Carrie Judd Montgomery Pioneering Contributor To Three Religious Movements

101

Carrie Judd

Montgomery: Pioneering

Contributor

to Three

Religious

Movements

Daniel E. Albrecht*

When on

February 26,

1879 a young woman was

miraculously raised from her deathbed at the

prophetic

word of an obscure healer some three hundred miles

away, 1 it

was heralded as one of the most amazing

miracles of modern times.2 Little did Carrie Faith Judd know,

that as she took her first

steps

in more than two

years,

she would soon be

propelled

into a life of

ministry

that would destine her to become “one of the best known women in America.

“3 No one could have

predicted

that a

frail, sickly,

timid

teenager,

who so narrowly escaped death,

would become known around the world for her innovative

leadership

within three

Evangelical

movements.

In the

“Age

Enterprise,”

Carrie Judd

Montgomery (1858- 1946) symbolized

the American

religious

leader as an entrepreneur. Her innovative ministries were born out of a deep love for God that expressed

itself

by seeking

out and

serving

human need in a variety of creative forms.

Montgomery

was a

unique

mixture of

gentle refinement and

trailblazing pragmatism, quiet dignity

and efficient promotion,

tender

compassion

and

tough-minded

executive abilities.

Historical

amnesia,

has

frequently

cloaked the contributions of women to the

thought

and life of religious movements.

Regardless of that

fact, Montgomery was,

in her

time,

one of the most celebrated

proponents

of the divine

healing message.

As a

gifted writer, public speaker,

and

religious entrepreneur,

she led the

way for numerous other

evangelical

ministries. This creative

Episco- palian

woman exercised a profound influence within three

evangel- ical movements: the faith

healing movement,

the Christian and Missionary

Alliance

(C&MA),

and the

fledgling

Pentecostal move- ment.

Although

little is remembered or known about

Montgomery in

religious

circles

today,

as an

evangelical pacesetter

and a Pentecostal

forerunner,

her life and work deserve renewed reflection and serious

study.

Early Life,

1858-1879

Carrie Faith Judd was born to Orvan K. and

Emily

Judd, April 8, 1858,

Buffalo,

New York. As one of

eight children, Carrie Judd

Montgomery,

as she became

known,

was reared in a model American

family.

Her forebears had been

among

the pioneers

of western New

York,

two

generations

before Carrie’s birth. From Grandmother

Sweetland,

who lived with the Judd

102

family,

Carrie seems to have been imbued with a pioneer spirit. But it was Sweetland’s

daughter,

Mrs.

Emily Judd,

who served as Carrie’s

primary

role model.

Emily

Judd was an

organizer.

She had to be with

eight children,

a husband,

and her

mother,

all under one small roof. Her

genius

in apportioning

household

tasks, maintaining only

a few

family rules, and

patiently mediating any

domestic

disagreements, helped

to provide

a peaceful, well-ordered

family

life. Mrs. Judd’s

manage- ment

skills,

were to

emerge

later in her fourth

child,

Carrie.

Emily taught

her children to

enjoy

life. She

lovingly

embraced a simple life-style,

sometimes characterized

by severe struggles,

but

always, marked

a devotion to God and service to others. Carrie’s compassion

and kindness were a reflection on her mother’s temperament, just

as her love of

learning

was an attribute she inherited from her father.

Orvan

Judd,

Carrie’s

father,

was a born

student;

as a young man he had studied law. After

graduating early

from Union

College, Schenectady,

New

York, however,

Orvan discovered that he was better suited for

reconciling

differences

informally

than he was at arguing

cases in the courts.

Nevertheless,

his

passion

for

learning remained intense. “The

walking encyclopedia,”

as he was nick- named, delighted

in sharing his knowledge with his family. It is not surprising

that Orvan was

keenly

interested in Carrie’s formal education.

By Mr. Judd’s special arrangement,

Carrie

began

Latin studies at age nine;

she was later also to learn French. A gifted

student,

Carrie attended both

private

and

public

schools

during

her formative years.

