Dub Hagin: The Ex-Gangster Testimony That Fueled the Word of Faith Revival
Dub Hagin rose to prominence within Word of Faith and Full Gospel circles as an itinerant speaker whose authority rested almost entirely on claims of a dramatic criminal past, amplified by his relationship to Kenneth Hagin and revival-era testimonial culture. This examination traces how Hagin’s underworld narrative was promoted, escalated, and sustained within charismatic networks that rewarded sensational conversion stories over historical verification.
Raymond Hoekstra
Raymond "Chaplain Ray" Hoekstra was a pivotal but often overlooked Pentecostal operator whose career connected early Oneness Pentecostalism, the formation of UPCI networks, William Branham's early healing revivals, Latter Rain spectacle, child-preacher promotion, criminal-case publicity, and later prison ministry, while repeatedly relying on stagecraft, reinvention, sensational testimony, and strategic alliances to maintain influence; from his ties to Branham, Midway Gospel Tabernacle, Calvary Tabernacle, Nathaniel Urshan, and David Walker to his role in the Leslie Douglas Ashley campaign and later International Prison Ministry, Hoekstra illustrates how revival culture could turn supernatural claims, vulnerable people, public scandal, and emotional performance into religious authority while avoiding lasting accountability.
Change of Identity or Stage Persona? What the Records Show About William Branham
Contemporary newspapers, court records, census data, and federal draft registration demonstrate that William Branham’s identity remained stable and publicly traceable through the Prohibition era and into adulthood, despite significant criminal activity and instability within his family. Later name variations—most notably the use of “Henry Branham” and the shift from Marvin to Marrion—align with the construction of a revival-stage persona rather than an attempt to evade law enforcement or conceal his past.
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