suburb of Thessalonica, in what is now Greece. His father was a practicing physician and rubbed shoulders with important people from around the world.

Everything changed when his father began to read a New Testament given to him by the British Consul. At the time, it was illegal to own a Bible. However, Vazakas’ father read the New Testament voraciously and ended up accepting Christ as his Savior. He wanted to share the good news of the gospel with others, so he invited his patients to his home, where he would read Scripture to them.

Greek Orthodox Church leaders heard about the elder Vazakas’ home Bible studies and were incensed. They viewed Vazakas’ activities as a threat to their religious authority. The Greek Orthodox leaders, who had a close relationship with the government, had Vazakas arrested. After several years of persecution, which included time in and out of prison, he was attacked by bandits and killed.

Alexander Vazakas was only 8 years old when his father died. He consoled himself by reading the book for which his father was willing to die. At first, reading the Bible only seemed to make things worse. “Tortured by feelings of wretchedness and unworthiness,” the Pentecostal Evangel article recounted, Vazakas “began to beat his head against the stones of a wall.” He wished to die. Then the extent to which Christ loved him began to dawn on the teenager. He surrendered his life to Christ, and he would never be the same.

The young convert shared his Christian faith wherever he went. Vazakas’ testimony was so powerful that even merchants and the occasional Orthodox priest or monk would gather and listen to him. In the 1890s, while sharing his testimony, “he found himself unable to speak except as the Holy Spirit gave utterance.” He began speaking in a language that he did not learn — an experience that he reckoned to be similar to what he read about in the Bible.

Vazakas was a brilliant young man. By age 12 he could speak six languages — Greek, Russian, German, French, Spanish, and Bulgarian. As a teenager, he worked as a language tutor. When he immigrated to the United States in 1902, he immediately enrolled at New York University, where he earned his B.A. (1904). He went on to earn additional degrees at Union Theological Seminary (B.D., 1906), Columbia University (M.A., 1911), and the University of Chicago (Ph.D. in Philosophy of Religion and Humanities, 1927). His doctoral dissertation explored Greek language usage in the first 15 chapters of the Book of Acts. Between earning degrees, he also served as international secretary for the Y.M.C.A. for France and Greece.

The Greek academic taught for 27 years at Willamette University in Salem, Oregon, where he served as head of the department of modern languages. After retiring, he taught for short periods at three Christian colleges — Bethany College (a Lutheran school in Lindsborg, Kansas), Kansas City College and Bible School (affiliated with the Church of God [Holiness]), and the Holiness Bible Institute (Florida). The degree to which he emphasized his Pentecostal testimony while at these non-Pentecostal schools is unknown.

Finally, in 1958, Vazakas moved to Springfield, Missouri, where he taught Philosophy and Greek at Evangel College. The 1962 Pentecostal Evangel article noted that “the flame ignited in his heart by the Holy Spirit in the 1890s is still burning brightly.” Vazakas continued teaching at Evangel until his death in 1965 at the age of 91.

What can we learn from the life of Alexander Vazakas? Early American Pentecostals came from remarkably diverse backgrounds. Many were immigrants, and some had their own Pentecostal experiences prior to the revivals at Topeka (1901) and Azusa Street (1906-1909) in Los Angeles, which are frequently viewed as the beginning of the Pentecostal movement. Although Vazakas was not a credentialed minister, he nevertheless spent his life in active ministry and impacted countless people with his gospel witness. Furthermore, Vazakas’ impressive academic achievements run counter to the common assumption that early Pentecostals were anti-intellectual. And Vazakas’ stamina — the fact that he taught until his death at age 91 — shows that elderly Spirit-empowered believers still have much to offer to younger generations.

One of Vazakas’ students at Evangel was a young man named George O. Wood. Wood, former general superintendent of the Assemblies of God, still recalls Vazakas’ classes and quotes him in sermons from time to time. Never underestimate the long-ranging impact of a substantive and anointed witness.

Read the article, “The Pentecostal Professor from Thessalonica,” on pages 6-7 of the Sept. 2, 1962, issue of the Pentecostal Evangel.

Also featured in this issue:

• “A Chapel at the Devil’s Pit,” by Don Argue

• “From Thorns to Diadems,” by Anna Berg

• “Blessed Brokenness,” by D. H. McDowell

And many more!

Click here to read this issue now.

Pentecostal Evangel archived editions courtesy of Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center.

Do you have Pentecostal historical materials that should be preserved? Please consider depositing these materials at the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center (FPHC). The FPHC, located in the Assemblies of God national offices, is the largest Pentecostal archive in the world. We would like to preserve and make your treasures accessible to those who write the history books.

Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center
1445 North Boonville Avenue
Springfield, Missouri 65802 USA
Phone: 417.862.1447 ext. 4400
Toll Free: 877.840.5200
Email: archives@ag.org
Website: www.iFPHC.org

J. Robert Ashcroft’s Remarkable Warning from 1957 about Secularism, Statism, and Paganism

This Week in AG History — July 14, 1957

By Darrin J. Rodgers
Originally published on AG News, 16 July 2020

Sixty-three years ago, J. Robert Ashcroft delivered a remarkable address that encouraged the Assemblies of God to invest in Christian higher education. Pentecostals must train the next generation of “thinkers and doers,” he surmised, or lose their young to the forces of “selfism, secularism, (and) scientism.”

Ashcroft’s message, delivered at the 1957 commencement for Evangel College (now Evangel University), warned that family, church, and freedom were threatened by three emerging trends in society: secularism, statism, and paganism. All Americans, he noted, are subject to these societal pressures. It will be difficult, he predicted, for Christians to remain true to biblical values.

Secularism, the first trend that Ashcroft identified, results in the compartmentalization of religious beliefs from other daily activities. This runs counter to the Christian faith because, he noted, Christianity is concerned with “the whole of life.” While Ashcroft recognized a distinction between the secular and the sacred, he expressed concern that making the distinction “too severe” would harm both the secular and sacred elements.

A society that dispels the influence of religion impairs its ability to reflect deeply about morality and human need. Ashcroft noted that a society that jettisons religion ends up “sinking in a quagmire of immorality.” Ashcroft was quite clear: “Secularism leads to depravity.”

Statism, the second trend identified by Ashcroft, is when the state takes over most or all spheres of life, leaving little room for freedom of conscience. The state becomes the ultimate authority and the arbiter of morality. Ashcroft pointed to communism as typifying the statist approach. Statism undermines human dignity and freedom. “The individual must rise above statism,” he asserted, noting that Christians schools are an important bulwark for freedom.

Ashcroft identified paganism, the third trend, as “de-centered religion” — spirituality that de-emphasizes the person of Christ and biblical truths. “Orthodoxy and old-fashioned holiness,” Ashcroft noted, “are held up to ridicule while paganism and superficial religion are receiving the plaudits of men.”

How can Christians promote biblical values in a society that has drifted from its Christian roots? Ashcroft noted that many colleges and universities began as Christian institutions but over time drifted from their founding values and mission. A Christian heritage does not guarantee a Christian future. Christians must not reject higher education as ungodly, Ashcroft advised, and should instead work to develop institutions that reflect their values.

In his address, Ashcroft expressed a high calling for Evangel College — that it become “a true fountainhead of spiritual leadership, Christian character, and devoted orthodoxy.” This mission — that Assemblies of God schools serve as a training ground for reflective, faithful Christian leaders — remains a focus for the Fellowship 63 years later.

Read J. Robert Ashcroft’s commencement address, “A Call to Christian Service,” on pages 4-5 and 20-21 of the July 14, 1957, issue of the Pentecostal Evangel.

Also featured in this issue:

* “Let the Fire Fall!” by Bert Webb

* “Should Christians Drink? Smoke?” by Betty Stirling

Click here to read this issue now.

Pentecostal Evangel archived editions courtesy of the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center.

Do you have Pentecostal historical materials that should be preserved? Please consider depositing these materials at the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center (FPHC). The FPHC, located in the Assemblies of God national offices, is the largest Pentecostal archive in the world. We would like to preserve and make your treasures accessible to those who write the history books.

Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center
1445 North Boonville Avenue
Springfield, Missouri 65802 USA
Phone: 417.862.1447 ext. 4400
Toll Free: 877.840.5200
Email: archives@ag.org
Website: www.iFPHC.org

Harold and Beatrice Kohl: Pioneer Assemblies of God Missionary Educators

This Week in AG History — July 3, 1966

By Ruthie Edgerly Oberg
Originally published on AG News, AG News, 2 July 2020

Harold Kohl (1923-2005) and Beatrice Wells Kohl (1926 – ) faithfully served the Assemblies of God as evangelists, pastors, missionaries, and educators. Beatrice began her ministry as a 9-year-old child evangelist and met Harold when his youth group hosted her 15th birthday party during revival services she was conducting at his church in Elizabeth, New Jersey. They struck up a conversation that led to a marriage and more than 50 years of ministry together.

Both Harold and Beatrice felt a call to ministry at the time of their respective baptisms in the Holy Spirit. After their marriage in 1946, they began traveling as evangelists and served as D-CAP (District Christ’s Ambassadors President) of the Potomac district’s youth organization. In 1948 they accepted the pastorate at Kitzmiller, Maryland. After two years of prosperous ministry, both Harold and Beatrice felt impressed of God to resign their church, but neither sensed what they were to do next.

In an act of difficult obedience, Harold tendered his resignation on a Wednesday evening and the couple walked into their rented home that evening and immediately knelt at the sofa to ask the Lord for clarity on what they were to do next. Neither of them felt a confidence in their next step.

On Saturday evening, a letter arrived from Derrick Hillary, missionary in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka). His wife, Dorcas, was very ill and he felt that their term would be cut short. The Kohls had worked hard to raise money for a Speed the Light vehicle for them and Hillary felt impressed that God was calling the Kohls to take their place. He asked if they were willing to begin the process immediately to devote five years of their lives to missionary work in Ceylon.

