Review: Chit-Chat

Chit-Chat, by Dorothy Fae (Tubbs) Noah; edited by J. Naaman Hall. Springfield, MO: J. Naaman Hall, 2010.

Chit-Chat, by Mrs. Dorothy Noah, is a behind-the-scenes look at the people and goings on at Oak Cliff Assembly in Dallas during the last eight years that her husband, H. C. Noah, pastored the church (1970-1978). Each week in the church bulletin she would report on bits and pieces of news regarding various people and families in the church. She recorded engagements, weddings, births, deaths, visitors, and many humorous events in the daily lives of the church family. She maintained the idea that a church is not just composed of a pastor, or a few leaders, but the entire body itself. This is not just a running diary of events. It is a heart-felt retelling (told in conversational style) of important happenings among the Oak Cliff family over several years. In addition to the “chit-chat,” the book includes a chapter on how the Noahs met (written by their daughter), a memoir by Sister Noah, a farewell column written just before the Noahs retired as pastors, photographs from the 1970s, and an index of names. For those who were members of this well-known church in the Assemblies of God or have some familiarity with the church or any of its members, it will bring to life many interesting happenings from the past.

This is part two in a trilogy of books that center around Oak Cliff Assembly of God in Dallas, Texas (now The Oaks Fellowship). The first book, produced by J. Naaman Hall in 2009, is called “And the Latter Days.” It is an excellent history of Oak Cliff Assembly, not only covering important events, pastors, and people connected with the church, but it also relates to the broader Pentecostal movement.

The third book in the series will include additional historical photographs, along with further stories and memories of people from Oak Cliff’s rich history, culled from the collected volumes of The Old Fashioned Camp Meeting Newsletter, an email newsletter that has gone out to past members of Oak Cliff Assembly for over five years.

Reviewed by Glenn W. Gohr

The first two books in the trilogy are available from: John Hall, 209 North Summit St., Red Oak, Texas 75154:

“And the Latter Days.” Softcover, illustrated, 424 pages. $24.90 (includes shipping).
Chit-Chat. Softcover, illustrated, 392 pages. $25.00 (includes shipping).

Review: And the Latter Days…

And the Latter Days…: A History of Oak Cliff Assembly of God…, by J. Naaman Hall. Springfield, MO: the author, 2009.

Oak Cliff Assembly of Dallas, Texas (now The Oaks Fellowship) holds a significant role in the history of the Assemblies of God. Beginning in 1909, evangelists such as F. F. Bosworth, Elias Birdsall, and Maria Woodworth-Etter held revivals in Dallas which helped to lay the foundation for the Oak Cliff congregation. Some of the early members of the church had earlier connections with Charles Parham’s Apostolic Faith movement, the Azusa revival, John Alexander Dowie’s movement, and the organizational meeting of the Assemblies of God.

The church officially began in 1921 under the ministry of evangelist Bill Barney Boland. Some of the later pastors included George Washington Pitts; Milton Summers; Finis Dake; Eddie Coyle; Clifford Andrews; J. C. Hibbard; Carl Alcorn; the much-beloved H. C. Noah, who pastored the church for more than three decades; David Godwin; Allen Groff; and current pastors Tom Wilson and his son, Scott Wilson.

Key people such as evangelists Aimee Semple McPherson, Anna B. Lock, Mildred Wicks, O. L. Jaggers, William Branham, Raymond T. Richey, W. V. Grant, Morris Cerullo, Oral Roberts, Gordon Lindsay, Jack Coe, and A. A. Allen each had an influence on the Oak Cliff congregation in its early years. Musical groups, missionaries, and evangelists such as David Nunn, Sara Sharp and Jerry B. Walker ministered at the church in more recent times.

The church has always been one of the top in Sunday school attendance and world missionary giving. Oak Cliff also helped to host the 1935 and 1969 General Councils which were held in Dallas.

The author has done a thorough job of researching the history of this vital congregation which has connections and ties with many important people in the Assemblies of God and the broader Pentecostal movement. The book is full of interesting testimonies as well as sketches of pastors and founding families of the church. It also includes photographs, bibliographical references, and an index.

Reviewed by Glenn Gohr

Paperback, 424 pages. Available for $20.00 each plus $3.00 shipping and $1.90 sales tax. Send $24.90 by check or money order to: John Hall, 209 North Summit St., Red Oak, TX 75154.

Juanita Bruhn (1917-2007), former director of Hillcrest Children’s Home, passes away

Juanita E. Bruhn, wife of the late Rev. Herbert Bruhn, passed away on Thursday, January 25, 2007 at Cape Girardeau, Missouri, at the age of 89. The Bruhns were ministers and missionaries with the Assemblies of God, pastoring churches at Festus, Chaffee, St. Louis, East Prairie, Jackson, Whitewater, and Perryville, Missouri. They also were missionaries in Alaska at the end of World War II and were directors for Hillcrest Children’s Home in Hot Springs, Arkansas, from 1957-1966.

Her obituary appeared in the Southeast Missourian, Friday, January 26, 2007.

The Bruhns were featured in AG Heritage, Winter 1995-96.

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