She excelled in all areas of her

education, winning special academic honors. In her

early teens,

she received

recognition

for literary

abilities in both

prose

and

poetry. Encouraged by

her mother’s

litarary accomplishments4

and

Mr. David

Grey,

the editor of the

Buffalo Courier,

Carrie

successfully

ventured into the writing

and

publishing

arena.5 At

age seventeen,

Carrie’s blos- soming writing skills,

her

diligent linguistic pursuits,

and her other studies, prepared

her for entrance into a four-year classical course at the Buffalo Normal School.

Many recognized

her

penchant

for teaching.6 Consequently,

Carrie

planned

prepare

herself for a career in education.

Although

she became a noted

teacher,

her well-laid

plans

were

ultimately

redirected.

Carrie’s

religious

formation was just as important to her

parents as her academic

development.

Carrie was

born, baptized,

and confirmed in the

Episcopalian

tradition.7 Her

Anglican parents were committed to consistent

religious training

for their children. Each

day began

with

family worship,

and

every

Sabbath was

early

observing

cation,

103

‘

helped

inspire

within the

marked

by participation

Sunday

School and church. Carrie’s

memories were filled with the sounds of hallowed

hymns,

the sacred

scriptures

and the

Litany.8

Carrie later noted the

impact

her mother

during

a worship

service,

as I gazed at

mother’s beautiful

face,

with her

closed in

prayer

and heard her devout

eyes

tones in

I decided that

suppli-

God was a real

Being,

and that He

was listening to her prayers.9

These

impressions

at home and in church

reverent

spirit

and influenced her

religious development

Episcopal

framework.

Carrie’s

teenage years,

a number of changes took

place

in her life with

significant consequences.

Several Judd

family

members contracted serious diseases. Two of Carrie’s sisters died of tubercu-

and her father survived

During

losis,

while two brothers

such traumatic She was needed

household tasks.

During compassion

Faced with

other critical occurrences affected Carrie.

‘

illnesses.

Naturally,

help

care for the sick and fulfill

many

of the

this

time,

deep

concern and an active

for those in need

began

emerge

in the

teenager’s faith. For the

years

that

followed,

these attributes would

typify

her life and

ministry.

the death of loved

ones,

Carrie

began

question

her faith. Doubts about her own

spirituality

in the

light

of death and

her. These

doubts, mingled

with a deep

yearning

to know and

please God, produced

conflict in her life.

Prayer

and the

eternity plagued

resolution. 10

with

medium of poetry

provided only

a temporary

Amidst this adolescent

turmoil, Carrie, too, struggled

Because she had

always

been a frail

child,

her

parents

were

concerned as they watched her

fight

off a series of teenage

But a severe fall on an

icy

sidewalk

during

the Buffalo winter of 1876 was to be a near fatal accident. While her immediate

illness. especially infirmities.

‘ .

spread by drop

Weeks,

symptoms

were little more than a stunned sensation and

difficulty in

walking,

a subsequent two week

long

attack of spinal fever left her

spinal

nerves inflamed with

“hyperaesthesia”

which soon

to all of her

joints.

Her condition was further

complicated

the disease called “blood

consumption,”

which forced Carrie to

out of

college.”

that turned into

months,

rendered Carrie a

helpless, suffering invalid,

unable to tolerate even a mere touch of a hand or the

slightest

noise. After two

years

in this

state,

with little

help

from her

physicians,

the

prognosis

was imminent death.

seemed,

that the closer Carrie came to

death, however,

the

her

spiritual struggles

came to resolution. This

spiritual

was

distinguished by

what

might

be termed a

nearer turning point

104

complete yielding

to God’s will.

Apparently,

this was

only

an inner change;

her

physical

condition continued to deteriorate. But as a few intimate friends came to

say

their final

good-byes,

Carrie’s father discovered a small item in the Buffalo

newspaper.