After praying together, Harold and Beatrice filled out the paperwork, met with the Division of Foreign Missions (now AG World Missions), were accepted, and began their itineration to raise support. There was an urgent need, and God blessed them, and they were able to raise all their funds within four months! The Kohls served in Ceylon for five years as pastors, evangelists, and radio broadcasters, and oversaw the development of evangelistic and training literature.

After their term was up in 1956, they returned to the United States to serve in pastoral and church planting ministry in New Jersey. During a powerful move of God in a Sunday evening service in 1962, Harold and Beatrice felt again the call from God to resign their church and prepare for a return to missionary service. After several weeks of prayer, Harold called Maynard Ketcham, Asia field director, and asked him to pray with them for direction.

Meanwhile, Ketcham was praying about a need in his region. Several Bible institutes were training ministers; however, the schools were dependent on missionaries to serve as faculty. Ketcham saw the need for an indigenous church with administration and faculty of the schools in the hands of national leaders. Many of their ministers were going to non-Pentecostal schools and returned with views at variance to Pentecostalism. Others were traveling to the West for education and staying in the United States or Europe after receiving their education. Ketcham had the vision for an advanced international training school that would be thoroughly Pentecostal and rigorously academic. After praying about it, Ketcham contacted the Kohls to ask them if they would be interested in taking on this task.

Harold and Beatrice arrived in the Philippines in March 1963. Together with Ketcham, they invited various regional Assemblies of God organizations to send representatives to a meeting designed to plan the shape of the proposed new school. Representatives from Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Burma, and the Marshall Islands formed the Far East Bible School Administrative Committee, of which Harold Kohl served as chair.

It was agreed that the new school should be located on the grounds of Bethel Bible Institute in Malinta, Valenzuela, a suburb of Manila, and that it should be named Far East Advanced School of Theology (FEAST). Classes began in Harold Kohl’s office in the Fall of 1963, with five students completing the first semester. The first building was dedicated debt-free in 1964.

Beatrice set to work building a library for the new school. She took classes in Library Science and beginning in 1964, the Boys and Girls Missionary Crusade (BGMC) contributed a substantial amount of money for the development of the FEAST library. The Kohls managed the business of the school, recruited faculty and students, and worked to receive government permission for international students to receive visas to study in the Philippines. During this time, Harold also completed a Master of Arts degree in Education from New York University, and Beatrice attended Philippine Women’s College in Manila.

In an article in the July 3, 1966, issue of the Pentecostal Evangel, Harold wrote, “Bible schools have given necessary stability and continuing thrust to the work of the Church in the Philippines.” He referenced FEAST as “a new venture of faith” whose “purpose is to help ministers who have completed regular Bible school training prepare for Christian leadership and Bible school teaching.”

In 1973, Harold and Beatrice joined the International Correspondence Institute (ICI, now known as Global University) in Brussels, Belgium, developing its college division degree. Harold served as chair of the Academic Affairs Committee and Beatrice served as librarian. Aside from a year long stint as president of the Full Gospel Theological Seminary in Seoul, Korea, the Kohls continued to serve both ICI and FEAST until their retirement in 1993.

Over the years, FEAST moved from Manila to its own beautiful campus in Baguio City. Its name has been changed to Asia Pacific Theological Seminary and it now offers masters degrees and a Doctor of Ministry program. It is considered one of the finest centers of theological education in Asia.

Read Harold Kohl’s report, “Bible School Bias” on page 8 of the July 3, 1966, issue of the Pentecostal Evangel.

Also featured in this issue:

• “What Darkness Cannot Dim” by Joseph Sizoo

• “Trophy of Divine Grace” by Eunice Myrah

• “I Heard the Angels Sing” by Arthur F. Berg

And many more!

Click here to read this issue now.

Pentecostal Evangel archived editions courtesy of the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center.

Do you have Pentecostal historical materials that should be preserved? Please consider depositing these materials at the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center (FPHC). The FPHC, located in the Assemblies of God national offices, is the largest Pentecostal archive in the world. We would like to preserve and make your treasures accessible to those who write the history books.

Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center
1445 North Boonville Avenue
Springfield, Missouri 65802 USA
Phone: 417.862.1447 ext. 4400
Toll Free: 877.840.5200
Email: archives@ag.org
Website: www.iFPHC.org

P.C. Nelson’s 1934 Plea for Liberal Arts Education in the Assemblies of God

This Week in AG History — June 16, 1934

By Darrin J. Rodgers
Originally published on AG News, 18 June 2020

Peter C. (P. C.) Nelson, an Assemblies of God educator and theologian, made an eloquent plea for Pentecostal schools to develop curriculum in the liberal arts and to train students for non-ministry vocations in a 1934 Pentecostal Evangel article. Up to that point, all Assemblies of God colleges focused on the training of people for ministry. Nelson noted that increasing numbers of Assemblies of God young people have an “anointing of the Spirit for doing a worthy work in other fields besides that of the ministry.”

