Table of Contents

Eighty-Five Years Ago

(continued from Part One)

The Church of God in Christ met in Meridian, Mississippi, in June of 1913. By this time the merger seemed to have been complete, for in a subsequent ministerial list assembled by the credentials committee of this convention, the names of the 352 members show the leadership of both groups within one church. Arch P. Collins of Fort Worth, E.N. Bell of Malvern, H.A. Goss of Hot Springs, and D.C.O. Opperman constituted the new credentials committee. Brother Collins had the honor of administering the ordinance of water baptism to R.M. Riggs.

During the summer of 1912, while attending the Interstate Camp Meeting at Eureka Springs, Arkansas, M.M. Pinson, editor of Word and Witness, and E.N. Bell, editor of Apostolic Faith, decided to join forces. Taking the name of the former and the format of the latter, Bell began publishing Word and Witness at Malvern, Arkansas. Subsequent issues speak of the Church of God in Christ and gradually omit reference to the Apostolic Faith group. An advertisement in the October 20, 1913, issue urges all ministers of “The Churches of God in Christ” to report their ordination papers so as to be included in the official list for clergy certificates. It appears that by late 1913, this organization had taken definite shape.

To list the 352 members in this early Pentecostal organization is impossible in this article, but a few familiar names will indicate its influence on the Assemblies of God: Clyde Bailey, “Mother” Mary Barnes, Harry Bowley, Herbert Buffum, Hugh Cadwalder, A.B. Cox, W.T. Gaston, John Goben, C.A. Lasater, Agnes Ozman LaBerg, B.F. Lawrence, Fred Lohman, Burt McCafferty, Jacob Miller, M.M. Pinson, L.E. Riley, J.W. Welch, and R.E. Winsett.

And so 1913 came to a close. Only one important event of the year was yet to occur. On December 20, 1913, the Word and Witness was to issue the now-famous call for a general council of Pentecostal ministers to convene in Hot Springs in the spring of 1914—the call that culminated in the founding of the Assemblies of God.

Several of the leaders within the Churches of God in Christ felt that the need for missionary solidarity and for some means of protecting local churches demanded a more definite organic tie between the various Pentecostal groups across the country.

Late in the fall of 1913, H.A. Goss, pastor at Hot Springs, discussed the matter at length with E.N. Bell, editor of Word and Witness. Since Brother Goss had leased the Grand Opera House in Hot Springs, they decided to issue a call for a General Council to meet there April 2–12, 1914. Carried on the front page of the December 20, 1913, issue of Word and Witness, the call was addressed to “The Pentecostal Saints and Churches of God in Christ” and was signed by M.M. Pinson, Phoenix, Arizona; A.P. Collins, Fort Worth, Texas; H.A. Goss, Hot Springs, Arkansas; D.C.O. Opperman, Houston, Texas; and E.N. Bell, Malvern, Arkansas.

Although the authors went into more detail, the basic purposes of this call were:

1. To achieve better understanding and unity of doctrine.
2. To know how to conserve God’s work at home and abroad.
3. To consult on protection of funds for missionary endeavors.
4. To explore the possibility of chartering churches under a legal name.
5. To consider the establishment of a Bible and Literary Training School.

In spite of much opposition to organization over the years, over 300 attended and 120 pastors and evangelists registered as delegates. While the Midwest had the best representation, 20 states and several foreign lands had delegations. The roster of the convention reads like a Pentecostal Who’s Who. John G. Lake was there from Johannesburg, South Africa. Pastors E.N. Richey of Zion, Illinois; Erdman of Buffalo, New York; Pitcher of Baltimore, Maryland; S.A. Jamieson of Portland, Oregon; and B.F. Lawrence of Thayer, Missouri, were present. E.N. Bell, editor of Word and Witness of Malvern, Arkansas; J.R. Flower, editor of The Christian Evangel of Plainfield, Indiana; J.W. Welch of Baxter Springs, Kansas (later to become general chairman); H.A. Goss, Hot Springs, Arkansas; T.K. Leonard, Findlay, Ohio; W.T. Gaston of Oklahoma; A.B. Cox of Maryland; R.L. Erickson of Chicago; and J. Crouch of Egypt were on hand.

Perhaps one of the youngest men present as an observer was R.M. Riggs, who at the age of 18 attended with his pastor, L.P. Adams. Riggs later became general superintendent of the Assemblies of God.

