Rolf McPherson

Rolf Potter Kennedy McPherson (March 23, 1913 – May 21, 2009) was the pastor of Angelus Temple and president of the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel, serving in that capacity from 1944 to 1988. By his retirement, the evangelical Pentecostal denomination had grown from 29,000 members in 410 churches to 1.2 million members in more than 19,000 churches located in 63 countries.

Personal background Rolf McPherson was born on March 23, 1913, in Providence, Rhode Island. He was the son of Harold Stewart McPherson and Aimee Semple McPherson, founder of the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel. He was the half-brother of Roberta Star Semple, the daughter of Aimee and her first husband Robert James Semple, who had died of malaria one month before the birth of his daughter. Rolf and his sister Roberta were part of many services and revivals when young. McPherson attended college, first studying engineering. He switched to religion in 1930 after his mother became ill, and also completed divinity school, earning a doctorate. He died on May 21, 2009, at his home in Los Feliz at age 96, having been predeceased by his first wife, Lorna Dee Smith McPherson.