Nelson warned readers that the “moral and spiritual conditions in most schools and colleges” cause many Pentecostal young people to abandon the faith. “If we want our young people to remain loyal to our Movement,” Nelson wrote, “our Fellowship must provide instruction for them along all branches of study.” He envisioned new courses that would train teachers, musicians, businesspeople, stenographers, accountants, engineers, architects, carpenters, masons, auto mechanics, and printers.

Where would this new liberal arts school be located? Nelson suggested that Central Bible College, the national ministerial training school of the Assemblies of God, located in Springfield, Missouri, would be an ideal location. He recommended that its facilities be enlarged so that it could train even more ministers and also add a liberal arts curriculum.

Nelson was not alone in his support for the development of Pentecostal liberal arts education. His article received the unanimous support of the Executive Presbytery. There was a growing recognition that the Assemblies of God should develop educational programs for training young people in fields other than vocational ministry. Nelson began his article by pointing out that the Assemblies of God constitution, adopted in 1927, included the following paragraph: “The General Council shall be in sympathy with the establishment and maintenance of academic schools for the children of our constituency.”

Although Nelson did not mention it in his article, this vision for a Pentecostal liberal arts curriculum dated back to the founding of the Assemblies of God. The “Call to Hot Springs” — the open invitation to all Pentecostal “elders, pastors, ministers, evangelists, and missionaries” to attend the first General Council of the Assemblies of God — enumerated five purposes for the meeting. The fifth purpose was “to lay before the body for a General Bible Training School with a literary department for our people.” The phrase “literary department” was a 19^th– and early-20^th-century term that roughly corresponds to “liberal arts” today.

Nelson’s call for Central Bible College to train ministers alongside laypersons was not realized during his lifetime. However, other Assemblies of God Bible schools began expanding their curriculum. North Central Bible Institute (now North Central University, Minneapolis, Minnesota) added a two-year business college in 1938. Southwestern Bible College (now Southwestern Assemblies of God University, Waxahachie, Texas), the school founded by Nelson, opened a junior college in 1944. Northwest Bible Institute (now Northwest University, Kirkland, Washington) also added a junior college in 1955. That same year, the Assemblies of God established its new national liberal arts school, Evangel College (now Evangel University), in Springfield, Missouri.

Nelson encouraged readers to invest in Assemblies of God young people who possess “real sterling character, native ability, and spirituality.” The value of Pentecostal schools, asserted Nelson, “exceeds the cost…No investment will pay a larger dividend.”

Read the entire article by P. C. Nelson, “Enlarging Our Educational Facilities,” on page 7 of the June 16, 1934, issue of the Pentecostal Evangel.

Also featured in this issue:

• “Finishing Our Course,” by Zelma Argue

• “Are the Gifts of the Spirit for Today?” by Otto J. Klink

And many more!

Click here to read this issue now.

Pentecostal Evangel archived editions courtesy of the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center.

Do you have Pentecostal historical materials that should be preserved? Please consider depositing these materials at the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center (FPHC). The FPHC, located in the Assemblies of God national offices, is the largest Pentecostal archive in the world. We would like to preserve and make your treasures accessible to those who write the history books.

Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center
1445 North Boonville Avenue
Springfield, Missouri 65802 USA
Phone: 417.862.1447 ext. 4400
Toll Free: 877.840.5200
Email: archives@ag.org
Website: www.iFPHC.org

From FEAST to APTS: 55 Years of Assemblies of God Advanced Theological Education in the Philippines

This Week in AG History — January 24, 1965

By Glenn W. Gohr
Originally published on AG News, 23 January 2019

This week we commemorate the founding of Asia Pacific Theological Seminary (APTS) in the Philippines, which was originally called the Far East Advanced School of Theology (FEAST).

Through the years a number of Bible institutes were established in the Far East, but there was a need for advanced education for pastors and teachers. The Far East Conference of the Assemblies of God met in Hong Kong in 1960 and strongly urged the establishment of an advanced school of theology to serve the entire area of the Far East. Several years of careful planning followed, directed largely by Maynard Ketcham, field secretary for the U.S. Assemblies of God for the Far East.

Far East Advanced School of Theology (FEAST) became a reality in 1964, with Harold Kohl as the founding president and Derick Hillary as the first dean. This school marked an important step in Far East missions for the Assemblies of God.

Groundbreaking was held on Oct. 13, 1964, with messages from missionaries Harold Kohl and Derrick Hillary. Kenneth McComber, field fellowship chairman, and Rudy Esperanza, general superintendent of the Assemblies of God in the Philippines, assisted with the sod turning for the groundbreaking. The first building was constructed on the campus of Bethel Bible Institute in Manila. It served as the administration building and also offered housing for students and classrooms.

The curriculum of the school was originally structured to accommodate Assemblies of God ministers and Christian workers who had completed only a three-year Bible institute program. Bachelor of Arts degrees in Biblical Studies and Religious Education (four-year degrees), and a five-year Bachelor of Theology degree were offered.