Mrs. Edward

Mix,

a black woman from Wolcottville

(later Torrington), Connecticut,

had been

having

considerable success as a faith healer. 12

to a letter of

inquiry,

Mrs. Mix wrote to Carrie exhorting

response

that “the

prayer

of faith shall save the sick”

(James 5:15). Mix

promised

to pray for Carrie at an appointed day and hour. The Connecticut healer

prophesied

that at the

prescribed time,

no matter “how

you

feel get right out of bed and

begin

to walk

by faith. Strength

will

come,

disease will

depart

and

you

will be made whole.”‘3 On

February 26, 1879,

happened just

as she had written.

During

the

appointed hour,

for the first time in two

years, Carrie was able to turn over

unassisted,

raise

herself,

and

get

out of bed. Her astonished nurse stood

nearby, praising

God and

watching the miracle in

progress.14

Within one hour Carrie’s color had

returned,

her

pulse

was strong,

and she was able to eat and

speak

with ease. In the

following weeks, as Carrie’s joints

and muscles

grew stronger;

the news of the miracle

spread,

first

through

the

neighborhood

and then

through- out Buffalo. The local

daily newspaper

carried the “miraculous” story. 1

Other

papers

as faraway as England

reprinted

it. 16 Response to the

reports

was immediate and immense.

People

were

curious; “was the

report

accurate?” Others

wrote,

or came in

person,

to request prayer

for

healing.

Overwhelmed

by the

interest and

array of needs, Carrie utilized her

literary skills, writing

numerous letters of testimony and

explanations.

But all was not

correspondence;

the young

Miss Judd

began

to learn how to

pray for,

and to believe

in, the miraculous

healing power

of God.

II.

Early Healing Ministry,

1880-1890

While Charles

Cullis,

W. E. Boardman, A. B. Simpson and A. J. Gordon are

probably

the most remembered leaders of the

Evangel- ical

healing

movement of the

1880’s,

Carrie Judd’s

place

in the movement calls for

recognition. 17 Subsequent

to her own

dynamic healing

1879,

Carrie Faith Judd moved

swiftly

into the ranks of the

fledgling healing

movement. Her

place

in the movement at

age twenty-two

was

initially

tied to her

book,

The

Prayer of Faith, written in 1880. With

only

Cullis’ 1879 edition of Faith Cures available on the

subject, Is

the book was meant to be her

response

to a recognized dearth of available literature on divine

healing,

or as it was first

named,

the “faith cure.” Her remarkable book

prompted numerous

inquiries concerning

divine

healing. 19

105

The

Prayer of Faith

was

published by Revell in the United States and

several

European publishers

abroad. The book

rapidly gained

widespread readership

and led the

way

for a stream of books on faith

healing by leaders in the movement,

such as those

by W. E. Boardman, A. J.

Gordon,

and A. B.

Simpson.2°

The numerous

printings,

and the several

foreign language

translations of The

Prayer of

Faith launched the

young

Buffalonian into notoriety

as a faith

healing proponent

of some

magnitude.21

Using

her talent for

writing,

Carrie

pursued

publishing ministry.22

In the

coming years

she was to write seven additional books and hundreds of booklets, tracts, articles and

poems. During her first decade of

public

life

(1880-1890),

she

pioneered

various areas of

ministry,

but none was more

powerful

than her

pen,

nor was

any

enduring

than her

significant journal,

The

Triumphs

Faith.

The

Triumphs of Faith,

monthly periodical, began

with the January

1881 issue and continued to be

published

and edited

by Carrie Judd for the next

sixty-six years.23

Convinced that

people were

eager

to know more about the

subjects

of healing and

holiness, Carrie purposed

that her

periodical

would aim to instruct and edify.24

While The

Triumphs of Faith

was not unlike other holiness periodicals,

its unique blend of faith

healing

and holiness ideals

put it in a category of its own.25

important

writing

and

publishing

were to

Carrie, they could not contain her. Her

warm, loving

concern for

people continually

moved her into a quest for new

opportunities

and new designs

for

ministry. Combining

her abilities to envision,

organize, and

promote,

Carrie initiated a bold new idea in the Buffalo area.

Faith Rest

Cottage,

established in 1882 as a faith

healing home, soon became a

regional

center for divine

healing.26

With the commencement of this

ministry,

Miss Judd blazed a trail for other faith

healing

homes and

thus, according

to A. J.

