Pentecostalism has experienced explosive growth over the past century. This reader examines the ideas that launched the movement and fueled its expansion around the world. A general introduction to the book describes the history and theology of the early Pentecostal movement and its significance to the contemporary Christian world. A brief biography introduces each of the 16 influential leaders whose voices are recorded here.

Vivid and lively contributions are included from Fred Francis Bosworth, William Howard Durham, Garfield Thomas Haywood, Esek William Kenyon, Joseph Hillary King, Robert Clarence Lawson, Aimee Semple McPherson, Charles Harrison Mason, David Wesley Myland, Charles Fox Parham, William J. Seymour, Richard G. Spurling, George Floyd Taylor, Ambrose Jessup Tomlinson, Andrew David Ursham, and Maria Beulah Woodworth-Etter. Their works represent the full spectrum of the early Pentecostal
movement.