What are the origins and history of the practice of holding massive healing crusades in large stadiums or arenas?
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For some time I've been interested in the topic of Christian revivals throughout history. In particular, Argentina stands out in my opinion during the second half of the 20th century with a track record of very notable revivals involving massive healing crusades. The one that amazes me the most is the one that took place in 1954 with Tommy Hicks, which I only knew about from informal sources [until very recently](https://history.stackexchange.com/questions/62323/did-argentine-president-juan-peron-grant-free-access-to-the-radio-the-press-and) . What I find fascinating about this revival is the fact that Tommy Hicks managed to convince Argentine president Juan Peron to grant him free access to the press, the radio and **the permission to hold a massive healing crusade in the Atlanta and Huracán soccer stadiums**, which several sources affirm were full to overflow with people (see the previous link for details). Another example is [Carlos Annacondia](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001NEK9Y4/) , a very popular Argentine revivalist preacher who was very active during the 80s and 90s in Argentina first, and abroad later. In [this video](https://youtu.be/qufaIjLbyFE?t=121) you can see him preaching to a whole stadium in what appears to be a healing crusade in China. Lastly, Claudio Freidzon had his fair share of soccer stadium renting and massive healing crusades during the 90s in Argentina, as evidenced by [these](https://youtu.be/QVxqPuT7OxI?t=1027) [videos](https://youtu.be/6MmNKb19AdA) .
**My question**: How did the practice of holding massive healing crusades in large stadiums, arenas or similar spaces begin? How has it evolved over the course of history? What are the denominations most frequently involved in this practice?
Asked by user50422
Dec 24, 2020, 04:21 PM
Last activity: Jan 2, 2021, 01:14 AM
Last activity: Jan 2, 2021, 01:14 AM