In 1978 the program was expanded to include master’s degrees in Biblical Studies and Christian Education. The Master of Divinity degree program was added in 1982.

In 1985, property was purchased in Baguio City, Philippines, to provide a permanent campus for the school. Operations were moved to the new site in October 1986. In the years that followed, a number of buildings were erected on the new campus to house the growing student body and academic programs.

The name was changed from Far East Advanced School of Theology to Asia Pacific Theological Seminary (APTS) in 1989 to better reflect the nature of the school in offering graduate degrees in theology.

In addition to the classes offered on the campus of APTS, courses are taught in extension centers in several Asia Pacific countries. More than 3,000 students have studied in APTS extension classes held on multiple international locations in the Asia-Pacific region.

Fifty-five years ago, missionary Derrick Hillary wrote about the first student body, which was made up of pastors and teachers. “Able to choose from more than 80 universities and colleges,” reported Hillary, “they have elected instead to come to FEAST and share its humble beginnings because they prize their Pentecostal heritage.”

The school’s original motto was “Zeal With Wisdom.” The motto has since been changed to “Zeal With Knowledge.” APTS was founded with the purpose of educating leaders who would be in the forefront of the expansion of the Pentecostal movement throughout the Asia Pacific region. The school promotes scholastic ability as well as the fire and zeal of Pentecost.

Read “Zeal With Wisdom, ” by Derrick Hillary on page 14 and 15 of the Jan. 24, 1965, issue of the Pentecostal Evangel.

Also featured in this issue:

• “Evangelism in the Home,” by J. F. Culpepper

• “We Camped With the Christian Gypsies,” by Evelyn M. Ford

• “Highway Tabernacle Marks Its Seventieth Anniversary,” by W. Howard Roberson

And many more!

Click here to read this issue now.

Pentecostal Evangel archived editions courtesy of the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center.

Do you have Pentecostal historical materials that should be preserved? Please consider depositing these materials at the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center (FPHC). The FPHC, located in the Assemblies of God national offices, is the largest Pentecostal archive in the world. We would like to preserve and make your treasures accessible to those who write the history books.

Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center
1445 North Boonville Avenue
Springfield, Missouri 65802 USA
Phone: 417.862.1447 ext. 4400
Toll Free: 877.840.5200
Email: archives@ag.org
Website: www.iFPHC.org

97 Years Ago: Central Bible Institute Opened in Springfield, Missouri

Faculty and students of Central Bible Institute, second class, 1923-1924, in front of Central Assembly of God, Springfield, Missouri; spring 1924

This Week in AG History — September 30, 1922

By Ruthie Edgerly Oberg
Originally published on AG News, 03 October 2019

The founding of the Assemblies of God in 1914 was marked by an emphasis upon the need for the training of ministers and missionaries. Eight years later, the Sept. 30, 1922, issue of the Pentecostal Evangel announced the opening of Central Bible Institute (CBI, later Central Bible College) in Springfield, Missouri, to address that need.

Local efforts to establish ministerial training schools had been undertaken in various parts of the country. However, it was soon determined that individual effort could never hope to achieve the results possible through united endeavors.

The first ministerial training school owned and operated by the General Council of the Assemblies of God opened its doors in 1920 in the small town of Auburn, Nebraska. Midwest Bible School remained open for only one year. The school’s remote location made it difficult to attract faculty or to provide jobs for students.

Assemblies of God leaders sought a more suitable location to establish a new school. In the summer of 1922, they decided to locate the school in Springfield. D. W. Kerr and his son-in-law, Willard Peirce, offered themselves for this work. Just six years earlier, Kerr served as the primary drafter of the Statement of Fundamental Truths. Kerr and Peirce had a track record of stabilizing educational institutions and had set Assemblies of God schools in Los Angeles and San Francisco on sure footing. They moved to Springfield to form the nucleus of the faculty and management of CBI.

It was felt that the move to Springfield, the new headquarters city of the General Council, afforded this new school several advantages. Close proximity to the executive leadership would provide counsel and oversight. The Fellowship’s paper, the Pentecostal Evangel, would offer information and publicity. Ministers and missionaries traveling to the area would be available for encouragement and example for the student body.

Outside of those advantages there were few other expedient assets to offer to the fledgling school. There were no buildings or dormitories available. The Fellowship had followed a “pay as you go” policy and there was little willingness to shoulder debt for new buildings. All there was to offer to Kerr was the basement of a local church, Central Assembly of God on the corner of Campbell and Calhoun Streets, and the homes of church members who were willing to house students.

Kerr and his team set about plastering and painting the basement rooms to prepare for the influx of the first class of students, numbering about 50. They fitted out one classroom, a kitchen, a dining area, and office. Kerr admitted in the Evangel’s announcement, “While we are necessarily crowded and handicapped in our limited temporary quarters, yet we are sure of the continued blessings of God on these humble beginnings … great oaks from little acorns grow.” Kerr encouraged contributions for the young people studying for ministry as “two hundred and fifty dollars will support a student for one school year, meeting all expenses.”

