A History of Christian Doctrine #3 - Online Christian Library

A History of Christian Doctrine
later she married Harold McPherson, but this marriage
ended in divorce in 1921.
“Sister,” as she became known, joined the Assemblies
of God in 1919. She started a church in Los Angeles,
known as Angelus Temple, that grew rapidly. When she
began erecting a church building, the largest auditorium
in America at the time, the AG asked for an assurance that
the property would not be placed in her name. She
declined to give it, voluntarily left the AG in 1922, and
started her own organization in 1923.
She chose the name for her organization from a fourfold
emphasis on Jesus as Savior, baptizer in the Holy
Spirit, healer, and coming king. This message was similar
to the earlier teaching of A. B. Simpson, founder of the
CMA, except where he spoke of Jesus as sanctifier she
spoke of Him as baptizer with the Holy Ghost.
Aimee McPherson was a flamboyant preacher who
used theatrical techniques. For example, she once rode
into church on a motorcycle dressed as a policeman and
exclaimed, “Stop, you’re going to hell!” She became one
of the best-known preachers in America, “the first
Pentecostal well-known to the public at large.” 165 During
the Depression, the ICFG provided 1,500,000 people
with food, clothing, and other assistance.
McPherson was also quite controversial. In 1926,
she suddenly disappeared, apparently drowning while
swimming at the beach. A month later she was discovered
in Mexico, and she explained that she had been kidnapped.
Her detractors alleged an affair with a former
employee, but she steadfastly denied it. In 1930 she suffered
a nervous breakdown, and in 1931 she married
David Hutton. (The marriage ended in divorce.) In 1944
138