Victor Paul Wierwille (December 31, 1916 – May 20, 1985) was an American evangelical writer and the founder of

The Way International The Way International is a Nondenominational Christianity, nondenominational Christian ministry based in New Knoxville, Ohio. The followers congregate primarily in home fellowships located throughout the United States, two US territories, and in ...

(TWI).

Biography

Victor Paul Wierwille was born on December 31, 1916, in New Knoxville, Ohio, to Ernst Henry Wierwille and Emma Sophia Niemeyer. He was raised in and later

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

by the

Evangelical and Reformed Church The Evangelical and Reformed Church (E&R) was a Protestant Christian denomination in the United States. It was formed in 1934 by the merger of the Reformed Church in the United States (RCUS) with the Evangelical Synod of North America (ESNA). ...

(a predecessor of the

United Church of Christ The United Church of Christ (UCC) is a socially liberal mainline Protestant Christian denomination based in the United States, with historical and confessional roots in the Congregational, Restorationist, Continental Reformed, and Lutheran t ...

) in 1941, and he officially left that church in 1957. Wierwille graduated from Mission House College with

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

and

Bachelor of Theology The Bachelor of Theology degree (BTh, ThB, or BTheol) is a two- to five-year undergraduate degree or graduate degree in theological disciplines and is typically (but not exclusively) pursued by those seeking ordination for ministry in a church, de ...

degrees. He then studied at The University of Chicago Divinity School and received a

Master of Theology Master of Theology (, abbreviated ThM, MTh or MTheol, or ''Sacrae Theologiae Magister''; abbreviated STM) is a post-graduate degree offered by universities, divinity schools, and seminaries. It can serve as a transition degree for entrance into a ...

in practical theology from

Princeton Theological Seminary Princeton Theological Seminary (PTSem), officially The Theological Seminary of the Presbyterian Church, is a Private university, private seminary, school of theology in Princeton, New Jersey, Princeton, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Establish ...

. Wierwille later studied at Pikes Peak Bible Seminary, a non-accredited institution, and received a doctorate in theology. In October 1942, he started the precursor to

nontrinitarian Nontrinitarianism is a form of Christianity that rejects the orthodox Christian theology of the Trinity—the belief that God is three distinct hypostases or persons who are coeternal, coequal, and indivisibly united in one being, or essence ( ...

Christian organization), Vesper Chimes, which was a radio show broadcast from

Lima, Ohio Lima ( ) is a city in Allen County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 35,579. It is located in northwest Ohio along Interstate 75 in Ohio, Interstate 75, appr ...

, incorporating in 1947 as ''The Chimes Hour Youth Caravan''. He incorporated as The Way Incorporated in 1955, maintaining that this was the name that early Christians used for themselves basing his assertion on several uses of "the way" or "this way" in

Acts of the Apostles The Acts of the Apostles (, ''Práxeis Apostólōn''; ) is the fifth book of the New Testament; it tells of the founding of the Christian Church and the spread of The gospel, its message to the Roman Empire. Acts and the Gospel of Luke make u ...

. Later the official name became The Way International. Wierwille authored several books that are printed by The Way International's

American Christian Press American Christian Press serves as the publishing arm of The Way International Biblical research, teaching and fellowship ministry, operating out of New Knoxville, Ohio New Knoxville is a village in Auglaize County, Ohio, United States. It was es ...

publishing organization. One book was ''Jesus Christ is Not God'', in which he addressed his belief that Jesus Christ is the only begotten

Son of God Historically, many rulers have assumed titles such as the son of God, the son of a god or the son of heaven. The term "Son of God" is used in the Hebrew Bible as another way to refer to humans who have a special relationship with God. In Exo ...

and

Messiah In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; , ; , ; ) is a saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of '' mashiach'', messianism, and of a Messianic Age originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible, in which a ''mashiach ...

but not a persona of the

Christian God In Christianity, God is the eternal, supreme being who created and preserves all things. Christians believe in a monotheistic conception of God, which is both transcendent (wholly independent of, and removed from, the material universe) an ...

. Wierwille wrote three other works which focused on Jesus Christ and the concept of the

Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit, otherwise known as the Holy Ghost, is a concept within the Abrahamic religions. In Judaism, the Holy Spirit is understood as the divine quality or force of God manifesting in the world, particularly in acts of prophecy, creati ...

