Christian History Institute April 9, 1906 • Holy Spirit Fell on Seymour and Associates ©2007

as it the Holy Spirit? Was it emotions run wild? An incident that took place on this day, April 9, 1906, swelled the stream of Pentecostalism and helped it become the fastest-growing Christian movement of the world. At its center stood a thirty-six year-old, one-eyed black man.

William Seymour, one of the most influential black men of the twentieth century was born in 1870, the son of ex-slaves. They raised him Baptist. Seymour, however, was deeply influenced by the holiness movement which taught that in addition to salvation, there was a second work of grace--sanctification. Certain holiness groups insisted that there would be a great outpouring of the Holy Spirit before the rapture (when the church is caught up into heaven).

One of those who was convinced that the Spirit was about to be poured out was Charles F. Parham. He founded a Bible school in Topeka where on the first day of the twentieth century, January 1st, 1901, Agnes Ozman spoke in an unknown tongue (some said it was Chinese). Parham moved on to Houston, Texas, and set up another school. Seymour's pastor arranged for him to attend Parham's classes. Because of the state's segregationist laws, however, Seymour had to listen and take notes from the hallway. Parham taught that in every instance of Holy Spirit filling, God would give the believer the ability to speak in a foreign languages for the purpose of evangelism.

Meanwhile, in Los Angeles, members of the Second Baptist Church prayed earnestly for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. One of their members traveled to Houston in 1906, heard Seymour speak, and invited him to fill an empty pulpit in Los Angeles. Seymour came, described tongues as the evidence of filling with the Holy Spirit--and found himself locked out of the church. The Holiness Church Association of Southern California condemned his message. Seymour preached from the home of a sympathetic church member. On this day, April 9, 1906, Seymour and some of his listeners spoke in tongues. Such crowds gathered after that that the porch of the house collapsed.

Eventually, Seymour and his followers found an unused sanctuary at 312 Azusa street. For pews they used planks atop barrels. Crowds gathered. The press jeered. But Seymour held three services a day, seven days a week for three years. White and black alike, men and women of many doctrinal backgrounds, confessed their sins, testified of God's power and spoke in tongues. Some who listened marveled to hear uneducated blacks speak major world languages. Others reported babble. But the Azusa Street Revival, as it came to be called, had an impact that is felt to this day, wherever its participants went.

Parham came and denounced Seymour's work as "spiritual power prostituted." But Seymour told his audiences, "Don't go out of here talking about tongues; talk about Jesus."

Bibliography:

1. Bartleman, Frank. Azusa Street [How Pentecost Came to Los Angeles]; with foreword by Vinson Synan. Plainfield, New.Jersey: Logos International, 1980.
2. McGee, Gary B. "William J. Seymour and the Azusa Street Revival." http://www.ag.org/enrichmentjournal/199904/026_azusa.cfm.
3. Strong, Douglas M. They Walked in the Spirit : personal faith and social action in America. (Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, c1997).
4. Synan, Vinson. The Holiness-Pentecostal Tradition: Charismatic movements in the twentieth century. Grand Rapids, Michigan: W.B. Eerdmans Pub. Co., 1997.
5. Synan, Vinson. "Pentecostalism: William Seymour." Christian History.
6. Internet and other articles on Azusa, William Seymour, Agnes Ozman and Charles Parham.

Last updated May, 2007.