Two years later, 15 acres on the northern outskirts of the city had been secured through the generous donations of local businessmen. Three of the leaders, Kerr, J. W. Welch, and E. N. Bell, knelt in prayer on this tract of land at North Grant Avenue, consecrating it to God for the “training of ministers and missionaries.”

With the funds in hand and further offerings received in response to appeals made through the Pentecostal Evangel, the first building was erected in 1924 and a student body of 106 moved onto the new campus. Adding to its growth was the merging of other smaller schools, such as Bethel Bible Training Institute of Newark, New Jersey, in 1929, with the Springfield school.

Kerr later testified that he had some misgivings whether the project would be successful, given its meager beginnings in 1922, but he felt the Lord ask him as He did Moses, “What has thou in thine hand?” He responded, “Just a basement, Lord!” He felt the assurance that the same Lord who wrought wonders with Moses’ staff would be faithful to do great things with that tiny basement school at Central Assembly of God.

The history of the Pentecostal movement can testify to God’s faithfulness as the graduates of Central Bible Institute and Central Bible College (now consolidated with Evangel University and Assemblies of God Theological Seminary) continue to provide the Assemblies of God with thousands of pastors, evangelists, missionaries, and teachers impacting the world with the Pentecostal message they were taught in the classrooms of the basement at Central Assembly, the campus at 3000 North Grant, and the current university on North Glenstone.

Read Kerr’s announcement about CBI on page 4 of the Sept. 30, 1922, issue of the Pentecostal Evangel.

Also featured in this issue:

• “Be Filled with the Spirit” by W.T. Gaston

• “Questions and Answers” by E.N. Bell

• “A New Heavens and A New Earth” by S.A. Jamieson

And many more!

Click here to read this issue now.

Pentecostal Evangel archived editions courtesy of the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center.

Do you have Pentecostal historical materials that should be preserved? Please consider depositing these materials at the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center (FPHC). The FPHC, located in the Assemblies of God national offices, is the largest Pentecostal archive in the world. We would like to preserve and make your treasures accessible to those who write the history books.

Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center
1445 North Boonville Avenue
Springfield, Missouri 65802 USA
Phone: 417.862.1447 ext. 4400
Toll Free: 877.840.5200
Email: archives@ag.org
Website: iFPHC.org

Introducing HECHOS, a New Scholarly Online Pentecostal Journal in Spanish

On January 1, 2019, Miguel Alvarez (Honduras) and Geir Lie (Norway) launched a new online journal in the Spanish language, HECHOS.

HECHOS aims to publish scholarly articles pertaining to Pentecostalism, particularly from theological, historical, social and missiological angles.

Miguel Alvarez graduated from the Oxford Center for Mission Studies in England and is a professor at Regent University. He is the author of several books, including Integral Mission: A New Paradigm for Latin American Pentecostals (Wipf & Stock, 2016) and Beyond Borders: New Contexts of Mission in Latin America (CPT Press, 2017).

Geir Lie is a graduate of the Norwegian School of Theology, Religion and Society in Norway. He is one of the foremost historians of Norwegian Pentecostalism and has authored seven books in Norwegian, English, and Spanish. He founded a scholarly journal, Refleks, which published 11 issues from 2002 to 2009. Issues of Refleks are accessible on the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center website. In recent years, Lie has focused his scholarly interests on Spanish and Portuguese speaking Pentecostals.   His most recent volume is Entiendes lo que Lees? Una Introduccion al Nuevo Testamento (Publicaciones Kerigma, 2018).

The inaugural issue of HECHOS is accessible on the Akademia forlag website. The table of contents is below:

“Editorial”, 1.

Miguel Álvarez, “Contextualización en la hermenéutica latina”, 3-16.

Bernardo Campos, “Aspectos fundamentales en la teología pentecostal”, 17-29.

Geir Lie, “T.B. Barratt y el origen de su concepto de ‘lenguas misioneras’”, 31-45.

Daniel Orlando Álvarez, “Integridad de las Escrituras: Transformando las futuras generaciones”, 47-64.

Darío López Rodríguez, “Pentecostalismo y espacio público: Vida en el Espíritu. Política, Ciudanía e Incidencia Pública”, 65-80.

Carmelo E. Álvarez, “Ecumenismo del Espíritu: Voces pentecostales latinoamericanas y caribeñas”, 81-97.

UPDATE (Jan 16, 2019): HECHOS is now also available in hard copy from amazon.com.

American Indian College: New Campus Dedicated 50 Years Ago

This Week in AG History — April 28, 1968

By Glenn W. Gohr
Originally published on AG News, 26 April 2018 

Southwestern Assemblies of God University (SAGU) American Indian College was founded Sept. 23, 1957, by Alta M. Washburn and her husband Clarence, under the name All Tribes Indian Bible School. They saw a great need to prepare Native Americans for church ministry. Classes first met on the church campus of All Tribes Assembly of God in downtown Phoenix. In 1967 the school was renamed American Indian Bible Institute (AIBI) and became a regional school of the Assemblies of God.