The convention opened with 3 days of devotional services that included messages from the Word, manifestations of the Spirit, and joyful singing unto the Lord. At one point, an impromptu parade was staged down Central Avenue with practically the entire 300 participating. The city, however, seems to have taken little notice of the parade or the convention—at least the local newspapers made no mention of it. In fact, the only news about the meetings were two items in the Sentinel Record—one a very brief note that the “Saints” were meeting, and the other an advertisement announcing The General Assembly of the Church of God in Christ.

M.M. Pinson brought the opening message of the convention from Acts 15, in which he discussed some of the current doctrinal matters and gave a justification for the call. The actual business began Monday, April 6, when E.N. Bell called the meeting to order. Shortly afterward he was elected temporary chairman and J.R. Flower temporary secretary.

Brother Bell appointed a large committee representative of all sections to work on an agenda and to define the Council roll. While they were doing so, a smaller group of men met surreptitiously that night and worked independently on a Preamble and Resolution. Among these men were T.K. Leonard, Jacob Miller, and J.R. Flower. Although there was much discussion and comment by all, the actual document was dictated by T.K. Leonard and taken down in shorthand by Brother Flower. The next morning the two committees compared notes and discovered they had been thinking along the same line. The delegates, feeling this was a marvelous indication of the Holy Spirit’s guidance, adopted the Preamble and Resolution without a single dissenting vote. Among other things, it set forth the sovereignty of local churches within the framework of a General Council of Assemblies of God. It actually became the Constitution of the new church and remained so until 1917, when the brethren adopted a more adequate document.

The name Assemblies of God can probably be traced to T.K. Leonard, whose ordination papers show him to have first been ordained by the Christian Church in 1901, and then by The Assembly of God, Findlay, 0hio, April 14, 1912, 2 years before this first General Council.

At the same time the delegates, recognizing the need for a central governing body, elected an Executive Presbytery of 12 men “to act in all necessary matters on this General Council as a Home and Foreign Missionary and Executive during the ensuing year, or until the successors are appointed.” By motion from the floor, 12 men became members, including: T.K. Leonard, E.N. Bell, J.R. Flower, H.A. Goss, J.W. Welch, M.M. Pinson, C.B. Fockler, and D.C.O. Opperman. These later elected A.P. Collins, R.L. Erickson, and D.W. Kerr. Brothers Bell and Flower were elected “permanently”—at least until the next Council.

A number of important resolutions embodied the following points: The fledgling fellowship should incorporate as the General Council of the Assemblies of God (58 men signed these incorporation papers October 13, 1914). They disapproved any extreme position with regard to eating or not eating meat. They encouraged local churches to set aside Thursday of each week, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., as a day of prayer. Local areas were asked to form district and state councils. All business of the Interstate Camp at Eureka Springs, Arkansas, was transferred to the Executive Presbytery. Recognition was given to elders, ministers, evangelists, and deacons as offices within the church. Women were to receive the rights of ministers and evangelists, but not elders. The Word and Witness, with E.N. Bell as editor, became the official organ. He was instructed to publish the minutes of the Council in the May issue and give it “wide circulation.” The divorce and remarriage of Christians, especially in the ministry, came in for strong disapproval. In essence, most of these resolutions are still embodied in the official position of the Assemblies of God today.

One of the foremost reasons for calling the General Council had been the need for a strong educational program. In fact, in the meeting at Meridian, Mississippi, in June 1913, of the Church of God in Christ, a strong recommendation had been made to its leadership to secure a permanent location for a Bible and Literary School. The same issue that called for a General Council gave additional space to this need. No definite action was taken at Hot Springs, but special encouragement was given to the brethren to avail themselves of the facilities of present courses and schools. Special reference was given to “The Home Bible Study through the Gospel School Review by which they finish in 1 year a study of the entire Bible.” This was sponsored by T.K. Leonard, as was the Gospel School at Findlay. A Literary School at Union, Mississippi, directed by R.B. Chisolm, also received special recognition. Later Councils crystallized the thinking in matters of education.

The Executive Presbytery, having been empowered to issue a call for the next Council, the convention came to a close. Thus the General Council of the Assemblies of God was born in 1914—a year of both national and international crises. The world was at war; liberalism was increasing its hold on the pulpits of the land. Faith was languishing. Surely, in the words of Mordecai, the Assemblies had “come to the Kingdom for such a time as this.”

The late Cordas C. Burnett, D.D., held pastorates in Illinois and Ohio. From 1954 to 1959, he was secretary of education for the Assemblies of God. He was president of Bethany Bible College, Santa Cruz, California, for 13 years prior to accepting the position as the first executive vice president of the Assemblies of God Graduate School. The Cordas C. Burnett Library at the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary is named in his honor.