Old Time Religion — A Meeting of the "Holy Jumpers"

Wisconsin, 1906

Practiced by Holiness Band in This City

Primitive and Active

Members Give Lively Manifestations of Emotion. Mr. Farson Preached Sunday Evening

For people who like old-fashioned things, who look back to an earlier and simpler civilization with regret and who honestly believe that more primitive manners indicate more honest and genuine feeling, the meetings of the Holiness Band, or the "Holy Jumpers," as they are known, now being held is this city, are heartily recommended. The "Jumpers" have no use for the elegancies, the culture and the restraint incident to the times. They scorn material luxuries and they find in the quiet religion of the present day churches only dust and ashes.

They believe in revivals, continuous revivals, old-fashioned, praise-the-Lord, Hallelujah, revivals, where when a man feels inspiration, he shouts and sings and jumps up and down, and in any way that comes natural expresses his joy in salvation.

The meeting conducted by the Band at the Athenaeum, Sunday evening was like the old-time Methodist camp meetings one reads about.

It began before seven o'clock and continued more than two hours, every moment of which there was something doing. The Band sings with tremendous gusto, their songs of the rollicking, swinging, camp-meeting order, with about seventeen verses apiece. One of the remarkable things about the "Jumpers" is their length of wind. They can sing seventeen verses with the utmost enthusiasm, every once in a while bounding up and down like a rubber ball, without once stopping to take breath. Many of their prayers and testimony are of the same breathless, rapid-fire type.

Mr. Pettingill leads the chorus singing, singing, and also sings solos, accompanying himself upon the zither. He has a good voice and it is pleasant to hear him. For the choruses there is also a cornet, played by one of the men, and a cabinet organ, played by one of the women. Sometimes a singer stops singing to shout out a regular Indian war-whoop, or a woman's voice shrieks out in high G. Often the singers sway and swing, as in "balancing" for old-fashioned quadrilles, and now and then they jump up and down and crack their heels together. The lightness with which these middle-aged people perform their gymnastic feats, argues well for the effect of their regimen upon the physical condition.

Duke M. Farson of Chicago, one of the leaders of the Band, preached Sunday evening. At least he called it preaching, though most people would have called it exhorting. His theme was the need of sanctification, of the actual presence of the Holy Ghost. According to Mr. Farson, real religion means two distinct processes, conversion and sanctification, like a double-barrelled shot gun, as he said, and the former is of very little use without the latter. The man who is sanctified is washed clean of all meanness and wickedness, and is made holy; the Lord lives with him and walks with him. Mr. Farson strode up and down the platform to illustrate.

Mr. Farson hasn't any use for many of the Churches of the present day. Perhaps they used to have sanctification but they haven't got it now. He declared that the Lord believes in revivals, continuous revivals, and he is with the Church that holds continuous revivals, and with none other; he hasn't any use for the Church that has one week of prayer and devotes all the rest of the year to strawberry festivals and oyster suppers. The speaker waxed merry at the expense of the preacher, who writes his sermons, "for fear he should forget what he once thought," and who wears out the carpet just back of the pulpit and no place else. He, Farson, used to prepare his sermons with infinite pains and trouble. Now he has learned the futility of such performances; he has learned that the only way is to fill the heart with true religion and then to open the mouth and let the heart speak.

"It's a great thing to have no reputation to sustain," declared the speaker. "I'm so sorry for the poor man who is getting ten thousand a year and has the reputation of a big preacher to hold up. Think of always having to preach so as to please your board of managers, or they will retire you and get someone else. Now, we don't have to please anybody. If you don't like our meetings, you needn't come. We didn't ask you to come anyway. Of course you're welcome, but we don't owe you anything. You don't pay us $50 a year and we are not asking you for any collections.

Mr. Farson bounded up and down, with an expansive smile, and the members of the Band nodded and smiled approval.

"I saw something that I liked as I came into this hall," continued the speaker. "The letters W O W, — wow," and he gave vent to a war-hoop that split the air.

Mr. Farson looks like the typical city business man. He appears well-fed, and well-dressed and is clean-shaven. He says he was a traveling-man for thirty years, and thought he always frequented the churches, wherever he went, he found very little religion in them. Now he is apparently satisfied that he has found the only genuine simon-pure brand.

The Band is holding its meetings down-town, while the heating-pipes are being put in to the big dining-room at the Fountain House. As soon as that work is completed, the meetings will, it is said, be held there. The down-town meetings naturally attract large audiences, but they are perfectly orderly. The Athenaeum was crowded Sunday evening, and the people laughed occasionally, though hardly so much as those who were conducting the meeting. But there was not the slightest symptom of disrespect. Members of the Band who served as ushers would also, it may be presumed, serve as policemen if necessary. The "Jumpers" have not had Chicago training for nothing.

—The Waukesha Freeman, Waukesha, Wisconsin, March 15, 1906, p. 1.

Leader of "Holy Jumpers" Tells Experiences in Religious Life

1909

CONFESSIONS OF MRS. HARVEY

Leader of "Holy Jumpers" Gives Interesting Experiences in Religious Life

Mrs. E. L. Harvey, wife of the secretary of the Metropolitan Church association, otherwise known as the Holy Jumpers, a woman of much force of character and ability and one of the leading spirits of the sect, has an interesting article entitled "A Page of My Experience" in the current number of The Burning Bush. From this article we make the following selections:

From childhood I was brought up in the Methodist church and Sunday school and later in the missionary societies and Epworth league. I saw around me a company of young people who professed to love the Lord, who were members of the church but the great object with all of us was to make our class or our society a success.

Only for the week of prayer in the winter time was a special effort made to get souls saved and in that only a very few took part in assisting the minister or evangelist. Again, in the summer time the camp meeting would meet and for ten days the people were stirred up to think about getting someone saved.