Gordon,

she was recognized

as one of the

“pious

who have learned the secret of the prayer

of faith. ”27 Her

cottage

was not

only

one of the first of its kind in the

country,

it was

“among

the best known. “28 Faith Rest Cottage

was to function as a “place of

prayer,

where

weary

ones might

learn more of the Great

Physician’s power

and

willingness

to renew their

soul,

and heal their

suffering

bodies.

‘?9 Its

purpose

was chiefly

to accommodate those from out of town who wished to see, experience,

and learn of the life of faith,

by spending

time in prayer and

quiet

reflection,

and

by receiving

biblical instruction.3o

Faith Rest

Cottage

soon became the hub of the

young

Miss Judd’s ministries. It not

only provided

her a place to

pray

with the sick,

but it also furnished her with a station from which to

develop

106

her

teaching ministry,

and a base for her

writing

and

publishing efforts. From this

home,

Carrie F. Judd

emerged

in the 1880’s as a leader in the

emerging

American

Evangelical healing

movement. Later Judd became both a

spokesperson

for the Christian and Missionary

Alliance and an

eloquent proponent

of the Pentecostal experience.

III. Christian and

Missionary

Alliance

When in 1887 A. B.

Simpson

made a call to a small

group

of Christian leaders to gather and

prayerfully

consider the

founding

of a new alliance within the Holiness

movement,

Carrie Judd was among

those who met

together

in Old

Orchard,

Maine. Later that year,

Carrie was

appointed

to act as the first

recording secretary

of the

newly

formed Christian

Alliance,

later to be named the Christian and

Missionary

Alliance

Through

the Alli- ance,

Miss Judd was able to

pursue

her own

ministry

of divine healing,

as well as to extend herself into other dimensions of ministry.

expanded

role of

public preaching

and

teaching

was one of those new dimensions. Carrie had done a considerable amount of

public speaking

in the

early 1880s,

but it was as a result of A. B. Simpson’s encouragement

that she

began

preach

larger crowds. A few

years

before the establishment of the new

alliance, Carrie Judd had met Dr. and Mrs.

Simpson

in their New York

City home.

Simpson

had read some of Judd’s

publications

and had heard of her Buffalo ministries. He felt an affinity for her

teachings.. Simpson’s agreement

with Judd’s

position

on divine

healing

is evidenced

the fact that he

reprinted

early

article from The Triumphs of

Faith in his own

monthly magazine.

At their first meeting, Simpson

showed her his publication,

containing

a reprint of one of Carrie’s

articles,

and

said,

“I have been so rejoiced because the Lord has been

teaching you

in western New York the

very

same truths which He has been

teaching

me in eastern New York.”32

subsequent years, Simpson provided opportunities

for Carrie Judd to

develop

as a convention

speaker.

Carrie was soon in demand

throughout

the northeastern

part

of the nation and even in Europe

as an

evangelist/ teacher.33 Although

Carrie Judd declined invitations to assist A. B.

Simpson

as a staff minister in his New York

City

based

ministries,34

Carrie did continue as a leader within the C&MA for the next three decades.

As a

founding

member of the

C&MA, pioneering aspects

of Carrie’s

personality

flourished. She

imprinted

the movement with her “life of faith”

teachings

while

demonstrating

innovative out- reaches such as her “Faith Rest

Cottage.”

Because of her

periodical, The

Triumphs of Faith

and the

platform given

to her

by Simpson,

107

Carrie became a formative influence on the first

generation

of C&MA

supporters. ,

The

early

C&MA suited Carrie well. Its loosely knit

organization accommodated her with freedom and

flexibility

engage

in her own interests and

ministry.

With few of the restrictions common to a more

sophisticated denomination,

the Alliance

permitted

Carrie simultaneous

membership

with other Holiness

groups,35

and thus facilitated her

lifelong quest

for Christian

unity.36

The Alliance’s four-fold

teaching

salvation, sanctification, divine

healing,

and the second

coming

of Christ, as well as its focus on the

empowerment

of the

Holy Spirit,

were in

step

with Carrie . Judd’s doctrinal

position.

