The Voice of Healing was created to position William Branham as leader of the "Voice of Healing Revival" by organizing numerous revivalists under the title "Branham Healing Campaigns". The April 1948 issue was subtitled "An Inter-Evangelical Publication of the Branham Healing Campaigns".[1] William Branham was the original publisher, and Branham's campaign manager Gordon Lindsay was the editor. Jack Moore and his wife Anna were also involved as associate editor and circulation editor.
At the beginning of 1948 during the time of unity between the Voice of Healing Revival and Latter Rain Revival,[2], William Branham began advertising himself as the "voice of healing".[3] Leaders in Branham's sect referred to the magazine as "the Branham paper".[4] In March, Branham met with the very popular Iranian "faith healer" Avak Hagopian for photographs,[5] sponsored by the Kardashians[6] as an organized team of "healers".[7]. The first issue of The Voice of Healing was introduced the next month, and Branham described his reason for forming a committee to organize the faith healers.[8] It also included disclaimers for those whose alleged "healing" failed. Rev. F. F. Bosworth dedicated almost a full page to describe "Why All Are Not Healed," blaming the failure on the lack of faith — both for those seeking healing and for members of their communities.[9]
Once this structure and organization were in place, The Voice of Healing began assisting in the creation of stage personas for literally hundreds of "faith healers". Any person who wanted to become a "faith healer" could join in the Voice of Healing Revival as an evangelist, advertise their own "supernatural" ministries with angelic visitations, signs, and wonders, and receive the full backing of the Branham Campaigns. Branham himself would not speak with them, however. In May, 1948, Branham announced that his "angel" had told him not to converse with people in the revival.
Recently the angel again appeared to Brother Branham. He was told that he should give much of his time to prayer and waiting upon God, and that he should not dissipate his strength by spending too much time in conversation with people.[10]
After the 1957 Christian Fellowship Convention hosted by Jim Jones and Peoples Temple, Voice of Healing severed ties with William Branham for several months. Branham apparently angered Jones and several other Voice of Healing Evangelists, and an Open Letter to William Branham was signed by several evangelists and distributed. When a copy was sent to the editors of The Voice of Healing, Gordon Lindsay was forced to respond by launching an internal investigation. This letter and investigation were announced in an article entitled "CHRISTIAN FELLOWSHIP CONVENTION Replies to 'Open Letter' to William Branham."
The fact that Evangelist William Branham was the main speaker at the Christian Fellowship Convention in Indianapolis, Indiana, June 10-14, 1957, caused many brethren to be deeply concerned regarding the veracity of the statements in an open letter addressed to him and circulated widely. The convention decided upon an investigation of the matter in order to be able to give correct information to those who have been disturbed by this and other letters.[11]
The contents of the letter are not included in the article, but the article does describe several ministers who were greatly offended by whatever William Branham did or said at the convention. The last paragraph of the article, however, could give clues as to what they were offended by. Apparently, several evangelists recognized that William Branham's sermons strayed from the Gospel and stated as much in the letter. The Voice of Healing editors argued that Branham's ministry could be confirmed by his "gift" rather than his misrepresentation of the Gospel.
we are convinced that there is no truth in the insinuation that Rev. Branham has deviated from his normal, gracious, positive ministry of the Gospel, confirmed of God with signs following. Rather his supernatural ministry gift is more than fruitful of mighty miracles than ever before.[12]
After this 1957 convention, Jim Jones and Peoples Temple parted ways with William Branham and the Voice of Healing Evangelists. According to Jones' own account of parting ways with William Branham, several evangelists approached Jones at the Claypool hotel describing some sort of altercation. Jones also did not fully describe what happened, but clearly described being upset. According to Jones, William Branham did not want to "preach the truth of the bible", which seems to match that other ministers apparently said in the letter.
Some are listening. They won’t tell you the truth, because the black book is the easiest gravy train that they’ve ever been on. Yet Allen [A.A. Allen, Pentecostal evangelist] came to me, Oral Roberts [Pentecostal evangelist] spoke this, Billy Graham came right to us – Ijames [Archie Ijames], Jack [Jack Arnold Beam], and me – in Claypool Hotel, said I don’t believe a thing in that Bible hardly. But he said, it’s the way to make a living. Billy Graham, who I prophesied his death, Billy Branham rather, said his head would be— I said he’d lose his head. His head was cut off in Texas. [Editorial note: The reference is to William Branham, an evangelical preacher and acquaintance of Jim Jones during the Temple’s Indianapolis days. Branham died in an automobile accident on Christmas Eve 1965 in Texas, but was not decapitated.] He said you can’t preach the truth about that Bible, he said (tape cuts out about three seconds) preach reincarnation, you cannot preach the truth about the Bible, you will be in trouble. I said, I choose to treat th— preach the truth. He said, well, I’ll be around, while you will be in trouble. Well, I’m still here, and his head is cut off from his body.
Jim Jones, Q612 Transcript[13]
Towards the end of Jones' account of what happened, Jones said that he prophesied concerning Branham's death. Jones apparently prophesied that Branham would be decapitated, which he claimed to have been fulfilled by Branham's horrific automobile accident that lead to his death in 1965. This also seems to match the statements made in the "Open Letter to William Branham". Not only Jones, but several other ministers were warning Branham of death and destruction for his apparent abandonment of the Gospel.
It is hoped that other mis-statements in the letter were due to misinformation, but we are constrained to believe that one statement repeated several times was a serious breach. We refer to warnings of "death" and "destruction" forecast against Brother Branham, and we wonder whether the writer or writers would circulate such remarks if they had it to do over again?[14]
