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96-473: From 1825 until its demise amid controversy in 1930 the Philadelphian Society was the center of Evangelical religious life on campus. This left a lack of organized evangelical ministry at Princeton and the next year a friend of Donald Fullerton called him worried over the hard time his son was having spiritually as a student. Dr. Fullerton had previously served as a Plymouth Brethren missionary on

192-419: A Floor area ratio (FAR) of 0.125 instead of the previous 0.20. This meant a requirement that the total square footage of the building equal no more than 12.5% of the lot, essentially preventing any addition to the existing structure. This zoning limitation was more restrictive than that applied to The Hun School , Princeton Day School , and Stuart Country Day School , as well as neighboring homes. In 2004,

288-463: A car float forcing a return to dock and signaling to Dr. Fullerton that his days of overseas service were at an end. This enabled Dr. Fullerton to respond to the request of his friend by starting to hold Bible classes on the campus, which replaced the defunct Philadelphian Society and which he would continue for fifty years. These informal Bible classes grew into a formal organization in 1937, with PCF's first undergraduate president, A.G. Fletcher Jr.

384-630: A purity ring . In some evangelical churches, young adults and unmarried couples are encouraged to marry early in order to live a sexuality according to the will of God. A 2009 American study of the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy reported that 80 percent of young, unmarried evangelicals have had sex and that 42 percent were in a relationship with sex, when surveyed. The majority of evangelical Christian churches are against abortion and support adoption agencies and social support agencies for young mothers. Masturbation

480-412: A "moratorium" on use of the term. Historian D. G. Hart has also argued that "evangelicalism needs to be relinquished as a religious identity because it does not exist". Christian fundamentalism has been called a subset or "subspecies" of Evangelicalism. Fundamentalism regards biblical inerrancy, the virgin birth of Jesus , penal substitutionary atonement, the literal resurrection of Christ , and

576-483: A collective way through congenial fellowship with others holding similar views ... We wish to emphasize that the P. E. F. was not formed in opposition to any of the religious organizations already existing on the Campus. Our intention has never been to oppose, but rather to supplement these other programs by supplying elements which we feel have been neglected. A notable early member of PCF was Jack Whitcomb , led to faith as

672-492: A denominational member, strongly deemphasize its ties to such, such as a church name which excludes the denominational name) within the broader evangelical movement. In the words of Albert Mohler , president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary , confessional evangelicalism refers to "that movement of Christian believers who seek a constant convictional continuity with the theological formulas of

768-507: A freshman by Dr. Fullerton and a leading young earth creationist . In 1947, the same year the PCF held its first alumni reunion, the fellowship hosted a showing of The God of Creation , a film created by the Moody Institute . One member of the audience of two hundred was Albert Einstein to whom the young Dr. Whitcomb handed a Gospel tract . Another notable PCF alumnus from its early decades

864-593: A function of supervision over churches on a regional or national scale is present in all the Evangelical Christian denominations , even if the titles president of the council or general overseer are mainly used for this function. The term bishop is explicitly used in certain denominations. Some evangelical denominations are members of the World Evangelical Alliance and its 129 national alliances. Some evangelical denominations officially authorize

960-566: A lot of teenagers who go to no church at all or who are indifferent church members. They present, in a rather unique way, what Christ can do for young people." The church's early commitment to children and youth continues today. During Ed Morgan's long tenure as pastor the theme verse for the congregation, affixed to the sign, was Colossians 1:18, "That in All Things Christ Might Have the Preeminence." (KJV) Pastor Morgan said of

1056-521: A majority of evangelical Christians, a belief in biblical inerrancy ensures that the miracles described in the Bible are still relevant and may be present in the life of the believer. Healings, academic or professional successes, the birth of a child after several attempts, the end of an addiction , etc., would be tangible examples of God's intervention with the faith and prayer , by the Holy Spirit . In

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1152-603: A member of the Princeton Class of 1938, announcing: A group of us have felt for a number of years the need on this Campus of a society with a fundamental Christian position ... [we] feel that the fine Christian tradition on which Princeton was founded is not entirely dead today and that there are still many undergraduates in the University whose senses are awake to the higher, eternal values in life, and who would welcome an opportunity to strengthen and reaffirm these convictions in

1248-427: A member of the class of 1960 that, "Through [the PCF's] ministry (and that of Westerly Road Church) I grew spiritually as at no other time in my life." The church's association with the PCF has lasted its entire existence and the indeed its longtime senior pastor, Matt Ristuccia, served for seven years with the PCF prior to accepting the call to serve at Westerly. By the mid-70s the church had grown to 250 members and

1344-402: A middle position between conservative and charismatic evangelicals, while others would combine conservative theological emphases with more liberal social positions. British author Dave Tomlinson coined the phrase postevangelical to describe a movement comprising various trends of dissatisfaction among evangelicals. Others use the term with comparable intent, often to distinguish evangelicals in

1440-622: A particular Christian school of thought or churchmanship , primarily in Great Britain (especially in the Church of England ). Open evangelicals describe their position as combining a traditional evangelical emphasis on the nature of scriptural authority, the teaching of the ecumenical creeds and other traditional doctrinal teachings, with an approach towards culture and other theological points-of-view which tends to be more inclusive than that taken by other evangelicals. Some open evangelicals aim to take

1536-548: A plan was proposed to build a larger sanctuary. However, the Princeton Township Zoning Board denied the necessary variance for parking, leading the congregation to instead plant a daughter church, Windsor Chapel , in 1976 with Rev. Morgan's son called as pastor. The Rev. Morgan retired in 1980 and was succeeded by the Rev. Paul Bawden, who served in that position until 1985. In 1985 the Rev. Dr. Matthew P. Ristuccia