These

particular emphases

fore- shadowed her move toward Pentecostalism.37 But full initiation into Pentecostalism was to occur some

twenty years

later.

The decade of the 1880’s was one of development for Miss Carrie Faith Judd. In only a few short

years

she had been raised from her deathbed and thrust into

public ministry.

She had written a highly popular, ground-breaking

book on divine

healing,

established a well-known faith home, become a sought after

preacher,

initiated an influential

monthly publication,

and influenced a generation of a newly established denomination.

IV. A California

Base,

1890-1907

Why

would a

famous, highly successful

author and

healing evangelist, pull up

the stakes of a well-established eastern center for ministry,

and move to the west coast?

Clearly,

Carrie was not enticed

by the pacific

frontier

alone;

a most unusual miner named Montgomery

was

primarily responsible.

While

speaking

in Chicago in the Fall of

1889,

the

unsuspecting woman

evangelist

was

captivated by a pioneer

California

capitalist who had

recently

been converted to

Christianity. George Simpson Montgomery ( 1851-1930),

a Scotsman born in the north of Ireland, had discovered America’s riches in 1867 as a sixteen

year

old immigrant.

The lure of wealth and adventure called him to Mexico where,

while still in his

twenties,

he amassed his first fortune.38 Returning

to San

Francisco,

he multiplied his money as a successful broker, investing

in California real

estate,

rich

mining lodes,

and in various

corporations.39

George

denied himself

nothing except

“a full measure of happiness.”

indulged life-style

filled with

excitement,

world travel,

and

doting friends,

failed to secure for him the fulfillment that he had

pursued.

Faced with this

dilemma,

and the doctor’s dire pronouncement

that he had

only

a short while to

live,

the

young millionaire surrendered his

life-ambitions,

talent and wealth to GOd,4U

‘

108

Friends

might

have wondered what would

happen

when this newly

converted

thirty-seven year

old man of the world met the ingenious, religious organizer-evangelist

in that

Chicago camp meeting. Carrie,

consumed in her

highly

successful

ministry,

had planned

to remain

single,

but

George Montgomery,

soon persuaded

her to

change

her

plan.

Within a

year they

were married.41

many ways,

these

two, George

and

Carrie,

were similar. Both had a pioneer’s spirit of adventure; neither was afraid to take

risks, and both were

gifted visionaries, seemingly capable

of successfully organizing, promoting,

and

managing any

venture.

Surprised by his new wife’s efficient

organization

and natural administrative abilities,

the San Francisco

entrepreneur

nicknamed his bride “the little

general.

“42 .

Montgomery transported

his bride to his

adopted

state soon after their

May 14, 1890

Buffalo

wedding.

Carrie wasted no time in surveying

the

opportunities

for

ministry.

Shocked

the human need that surrounded her new

home,

San

Francisco,

she

began immediately planning, praying,

and

pursuing avenues

of service. In a few short

weeks,

Carrie had

begun

a “parlor meeting” in their new apartment.

It served as the beachhead for what became her California

ministry.

The

parlor meetings provided

a time of training

in which Mrs.

Montgomery taught

about divine

healing and

gave practical guidelines concerning praying

for the

physically sick.43

But there were social sicknesses which needed attention. The ills of the San Francisco

community

could not be

ignored.44

Carrie’s compassion

drove her from the

parlor

to the

prisons,

the

slums,

and the

saloons, seeking

to apply the

liberating message

of the

Gospel.45

In the first

years

of her California

ministry,

in cooperation with the Salvation

Army,

Carrie and

George

established the

People’s Mission of San Francisco46 and a girl’s rescue home in suburban Oakland.4′

George Montgomery’s

altruism

provided

these and other new outreaches with the

necessary funding

for Carrie to develop

a new west coast base for

ministry.

It is not

surprising

that Carrie’s

ministry

in California took on added dimensions from what it had been in Buffalo.

