Bethel and Stone's Folly Today
Exterior of Tree of Life Fellowship on SW Jackson and 4th St.
Tree of Life Fellowship ground floor renovated worship space
Most healing rooms stand untouched other than outdated electrical work.
Multipurpose space, possibly housing Parham's multiple ministries in one space
One of the fourteen healing rooms on the second floor.
Parham's former office, sitting on the second floor facing SW Jackson St.
Bethel Healing Home Today
Bethel Healing Home at the corner of 4th and Jackson Street in Topeka is now the Tree of Life Fellowship. Members there want to preserve Parham's legacy by continuing a mission around divine healing and growing in their faith. Like Parham, Tree of Life does not separate healing and faith. Their website states: "The people who have come to Tree of Life to have Jesus heal them believe with all their heart, in faith, that they will receive their healing, and they have. Some of the healings we have witnessed have come instantly, some have taken days weeks or months, but God was faithful to them all as they declared His Word over their body and over their lives."
Current Renovations and Use
The building was purchased by the Tree of Life Fellowship in 2009, and in 2010 it was opened to the public. Though the bottom floor has been renovated into a modern worship space, the second and third floors are untouched except for some outdated electrical work. Tree of Life plans to restore the fourteen healing rooms on the upper floors to their historical condition. A revival center in the newer (back) addition to the building, a kitchen for Topeka's poor and the residents of the healing rooms, and a prayer tower in the attic are among the renovation plans.
In addition to the main floor renovations, the back portion of the building, not original to Parham's ministry, has been renovated into a youth room. Tree of Life also houses a collection of Parham memorabilia, including his book of homilies, his personal desk and shaving kit, Sarah's (his wife) tea set and her copy of Pilgrim's Progress.
Visit the Tree of Life Fellowship's website: https://www.treeoflifeks.org/
Exterior of rectory north east of Most Pure Heart of Mary.
Basement of rectory, original foundation of Stone's Folly.
Stone's Folly Today
The Most Pure Heart of Mary Catholic Church on SW 17th Street and SW Stone's Avenue in Topeka now occupies the land once home to Stone's Folly. The property, on the western outskirts of town in 1901, is now in a central location in the capital, a mile west of Washburn University.
A few hints tell us that the basement of the church rectory was built on the original foundation of Stone's Folly. Its location on SW 17th Street and SW Stone's Avenue, its stone foundation, the positioning of the basement windows, and the location of the stairwell are consistent with the photos we have of Stone's Folly. Also, when the rectory was expanded years later, the excavation of the land surrounding the rectory unearthed remnants of the burned down mansion.
In 1906, Thomas and Emily Owen built the old rectory that now sits on the property. The home was sold to the bishop of the Diocese of Leavenworth in 1946 (Defendorf 54). That same year, the property was approved by the Catholic Church as a future parish location. A new rectory was completed in 2019, and the old rectory currently stands unused due to its small, outdated, and unsafe conditions.
Visit Most Pure Heart of Mary Catholic Church's website : https://mphm.com/
Stone's Folly and its Significance for Charismatic Catholics
Some charismatic Catholics, Catholics who emphasis a renewed interest in the gifts of the Holy Spirit, take particular pride in the location of The Most Pure Heart of Mary Catholic Church resting on the grounds of the historic Stone's Folly. Other than the mansion's foundation being directly west of the church, according to some records, the timing of the "Topeka Outpouring" aligns with a prayer Pope Leo XIII prayed in Rome on that same night.
Elena Guerra, founder of the "Oblate Sisters of the Holy Spirit" in Lucca, Italy, wrote to Pope Leo XIII:
"Preachers praise all the Saints, but when do we ever hear a sermon in honor of the Holy Spirit, He who shapes the saints?... Therefore, oh Holy Father, you alone can make Christians return to the Holy Spirit, so that the Holy Spirit may return to us; defeat the evil reign of the devil, and grant us the long sought renewal of the face of the earth"(Defendorf 15).
On January 1st, 1901, Pope Leo XIII, influenced by Elena Guerra's letter, prayed the Veni Creator Spiritus in front of the Holy Spirit window in Rome. For these charismatic Catholics, the pope's prayer was answered in Topeka that night when the Holy Spirit poured out on Agnes Ozman and she spoke in tongues.