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The Pneuma Network: Transnational Pentecostal Print Culture in The Florida International University FIU Digital Commons FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations University Graduate School 4-18-2016 The neumP a Network: Transnational Pentecostal Print Culture In The nitU ed States And South Africa, 1906-1948 Lindsey Brooke Maxwell Florida International University, [email protected] DOI: 10.25148/etd.FIDC000711 Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd Part of the African History Commons, Christian Denominations and Sects Commons, Christianity Commons, History of Christianity Commons, History of Religion Commons, Missions and World Christianity Commons, New Religious Movements Commons, and the United States History Commons Recommended Citation Maxwell, Lindsey Brooke, "The neP uma Network: Transnational Pentecostal Print Culture In The nitU ed States And South Africa, 1906-1948" (2016). FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 2614. https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/2614 This work is brought to you for free and open access by the University Graduate School at FIU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of FIU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY Miami, Florida THE PNEUMA NETWORK: TRANSNATIONAL PENTECOSTAL PRINT CULTURE IN THE UNITED STATES AND SOUTH AFRICA, 1906-1948 A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in HISTORY by Lindsey Brooke Maxwell 2016 To: Dean John F. Stack, Jr. choose the name of dean of your college/school College of Arts, Sciences and Education choose the name of your college/school This dissertation, written by Lindsey Brooke Maxwell, and entitled The Pneuma Network: Transnational Pentecostal Print Culture in the United States and South Africa, 1906-1948, having been approved in respect to style and intellectual content, is referred to you for judgment. We have read this dissertation and recommend that it be approved. _______________________________________ Kirsten Wood _______________________________________ Aurora Morcillo _______________________________________ Hilary Jones _______________________________________ Erik Larson _______________________________________ Darden Asbury Pyron, Major Professor Date of Defense: April 18, 2016 The dissertation of Lindsey Brooke Maxwell is approved. _______________________________________ choose the name of dean of your college/school Dean John F. Stack, Jr. choose the name of your college/school College of Arts, Sciences and Education _______________________________________ Andrés G. Gil Vice President for Research and Economic Development and Dean of the University Graduate School Florida International University, 2016 ii © Copyright 2016 by Lindsey Brooke Maxwell All rights reserved. iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS A great number of people and institutions deserve thanks for aiding me towards the completion of this project. I would like to express deepest gratitude to my advisor Dr. Darden Asbury Pyron for his guidance, advice, and encouragement during my candidacy. I must also thank my dissertation committee of Dr. Kirsten Wood, Dr. Aurora Morcillo, Dr. Hillary Jones, and Dr. Erik Larson for their feedback and support these past few years as I moved from an idea to a completed study. I owe many thanks to Dr. Alex Lichtenstein for introducing me to this rich field, and for his advice on all topics related to South Africa. I would also like to give a special thanks to Dr. Katherine Osborn, who advised me as an undergrad and helped steady me on the path towards fulfilling a dream. Several institutions and centers provided me financial support for this project during the research and writing. This dissertation was funded by several grants from Florida International University, including the Dissertation Evidence Acquisition Fellowship and the Dissertation Year Fellowship. The FIU Graduate and Professional Student Committee and College of Arts and Sciences and the Morris and Anita Broad Fellowship also financially supported the archival research for this project. Furthermore, this research project would not have been possible without the friendly assistance and advice from the staff at the David Du Plessis archives at Fuller Theological Seminary, the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, the Flower Pentecostal Heritage Center archives, and iv especially the Auckland Park Theological Seminary Apostolic Faith Mission archives. This journey would not have been possible without the support from my family, friends, professors, and mentors. To my professors, thank you for your teaching, advice, and support. To my friends, thank you for your encouragement. To my family, thank