Three

years

after the move

west, George

donated the

property

for the first

ever,

faith

healing

home on the west coast.48

Through

an appeal

made in The

Triumphs of Faith (whose

offices

by this

time had been moved to

Oakland),

Carrie received the bulk of the . necessary

donations to build the home.49 A three

story

Victorian mansion,

known as the Home

of Peace, opened

its doors to the sick and

suffering

in 1893. A

larger

version of Buffalo’s Faith

Rest .

109

Cottage,

the Home of Peace was an oasis where the

weary

could find rest in a

peaceful refuge.

Those who were

physically

or spiritually

sick could “remain for a time and have their faith educated

through

biblical instruction. “50

The Home of Peace

signaled

another new

undertaking-a “town”

appropriately

named Beulah

Heights-located

five miles from Oakland nestled in the foothills.51 This

private

section of property, overlooking

the San Francisco

Bay,

was donated and designated by

the

Montgomerys

to provide a wholesome haven for the

needy.

Beulah

Heights spawned

several new

Montgomery

ministries during

the 1890’s. The foothills were dotted with

newly

built homes for

orphans.

Hundreds of children were cared for from 1894-1907. The “town” attracted both

arriving

and

departing

missionaries and soon was a center for a

variety

foreign

mission interests and activities.

Among them,

the Shalom

Training School,

established in

1894, prepared

and sent scores of young

missionaries,

before the turn of the

century.52

To accommodate the residents of Shalom, the orphanage,

the

girls

rescue

home,

visitors to the Home of Peace and other recipients

of the

Montgomery

Beulah

Heights ministries,

a chapel

was constructed. Beulah

Chapel

would later become an Assemblies of God church

pastored by

Carrie

Montgomery

who was in 1907 on the brink of entering into Pentecostalism.

V. Pentecostal

Proponent,

1908-1946

Early

1907, George Montgomery

traveled to Los

Angeles

to see for himself the much

reported

Azusa Street

phenomenon.

In spite

George’s positive report,

Carrie continued in a cautious mode.53 She

struggled

interpret

her own

religious experiences

in light

of the Pentecostal claims.54 This new

Pentecost,

she

admitted, deserved a closer

look,

but her

overwhelming

administrative responsibilities temporarily precluded any

serious consideration.

Many

of Carrie’s

colleagues

viewed the scattered

reports

of the new Pentecost

skeptically.

But

negative opinions

were balanced

by a growing

group

of friends from around the world who

reported

a personal

Pentecostal

experience.55

These trusted

associates joyfully advocated this new

experience, claiming positive

effects on both personal piety

and

public

ministries.56 These

reports

from loved ones

prompted

her to take a harder look at the Pentecostal message.5?

During

the first

year

and a half of the Azusa Street

revival, Carrie’s interest

grew.

An extended

trip

east in 1908

provided Carrie with a

period

prayerful study

and meditation

during which she was able to sort out her mixed

feelings regarding

the validity

of the Pentecostal

experience.

The summer’s sabbatical

110

tipped Pentecostal

baptism.

baptism

pivoted step

into continuity costal particular

the balance and Carrie

began

tarry actively

for the

June

29, 1908,

while

praying

in the

Chicago home of a close

friend,

Carrie Judd

Montgomery joined

the ranks of the infant Pentecostal movement when she

experienced

the

in the

Holy Spirit

with an accompanying

sign of tongues.58

The final stretch of Carrie’s

spiritual pilgrimage may

have

on her Pentecostal

baptism,

but she did not consider the

Pentecostalism a departure from her former

path.59

The

of Montgomery’s ministries before and after her Pente-

initiation is reflected

her continued involvement in

areas of concern. For

instance,

Carrie’s interest in foreign missions,

which had been fostered

the

C&MA,

and

by her contact with missionaries who came to the Home of Peace,

only

intensified after her Pentecostal

The Home of Peace continued

experience.

to function much as before, a quiet

an added role as

center of retreat for those in need,61 only now it had

a center for Pentecostalism. As

such,

it generated a variety of new

prayer meetings.62 Naturally,

these services

and other Pentecostal leaders a setting in

weekly

and

monthly gave

Mrs.