The school dedicated its current 10-acre site in a north Phoenix neighborhood in 1968. The Pentecostal Evangel reported that a number of district and national officials as well as staff members and students of the school, home missionaries, and friends from several states gathered for the dedication service.

It was an outdoor convocation held near the base of a towering lava hill in northeast Phoenix. Curtis W. Ringness, national secretary of the Home Missions Department, was master of ceremonies. The all-Indian AIBI choir sang several special songs for the dedication, and each member gave a brief, inspiring testimony. Eleven North American tribes from six states were represented in the school’s choir.

Charles W. H. Scott, executive director of Home Missions and chairman of the board of directors of the school, was the guest speaker. In his message titled “Vision and Task,” he challenged those in attendance “to believe God for the erection of needed buildings on the new site.” He reminded the audience that both vision and task was necessary to carry the building program through to completion. “A vision is but a fleeting dream without undertaking actual labor,” said Scott. “The task is just drudgery without a real vision.

Scott said he was anxious to see a classroom building constructed on the very place where the dedication was being held. He appealed to those in attendance to pray with him for the fulfillment of that desire. He reported on the progress of the Institute, mentioning among other things that an architect had been appointed by the school board to prepare the first blueprints for construction. Two dormitories, a dining hall-kitchen complex, and a classroom building were planned for the first phase of the relocation. Additional funds were needed to pay for the property as well as the new construction. A group called Friends of Indian Missions was dedicated to help with the fundraising efforts

The move to the new campus was completed in 1970. Just as Scott had envisioned, the main building for the school was erected in front of the towering lava hill, where the dedication service had been held two years earlier.

The school changed its name from AIBI to American Indian Bible College in 1982. The college received regional accreditation in 1988 and later changed its name to American Indian College of the Assemblies of God (AIC) in 1994. In 2016, AIC partnered with SAGU, Waxahachie, Texas, becoming SAGU American Indian College. It is one of 17 endorsed schools of higher education in the Assemblies of God.

Read the article, “New Campus Site for Indian Bible School Dedication,” on pages 14-15 of the April 28, 1968, issue of the Pentecostal Evangel.

Also featured in this issue:

• “The Verdict,” by Revivaltime Evangelist C. M. Ward

• “God Is for Squares,” by David Wilkerson

• “Strong Crying and Tears,” by Evangelist Arne Vick

And many more!

Click here to read this issue now.

Pentecostal Evangel archived editions courtesy of the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center.

Do you have Pentecostal historical materials that should be preserved? Please consider depositing these materials at the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center (FPHC). The FPHC, located in the Assemblies of God national offices, is the largest Pentecostal archive in the world. We would like to preserve and make your treasures accessible to those who write the history books.

Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center
1445 North Boonville Avenue
Springfield, Missouri 65802 USA
Phone: 417.862.1447 ext. 4400
Toll Free: 877.840.5200
Email: archives@ag.org
Website: www.iFPHC.org

Ruthie Oberg on the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation

Reformation Day Chapel from Assemblies of God USA on Vimeo.

Rev. Ruthie Oberg was the featured speaker for a celebration of the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation at the Assemblies of God National Office chapel in Springfield, Missouri, on October 31, 2017. Watch her rousing history lesson above.

Ruthie Oberg, an events speaker with the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center, is available to speak at your church or district function. Ruthie’s sermons and presentations about Pentecostal history are educational, entertaining, inspirational, and convicting.

Ruthie is an ordained Assemblies of God minister and has served in senior and associate pastoral roles for 25 years. She speaks at national conferences and has also produced a daily radio program. Her articles have appeared in the Pentecostal Evangel, Enrichment, and Assemblies of God Heritage, and she is a regular contributor to “This Week in AG History” for AG News.

Invite Ruthie Oberg for a Sunday service, weekend training event, or special historical celebration.  Schedule a service by calling the Heritage Center at 877-840-5200 or emailing roberg@ag.org.

____________________________

Do you have Pentecostal historical materials that should be preserved? Please consider depositing these materials at the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center (FPHC). The FPHC, located in the Assemblies of God national offices, is the largest Pentecostal archive in the world. We would like to preserve and make your treasures accessible to those who write the history books.

Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center
1445 North Boonville Avenue
Springfield, Missouri 65802 USA
Phone: 417.862.1447 ext. 4400
Toll Free: 877.840.5200
Email: archives@ag.org
Website: www.iFPHC.org

 

Henry H. Ness: The Norwegian Immigrant Who Became an Influential Assemblies of God Pastor and Educator

Henry H. Ness (right) and Ed Eliason traveled together as Assemblies of God evangelists in the 1920s. They were called the ‘Banjo Twins.’