Whenever I would hear a sermon preached which told of a life higher than that which I experienced, I was at the altar to seek holiness, but, immediately, on the return from camp meeting, came the usual round of strawberry suppers and ice cream sociables in the name of religion, and these sapped away the piety of each individual.

Trying to Outdo.

As a matter of course in all of these social affairs there entered much rivalry and jealousy, each one trying to outdo the other and secure the approbation of her fellow-workers — then came the vieing with each other in the matter of dress. Of course these things were supposed to be hidden, and yet in each heart was the desire to appear as well as her neighbor.

I had been married and we were engaged in mission work, but, we still attended the old church; but the fact that we were laboring in mission work caused me to trim down somewhat and helped me to get a different view of matters, and I began to see more clearly that real work for God did not consist in giving sociables and parties.

Realizing a Need.

A holiness evangelist was called to the Methodist church where we held our membership, and I eagerly listened to the red-hot truths and went to the altar to be sanctified as I thought that that was what I needed. The preacher told me if anyone in the church was sanctified, I was and that I should not be at the altar. However, I knew the stirrings of my own heart and knew that I needed the abiding presence of Christ.

God certainly changed my heart at that time and all desire for the social doings was taken from me and God helped me to take a decided stand against them and to refuse to lend any assistance to those who carried them on.

God's Voice Was Heeded.

My husband's business was prospering and I had an easy, care-free life and could have whatever I desired. God led me to spend much time each day in prayer and in reading His Word and holiness literature and I well remember how He talked to me about the manner in which I wore my hair, and very gladly I made it plain to please Him. The Lord also had talked to me about singing worldly songs and these too were laid aside. Then came up the question of fancy hats and, as though it were yesterday, I remember the first one I tore to pieces, taking off the drooping feathers and the flowers. The devil said that I could never stand it; but I believed God, and ten years have flown by since that time and I have never wanted any such things.

Silk dresses came in for condemnation by the Lord and these too were given up. Then came the wearing of gold. I had often been ashamed in our mission work on seeing my diamond engagement ring flash and would turn it under my hand, but when God talked to me about this and also all other gold — rings, pins, chains, watch, etc. — I became so heartsick and disgusted with gold that I could scarcely bear the sight of brass buttons and it was no trial to lay it off, and later I was delighted to see the gold and diamond "treasures" traded off to help pay for a bus to carry students to a noon meeting held years ago in Chicago.

Thus it was with other matters of clothing — the tailor-made suits became a thing of the past, as well as the sealskin coat which went to help pay expenses of the Bible school. These things all belong to the long-ago — the time which we would not recall for all there is in this world.

The Light Was Dim.

We heard no preaching upon these things — the light was dim. Once in a while some old saint would say a word but the holiness evangelists enjoyed coming to our home and we enjoyed entertaining them, but they did not speak out against anything they saw.

Dr. Carradine's Opinions.

It was in Dr. Carradine's meetings that God sanctified my soul; but Dr. Carradine told me that the Lord would never ask me to take off my wedding ring as it was the bond of matrimony —but, nevertheless, it went for I knew that gold was gold and God said through His apostle that it was not to be worn by the saints. Although Dr. Carradine in his public preaching ridiculed "rooster tail feathers" and plumes, yet he told me the feathers in a certain hat of mine were all right, and told me he believed the prettiest trimming for a lady's hat was ostrich feathers, and showed me the pictures of his wife and one or two of his daughters with hats heavy with plumes, which of course must have been bought with money which he received from holiness preaching.

God had told me I must not sing worldly songs, but Dr. Carradine, while at our home, brought in two copies of a song, "Her Mem'ry Brings Me No Regret," giving me one which he asked me to sing and sending one to his daughter in St. Louis.

The Home in Question.

The Lord began to talk to my husband and me about our home with its hardwood floors, oriental rugs and furnishings. I asked Dr. Carradine what he thought about that. He told me to never give it up, that it was none too good and that if we would give it up and live in a tent with a rug in it, someone would come along and say we ought not to have the rug. But still the voice of God kept talking and reminding us that there were thousands of dollars tied up in a home for us, which could be used to put missionaries into the field and win souls. The decision was made; the devil stood by, telling me I could never stand it as I had always loved my home. He said we were deteriorating and we were degenerating and would soon have nothing.

I told the Lord if I had to dress in calico and live in a tent the rest of my life I was going to be His child and do His bidding. It was sweet to do His will. The day came when we were to pack up and move out and to the glory of God I can say that there was not a sigh nor a tear but a constant song. A friend afterward remarked that as she saw the packing going on, she did not see how I could sing.

The Distribution.

When the different articles of furniture were distributed, some to the Children's Home, some to the Missionary Home, some to the Bible school it was a delight to see them used, not for self, but for the glory of God. Some pieces were sold and the money put directly into the work of the Lord. Then came the selling of the home — the title passed into the new owner's hands; the money went into the Lord's work; the bridges were burned, and, praise God, to this present day through the years that have passed since then we have never had one desire to have the home back again, but have thoroughly enjoyed the life into which the Lord has led us.

God Almighty Speaks Again.

When our home was sold we had no thought of living in the Bible school, but there the Lord plainly led us. Then the Lord called for my husband's business. It was prospering and growing; the proceeds had long been used for the Lord, but now He said, "Strip for the race and lay aside these burdens and let others assume these responsibilities."

So the business was sold, passing into other hands who bought it — name and all. This money also was put into the Lord's work, and there was no temptation to touch any of it to get clothing or anything for ourselves. Thank God, our Christ was welcomed to it all. He has cared for us during the years since that time, has clothed and fed us and we fear not the future, but trust God always.

—The Waukesha Freeman, Waukesha, WI, July 1, 1909, p. 2.