Montgomery which to

teach the Pentecostal

dimension,

locally

and

nationally.

conventions

only

increased. preach

as late as 1918.63 She

gave his Old Orchard

Alliance continued

was establishing

perspective.

now had an added Pentecostal

in the C&MA

speak

in Alliance

to her Pentecostal

experience,

After

This

change

freed Carrie to travel

been an

leadership

ground

practical knowledge distinct

emphasis

foreign concern for social outreaches. movement can also be described enthusiastic

While her

preaching

and

teaching

Carrie continued active involvement

fact, requests

A. B. Simpson was still

inviting

her to

a week

long

series of messages to

convention at that time. Her

leadership

within the

for at least the first decade after her Pentecostal experience.

A shift in Carrie’s

life, subsequent

the

emphasis

she now

gave

to her

speaking

schedule.

and

administrating

the

orphanage

for thirteen

years, the children’s homes were decentralized and donated to other individuals and

organizations.64

and

preach

extensively,

once

again focusing

evangelism and the divine

healing message.

By the time Carrie joined

the Assemblies of God in

1917,

she had

active minister for

nearly

four decades.65 The

sixty year

old Montgomery

came with a

depth

experience, wisdom,

and

abilities. She

brought

to her Pentecostalism a back-

in divine

healing

missions and

evangelism,

Her contribution to the Pentecostal

advocate and

bridge-builder

ministries,

and a vital

generally

in two broad roles;

between movements.

111

An Ethusiastic Advocate

With her initial reservations

satisfied,

Carrie became an ethusi-

accompanying way, validity

sign

explaining

people. By her initiation,

astic advocate for the doctrine of the

baptism

in the

Spirit

with the

tongues.

In her own

gentle

but

persuasive

Carrie

proclaimed through every

channel available to her, the

of this

experience.

She made

Triumphs of Faith

a vehicle of the new movement.66 She

wrote, published

and distributed tracts

her Pentecostal

perspective.6′

She

published

the works of other Pentecostals from her offices in Beulah

Heights.68

Her Home of Peace hosted

meetings

for seekers and other interested

other Pentecostal

meetings

were

developed around the

Bay

Area.69 When

given opportunity

to share her

point of view with other

Evangelicals

from the

Scripture,

she would

the Pentecostal

message. Especially

in the

early years

of the

revival,

as a C&MA leader,

Montgomery

was invited to share her Pentecostal

testimony throughout

the United States in meetings and conventions.’°

highlight

within the

growing

within the

C&MA, attempted of the Pentecostal revival.71 This

Bridge-Builder

Carrie not

only

became a powerful

proponent

Pentecostal

ranks,

but also continued to be a link between movements. Her

efforts, particularly

to lessen the

misunderstandings

role of bridge-builder

generated

the 1914 Worldwide

Camp Meeting, in

Oakland,

where she invited both Holiness and Pentecostal

phere.’3 teachings personality, Pentecostalism.’4

people

to come and

worship together,

and in the

process,

to learn better to

appreciate

each other’s contribution to the

on-going revival.’2 The Home of Peace also served as a

bridge

for Pente- costals and other

Evangelicals.

The home testified to the fact that the Pentecostal

teaching

could thrive in a quiet, reflective atmos-

This is not to

say

that Mrs.

Montgomery’s meetings

were without

enthusiasm,

it is to establish that her own

training

and

background

boisterous of decorum reputable ministries,

dictated an orderliness to her

and her

restrained,

yet She as a

Carrie Judd

Montgomery’s personality,

dynamic piety

were well-suited for her role as

bridge-builder. was not viewed

the Holiness folk or

Pentecostals

or eccentric

“holy

roller.” She was known for her sense

and for

dignity

in worship. With her

exemplary

life and

Mrs.

