Charles Parham’s 1907 Arrest: The Case Pentecostal History Tried to Forget

For decades, the circumstances surrounding Charles Fox Parham’s arrest in San Antonio remained obscured. Most newspapers across the United States declined to name the charge or describe its details, citing the shock such information would cause readers in the early twentieth century. Instead, they referred to it euphemistically as a “nameless crime” or an “unnatural crime” [1] involving a young boy. Because reporting was deliberately vague, Parham largely escaped sustained public scrutiny and was later celebrated in some Pentecostal circles as one of “God’s Generals for Kids” [2]. Parham’s primary religious accuser, Wilbur Voliva, was also his principal rival within John Alexander Dowie’s Zion commune and stood to gain significantly from Parham’s disgrace. Since Voliva was widely regarded as the main source describing the alleged offense, many assumed he had exaggerated or fabricated the charge. Only in recent years, following the digitization of the San Antonio Daily Express, has reporting from the period become fully accessible, allowing the details of Parham’s arrest to be reconstructed.

In early July 1907, Parham conducted a multi-week series of revival meetings at the Majestic Theater in San Antonio. On Tuesday morning, it was announced that the meetings would continue from July 14 through July 21 [3]. Before the revival concluded, however, Parham was arrested by Constable Stevens while giving special instruction to children at the Majestic Theater, an event that occurred in front of the junior members of the congregation [4].

At the time of his arrest, Parham had spent more than a year attempting to position himself as the successor to John Alexander Dowie and to take control of Dowie’s Christian Catholic Church movement. Following Dowie’s death, Parham held revivals aimed at consolidating support for his emerging apostolic authority. More than two hundred residents within Dowie’s Zion community were identified as “Parhamites,” adherents of Parham’s cult of personality [5]. Prominent Dowie associates, including F. F. Bosworth [6] and John G. Lake [7], were members of this Parhamite faction. It was this same network of supporters in San Antonio who invited Parham to conduct the Majestic Theater meetings.

Those who had invited Parham to San Antonio were also among those who filed the complaint leading to his arrest. The landlady of Parham’s rooming house served as the primary eyewitness, and letters written by several of Parham’s former associates were submitted as supporting evidence. These materials were sufficient for Constable Stevens to obtain a warrant [8]. On July 20, 1907, Charles Fox Parham and J. J. Jourdan, identified in the press as a Jewish boy [9], were formally charged with sodomy before Justice Ben Fisk. The preliminary examination was waived, and both were committed to jail with bond set at $1,000 each [10]. Parham initially confessed but later chose to contest the charges.

Newspaper accounts described a “mass of evidence” against Parham, including his own confession [11]. During the proceedings, affidavits, letters, and eyewitness testimony were introduced, and it emerged that Parham had previously faced similar accusations in Waco, League City, and Orchard, Texas. A certified copy of Parham’s written explanation addressing the Orchard accusation was entered as evidence in the San Antonio case [12].

In his defense, Parham did not deny that the act had occurred but claimed it was unintentional. He asserted that the incident may have taken place while he was asleep, repeatedly stating, “I am not guilty of intentional crime” [13]. Contemporary reporting observed that Parham’s own testimony appeared to corroborate, rather than undermine, the accusations.

A short time ago, I met an angel-voiced boy here, and I asked him to come with me to [sing] hymns. He has been staying with me, and he can testify that these charges are untrue. As God is my witness I am guiltless of intentional crime. They are blasting my character, but I will not resist.

I am a helpless degenerate physically. I will swear, however, that I never committed this crime intentionally. What I might have done in my sleep, I can not say, but it was never intended on my part. [14]
— Charles Fox Parham, 1907, sodomy trial testimony