JOSEPH SMALE:
God’s ‘Moses’ for Pentecostalism
By Tim Welch
Authentic Media. 274 pages. £29.99
ISBN 978 1 842 277 812
The Pentecostal movement that has always been linked with the Azusa Street revival in Los Angeles over a century ago, did not arise in a vacuum.
There were many Christians of Reformed or Holiness backgrounds, to name but two, who were convinced of the nearness of the Lord’s return and with strong expectations of a coming Holy Spirit revival preceding it. The vast majority of them, like A.B. Simpson of the American Christian and Missionary Alliance, did not adopt Pentecostal convictions, in terms of the distinctive features of classic Pentecostalism such as the ability to speak in tongues as evidence of being baptised in the Holy Spirit. Joseph Smale (1867-1926) although seen within Pentecostal histories as a pioneering figure who prepared the way for this movement, was one who drew back from identifying with it within only a few short years after resigning his Baptist pastorate in Los Angeles in September 1905.