Montgomery

was a likely candidate both to interpret the Pentecostal

message

to those within the

Evangelical tradition and to contribute an

understanding

and

appreciation

for certain themes within the Holiness

heritage

to the

developing Pentecostals. But it was

Montgomery’s

focus on Christian love that

her as a bridge-builder.

best equipped

112

Through

the

years,

the trademark of love had been the central theme that

stamped

her life and

ministry.?5

In the wake of her Pentecostal

experience,

Christian love continued to be “the one unmistakable

‘badge

of [her] discipleship.’

”76 It was

this devotion that motivated her

throughout

her life to work as a bridge-builder, seeking

Christian

unity.

After her Pentecostal

experience,

she labored with even

greater

resolve in an

attempt

stay

the developing

rift between the Holiness and Pentecostal movements.”

Pentecostalism had not

radically changed

Carrie

Montgomery’s basic values?8

Instead,

her Pentecostal

experience

served to enhance those

things

that she had

always

held dear.’9

By the time she

died,

on July

28, 194b,

Carrie Judd

Montgomery

had become a spokesperson,

leader and molder of three

important religious streams: the faith

healing movement,

the Christian and

Missionary Alliance,

and the Pentecostal movement. Her obvious

compassion for

people

in need and her characteristic

ability

to actualize means and methods to meet those

needs, distinguished

this multi- dimensional woman as a compassionate

entrepreneurial pioneer.

*Dan Albrecht is a minister with the Assemblies of God. He currently

serves on the

faculty

Bethany

Bible

College

in Santa Cruz, California,

and is pursuing the Ph.D. in the field of Christian Spirituality

at the Graduate

Theological

Union in

Berkeley, California. I

Information in this article is taken primarily from Carrie Judd Montgomery’s monthly periodical,

The

Triumphs of Faith,

volumes I

through 66, published

first in Buffalo, N.Y., and later in Oakland, California by the offices of the

Triumphs

of Faith; Under His

Wings (Oakland:

Office of Triumphs

of Faith,

1936)

autobiographical work;

and Daniel E. Albrecht, The Life and Ministry of Carrie Judd Montgomery (A Graduate research

paper presented

to the Faculty of Western

Evangelical Seminary, May, 1984). Special

thanks to Edward Koetitz, the reference librarian at Bethany

Bible College, for his help in the preparation of this article.

2″A Modern Miracle,”

Buffalo

Commercial Advertiser, October 20, 1879, 3.

3″Wealthy

Warriors: A Rich Salvationist and His Famous Wife,” Buffalo Morning Express, May 8, 1892, 4.

‘

4Mrs. Emily Judd, a poet in her own right, published her work in local periodicals.

In later

years

Carrie

published

some of her mother’s works.

5Grey published

several of Carrie’s

poems

in the Courier. She also submitted

prose.

6Interview,

Faith

Berry, Oakland, California, April 21,

1983. Faith is Mrs.

Montgomery’s only

child. From her own experience and from the

113

recognition

others,

Faith

Berry

asserts that her mother “was a born teacher.” Even in her

teenage years,

Carrie was a

gifted

teacher. She initiated

religious education classes for children in three different neighbor- hoods. 7

Under His

Wings, 29-3 I.

8 Under His

Wings, 13.

9 Under His

Wings, 13.

it’See Carrie F. Judd,

Lilies from

the Vale of Thought (Buffalo: H.H. Otis, 1878)

her first book of poetry. Several of the poems reveal her struggle during

the early period of her life. See “Fettered,”””Unsatisfied,”and

“My Olive Branch.” is

Under His

Wings, 48-60.

little is known about

Mix, except

that she had been

miraculously healed after prayer had been offered

by the Reverend Ethan Allen. Within a year after Carrie’s

healing,

Mix and her husband, who was a preacher; . came to Buffalo to visit Carrie. Carrie recorded

later,

that the highlight of the visit was traveling around the city with

Mix, calling

on the sick and praying

for See Under His

Wings, 60.

‘3Carrie F. them. Judd, The Prayer

of Faith, (New York: Fleming

H. Revell Co., 1880). The first chapter of this work gives a detailed account of Judd’s healing.

Carrie Judd Montgomery Pioneering Contributor To Three Religious Movements

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