: ''Jesus Christ Our Passover'', ''Jesus Christ Our Promised Seed'', and ''Receiving the Holy Spirit Today''. Other major works include ''Power for Abundant Living'', ''Christians Should Be Prosperous'', ''Are the Dead Alive Now?'' and his ''Studies in Abundant Living'' five-volume series. Wierwille became associated in 1957 with Aramaic Bible scholar

George Lamsa George Mamishisho Lamsa () (August 5, 1892 – September 22, 1975) was an Assyrian people, Assyrian author. He was born in Kara Kilise, Mar Bishu in what is now the extreme east of Turkey. A native Aramaic language, Aramaic speaker, he translated ...

, who finished his translation work for the

Lamsa Bible ''The Holy Bible from Ancient Eastern Manuscripts'' (commonly called the ''Lamsa Bible'') was published by George M. Lamsa in 1933. It was derived, both Old and New Testaments, from the Syriac Peshitta, the Bible used by the Assyrian Church of ...

in Wierwille's home. Lamsa and Wierwille together produced the first American Aramaic grammar in 1960 for the study of Biblical manuscripts with the classical Estrangelo letters."''The Aramaic-English New Testament''. American Christian Press. 1988. p7" Believing the original

New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...

was written in

Aramaic Aramaic (; ) is a Northwest Semitic language that originated in the ancient region of Syria and quickly spread to Mesopotamia, the southern Levant, Sinai, southeastern Anatolia, and Eastern Arabia, where it has been continually written a ...

, Wierwille was a supporter of Lamsa's translation of the Bible and used it frequently. On February 2, 1961, he moved The Way International headquarters to New Knoxville, Ohio, on approximately of family farm land. After graduating from B. G. Leonard's ''Gifts of the Spirit'' class in

Calgary, Alberta Calgary () is a major city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a Metropolitan area, metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the List of ...

, Wierwille began teaching a similar class that he initially called ''Receiving the Holy Spirit Today'' but soon changed to ''Power for Abundant Living'' (PFAL). Eventually he expanded it into a teaching series, including a foundational, intermediate, and advanced class. Wierwille was the president of The Way International from its incorporation until he retired from leadership in October 1982. He was followed by his hand-picked successor, L. Craig Martindale. Martindale was a former Baptist Student Union and

Fellowship of Christian Athletes The Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) is an international nonprofit Christian sports ministry based in Kansas City, Missouri, Kansas City. History FCA was founded in 1954 by Eastern Oklahoma State College, Eastern Oklahoma A&M basketball c ...

leader at the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States. Two branch campuses are in the Kansas City metropolitan area on the Kansas side: the university's medical school and hospital ...

, where he played football in the early 1970s. After his retirement, Wierwille’s health deteriorated rapidly. He died of

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

of the liver and ocular cancer on May 20, 1985, at the age of 68.

Selected bibliography

*(1971) Power for Abundant Living (1st Ed). *(1971) Christians Should Be Prosperous (1st Ed). *(1957) Receiving the Holy Spirit Today (1st Ed) *(1972) Receiving the Holy Spirit Today (7th Ed). *(1975) Jesus Christ is Not God (2nd Ed). *(1980) Jesus Christ Our Passover (2nd Ed). *(1982) Jesus Christ Our Promised Seed (1st Ed). *(1982) Are the Dead Alive Now? (2nd Ed). *(1971) Studies in Abundant Living Series Volume I - The Bible Tells Me So (1st Ed). *(1971) Studies in Abundant Living Series Volume II - The New Dynamic Church (1st Ed). *(1971) Studies in Abundant Living Series Volume III - The Words Way (1st Ed). *(1977) Studies in Abundant Living Series Volume IV - God's Magnified Word (1st Ed). *(1985) Studies in Abundant Living Series Volume V - Order My Steps in Thy Word (1st Ed).

References

External links

Audio recordings of teachings
Audio Recording : ReligionAudio Recording : The Believer's Peace
Quotes:

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wierwille, Victor Paul 1916 births 1985 deaths People from Auglaize County, Ohio The Way International American Evangelical writers Princeton Theological Seminary alumni American Evangelical and Reformed Church members Radio evangelists Founders of new religious movements