you for keeping me grounded. To my parents, thank you for instilling in me a drive to question, challenge, and persevere in everything I do. Finally, I owe an enormous amount of gratitude to my partner, Sven, for his love, support, patience, and encouragement during the various stages of this Ph.D. adventure. Thank you. v ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION THE PNEUMA NETWORK: TRANSNATIONAL PENTECOSTAL PRINT CULTURE IN THE UNITED STATES AND SOUTH AFRICA, 1906-1948 by Lindsey Brooke Maxwell Florida International University, 2016 Miami, Florida Professor Darden Asbury Pyron, Major Professor Exploding on the American scene in 1906, Pentecostalism became arguably the most influential religious phenomenon of the twentieth century. Sparked by the Azusa Street Revival in Los Angeles, the movement grew rapidly throughout the United States and garnered global momentum. This study investigates the original Los Angeles Apostolic Faith Mission and the subsequent extension of the mission to South Africa through an examination of periodicals, mission records, and personal documents. Using the Apostolic Faith Mission of South Africa as a case study, this study measures the significance of print media in the emergence and evolution of the early Pentecostal movement. Based on historical analysis of more than 260 issues of the mission’s periodical, “The Comforter and Messenger of Hope,” this dissertation demonstrates how the publication served a variety of functions critical to the establishment of Pentecostalism in South Africa. As a work of cultural history, it situates the periodical within larger trends in South African culture and society. It illustrates how the periodical functioned simultaneously at the local and vi international level to standardize Pentecostal discourse and formulate an early Pentecostal identity. Finally, this dissertation argues that Pentecostal periodicals formed a transnational network of Pentecostal thought, connections, and support in the early twentieth century that influenced the development of Pentecostalism in the South African context. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................. 1 CHAPTER 1: TURBULENT BEGINNINGS: ROOTS OF PENTECOSTALISM 1880s - 1906 .................................................................................................... 32 CHAPTER 2: A MODERN PENTECOST: AZUSA STREET AND THE BIRTH OF THE PENTECOSTAL MOVEMENT........................................................…...79 CHAPTER 3: THE APOSTOLIC FAITH AND TRANSNATIONAL PENTECOSTAL PRINT CULTURE …………………………………………....….125 CHAPTER 4: HERALDS OF NEW LIGHT: THE FIRE FALLS ON JOHANNESBURG ……………………………………………………………..……156 CHAPTER 5: THE COMFORTER AND MESSENGER OF HOPE …………….198 CHAPTER 6: THE UNLIMITED COMPANY: THE APOSTOLIC FAITH MISSION AS EVANGELICAL BUSINESS, 1913-1928......................................223 CHAPTER 7: THE PNEUMA NETWORK: 1930s - 1948 ……………………….262 CHAPTER 8: EPILOGUE …………………………………………………………..294 BIBLIOGRAPHY…………………………………………………………..………….299 VITA……………………………………………………………………………………342 viii INTRODUCTION Exploding on the American scene in 1906, Pentecostalism became the most important mass religious movement of the twentieth century.1 Sparked by the Azusa Street Revival in Los Angeles, the phenomenon spread rapidly throughout the United States and within a decade Pentecostal congregations could be found around the world. This study investigates the original Los Angeles Apostolic Faith Mission and the subsequent extension of the mission to South Africa. Currently at 1.4 million members, the Apostolic Faith Mission of South Africa is the largest Pentecostal denominational church in the country, yet it remains an understudied chapter in the history of Pentecostalism.2 Historians point to many factors as the cause of the global rise of Pentecostalism in the twentieth century. This dissertation examines one element that has been overlooked: their use of print media in establishing, maintaining, and building a Pentecostal identity. The focus of this project centers on how the Apostolic Faith Mission of South Africa utilized the medium of print to establish a new brand of faith in the South African context. It focuses primarily on Pentecostals’ use of periodicals to network, communicate, collaborate, and evangelize. It argues that 1 See James Goff, Fields White Unto Harvest: Charles F. Parham and the Missionary Origins of Pentecostalism. (Fayetteville: University of Arkansas Press, 1988), 3; and Henry P Van Dusen, “The Third Force in Christendom: Gospel-Singing, Doomsday-Preaching Sects Emerge as a Mighty Movement in World Religion” LIFE. June 9th, 1958, 113. 2 Isak Burger, “The Apostolic Faith Mission of South Africa: An Introduction,”
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