This Week in AG History — March 22, 1970

By Darrin J. Rodgers
Originally published on AG News, 22 March 2018

Henry H. Ness (1894-1970) immigrated to America in search of wealth and opportunity. When he dedicated his life to Christ in the 1920s, however, his focus changed from accumulation of wealth to sharing the gospel. He followed God’s call into the ministry and became an influential Assemblies of God pastor and educator.

Ness was born in Kristiania (Oslo), the capital city of Norway. His parents were devout Christians and were members of the Filadelfia Church, the first Pentecostal congregation in that country. Ness knew the power of God from firsthand experience. He grew up in the midst of the emerging Pentecostal revival, and he spent much of his free time during his teenage years in prayer meetings and church services.

Like many of his friends, Ness felt the lure of America. From 1820 to 1920, about 720,000 Norwegians immigrated to the United States. That was a sizeable portion of the nation, as Norway had a population of 2,653,024 in 1920. In 1911, when Ness was only 17 years old, he left Norway and set sail for America.

Ness initially settled in Chicago and then moved to Minneapolis, where he operated his own drug store. After several years, he sold the business and took a job with Standard Oil Company, where he was promoted several times and held a good position. In 1919, Ness married a young Danish immigrant, Anna, and they began a family together. They were living the American dream.

In his rush to achieve success, Ness neglected his spiritual life. He replaced the heart-felt Christian faith of his Norwegian upbringing with American materialism. Deep inside, he knew that he needed to get right with God, but he suppressed the sense of conviction he felt from the Holy Spirit. He became consumed with the daily activities of life and did not have time for God.

One Sunday evening in the early 1920s, Anna attended a Pentecostal service in Minneapolis and committed herself to God. She came home with a radiant countenance, exclaiming to her husband, “I am saved! Oh, I am saved! You too must be saved. It is so wonderful!” Ness could tell that she had a genuine conversion experience. Anna’s newfound faith brought back memories of the early Pentecostal revival in Norway. Two weeks later, Ness knelt down in his home and consecrated himself to the Lord.

Ness felt called to the ministry and, in 1925, he accepted the pastorate of a small Assemblies of God church in Brainerd, Minnesota. The following year, he moved to Fargo, North Dakota, where he pioneered Fargo Gospel Tabernacle (later First Assembly of God). Ness related well to the city’s large population of Scandinavian immigrants. During the seven years of his Fargo pastorate, the church grew to 500 members. He united several groups of Pentecostals in the region, including a group of former members of the Swedish Free Mission in neighboring Moorhead, Minnesota, where people began experiencing the gift of speaking in tongues in the 1890s. Ness documented the story of this early Scandinavian-American Pentecostal revival in his book, Demonstration of the Holy Spirit.

In 1933, Ness accepted a call to pastor another congregation of Scandinavian immigrants – Hollywood Temple, located in Seattle, Washington. The congregation emerged from a Pentecostal revival among Baptist churches in Seattle in the early 1920s. Founded in 1927 by former members of Elim Swedish Baptist Church, the new congregation was initially called Hollywood Temple Full Gospel Baptist Church (now Calvary Christian Assembly).

Ness led the congregation to affiliate with the Assemblies of God in January 1934. Later that year, he founded Northwest Bible Institute (now Northwest University), which was initially located on the church property. The college flourished, and the church planted several daughter congregations across the area. He served as pastor and college president until 1948, when he was appointed by the Governor to be chairman of the Washington State Board of Prison Terms and Paroles, a position he held for six years. Ness was a respected minister and community leader. He authored several books, including the widely-read Dunamis and the Church (GPH, 1968).

Ness parlayed his background as an immigrant into a platform for building bridges across the religious and national divides. Following World War II, he made frequent trips to other nations and met with religious and political leaders. His obituary in the Pentecostal Evangel noted that Ness had a 30-minute private audience with Pope Pius XII, which helped win religious freedom for the Assemblies of God in Italy.

When Henry H. Ness went to be with the Lord in 1970, he left behind numerous institutions and countless people impacted by his extensive ministry. The young Norwegian immigrant had turned from a life of materialism, consecrating himself to God. Instead of building his own kingdom, Ness helped to build the kingdom of God.

Read Henry H. Ness’s obituary on page 28 of the March 22, 1970, issue of the Pentecostal Evangel.

Also featured in this issue:

• “A Corn of Wheat Must Die,” by William F. P. Burton

• “Pressures on the Church,” by C. M. Ward

• “What Chi Alpha Means,” by Johnny Davidson

And many more!

Click here to read this issue now.

Pentecostal Evangel archived editions courtesy of the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center.

Do you have Pentecostal historical materials that should be preserved? Please consider depositing these materials at the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center (FPHC). The FPHC, located in the Assemblies of God national offices, is the largest Pentecostal archive in the world. We would like to preserve and make your treasures accessible to those who write the history books.

Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center
1445 North Boonville Avenue
Springfield, Missouri 65802 USA
Phone: 417.862.1447 ext. 4400
Toll Free: 877.840.5200
Email: archives@ag.org
Website: www.iFPHC.org