Bethel Bible College or Bethel Gospel School was a

Bible college A Bible college, sometimes referred to as a Bible institute or theological institute, is an evangelical Christian or Restoration Movement Christian institution of higher education which prepares students for Christian ministry with theological ed ...

founded in 1900 by

Charles Parham Charles F. Parham (June 4, 1873 – January 29, 1929) was an American preacher and evangelist. Together with William J. Seymour, Parham was one of the two central figures in the development and early spread of American Pentecostalism. It was Pa ...

Topeka, Kansas Topeka ( ; Kansa: ; iow, Dópikˀe, script=Latn or ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the seat of Shawnee County. It is along the Kansas River in the central part of Shawnee County, in northeast Kansas, in the Central U ...

, United States. The school is credited with starting the

Pentecostal movement Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement

due to a series of fasting days that ended in what was interpreted as

speaking in tongues Speaking in tongues, also known as glossolalia, is a practice in which people utter words or speech-like sounds, often thought by believers to be languages unknown to the speaker. One definition used by linguists is the fluid vocalizing of sp ...

on January 1, 1901. Although the school would close later in 1901 after less than two years of operation, the movement itself grew substantially to tens of millions of people around the world. Bethel Bible College Topeka KS

Pentecostalism begins

Forty students including

Agnes Ozman Agnes Ozman (1870–1937) was a student at Charles Fox Parham's Bethel Bible School in Topeka, Kansas. Ozman was considered as the first to speak in tongues in the pentecostal revival when she was 30 years old in 1901 (Cook 2008). However, ...

had gathered to learn the major tenets of the Holiness Movement from Parham. Parham wondered about the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chri ...

evidence for

baptism in the Holy Spirit In Christian theology, baptism with the Holy Spirit, also called baptism in the Holy Spirit or baptism in the Holy Ghost, has been interpreted by different Christian denominations and traditions in a variety of ways due to differences in the doctr ...

. He went on a three-day trip and asked his students to ponder this question while he was gone. They concluded that

glossolalia Speaking in tongues, also known as glossolalia, is a practice in which people utter words or speech-like sounds, often thought by believers to be languages unknown to the speaker. One definition used by linguists is the fluid vocalizing of sp ...

or speaking in tongues was proof that the Holy Spirit had fallen on an individual. Ozman was the first student to speak in tongues. Parham would take this message and hold special meetings in Joplin, MO and Houston, TX. In Houston, a black man named William Seymour heard the message and would take this teaching to Los Angeles where he would start the

Azusa Street Revival The Azusa Street Revival was a historic series of revival meetings that took place in Los Angeles, California. It was led by William J. Seymour, an African-American preacher. The revival began on April 9, 1906, and continued until roughly 1915. ...

. Today many

Pentecostal Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestant Charismatic Christian movement

denominations trace their beginnings to Bethel and Azusa Street. Bethel Bible College also played a major role in the formation of the Assemblies of God, the world's largest Pentecostal denomination.

References

Education in Topeka, Kansas Pentecostalism in the United States Defunct private universities and colleges in Kansas Bible colleges Educational institutions established in 1900 Educational institutions disestablished in 1901 Universities and colleges affiliated with the Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee) 1900 establishments in Kansas 1901 disestablishments in Kansas {{Christianity-stub

Pentecostalism begins

See also

References