1632-673: A presence in the Anglosphere before spreading further afield in the 19th, 20th, and early 21st centuries. The movement gained significant momentum during the 18th and 19th centuries with the Great Awakening in the United States , and also in Great Britain 's reformations. As of 2016, there were an estimated 619 million evangelicals in the world, meaning that one in four Christians would be classified as evangelical. The United States has

1728-509: A quadrilateral of priorities that is the basis of Evangelicalism." Conversionism, or belief in the necessity of being " born again ," has been a constant theme of evangelicalism since its beginnings. To evangelicals, the central message of the gospel is justification by faith in Christ and repentance , or turning away, from sin . Conversion differentiates the Christian from the non-Christian, and

1824-456: A single university, the PCF has contributed more leaders to the Christian world than probably any other Christian college group." PCF has a long tradition of baptizing students on Easter Sunday morning in conjunction with other campus ministries and under the authority of Stone Hill Church of Princeton . The fellowship also has long associations with members of the Princeton faculty, most notably

1920-498: Is congregational polity . This is especially common among nondenominational evangelical churches. Many churches are members of a national and international denomination for a cooperative relationship in common organizations, for the mission and social areas, such as humanitarian aid , schools, theological institutes and hospitals. Common ministries within evangelical congregations are pastor , elder , deacon , evangelist and worship leader . The ministry of bishop with

2016-420: Is a broader "evangelical streak" in mainline Protestantism. Mainline Protestant churches predominantly have a liberal theology while evangelical churches predominantly have a fundamentalist or moderate conservative theology. Some commentators have complained that Evangelicalism as a movement is too broad and its definition too vague to be of any practical value. Theologian Donald Dayton has called for

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2112-400: Is a wide variety of thought among evangelicals and evangelical churches, but they tend to be conservative and prescriptive in general. Many evangelical churches promote the virginity pledge (abstinence pledge) among young evangelical Christians, who are invited to commit themselves, during a public ceremony, to sexual abstinence until Christian marriage . This pledge is often symbolized by

2208-558: Is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that puts primary emphasis on evangelization . The word evangelic comes from the Greek word for ' good news ' ( evangelion ). The Gospel story of the salvation from sin is considered "the good news". The process of personal conversion involves complete surrender to Jesus Christ (commonly referred to as being " born again "). The conversion process

2304-734: Is authoritatively guided by the Bible , the God in Christianity 's revelation to humanity. Critics of the conceptualization of evangelicalism argue that it is too broad, too diverse, or too ill-defined to be adequately seen as a movement or a single movement. The theological nature of evangelicalism was first explored during the Protestant Reformation in 16th century Europe . Martin Luther 's Ninety-Five Theses in 1517 emphasized that scripture and

2400-493: Is commonly applied to describe the interdenominational Born-Again believing movement. Christian historian David W. Bebbington writes that, "Although 'evangelical,' with a lower-case initial, is occasionally used to mean 'of the gospel,' the term 'Evangelical' with a capital letter, is applied to any aspect of the movement beginning in the 1730s." According to the Oxford English Dictionary , evangelicalism

2496-503: Is presented by some churches as a protection against sexual misconduct and a compulsory step to obtain a position of responsibility in the church. This concept, however, has been challenged by numerous sex scandals involving married evangelical leaders. Finally, evangelical theologians recalled that celibacy should be more valued in the Church today, since the gift of celibacy was taught and lived by Jesus Christ and Paul of Tarsus . For

2592-453: Is reverence for the Bible and high regard for biblical authority . All evangelicals believe in biblical inspiration , though they disagree over how this inspiration should be defined. Many evangelicals believe in biblical inerrancy , while other evangelicals believe in biblical infallibility . Crucicentrism is the centrality that evangelicals give to the Atonement , the saving death and

2688-462: Is secondary to spiritual experience shaped by Scripture . Postconservative evangelicals seek greater dialogue with other Christian traditions and support the development of a multicultural evangelical theology that incorporates the voices of women, racial minorities, and Christians in the developing world. Some postconservative evangelicals also support open theism and the possibility of near universal salvation . The term "open evangelical" refers to

2784-556: Is seen as forbidden by some evangelical pastors because of the sexual thoughts that may accompany it. However, evangelical pastors have pointed out that the practice has been erroneously associated with Onan by scholars, that it is not a sin if it is not practiced with fantasies or compulsively, and that it was useful in a married couple, if his or her partner did not have the same frequency of sexual needs. Some evangelical churches speak only of sexual abstinence and do not speak of sexuality in marriage. Other evangelical churches in

2880-587: Is termed neoevangelicalism , the new evangelicalism , or simply evangelicalism in the United States, while in Great Britain and in other English-speaking countries, it is commonly termed conservative evangelicalism . Over the years, less conservative evangelicals have challenged this mainstream consensus to varying degrees. Such movements have been classified by a variety of labels, such as progressive , open , postconservative , and postevangelical . Outside of self-consciously evangelical denominations, there

2976-463: Is the cause of many social problems, such as terrorism. Some churches have a conservative moderate position. Although they do not approve homosexual practices, they claim to show sympathy and respect for homosexuals. Some evangelical denominations have adopted neutral positions, leaving the choice to local churches to decide for same-sex marriage . There are some international evangelical denominations that are gay-friendly . Christian marriage

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3072-491: Is the noted Reformed theologian John Frame a member of the Princeton Class of 1960. He said of his time in the fellowship that: Fullerton and PEF cared deeply about people, spending hours in mutual prayer, exhortation, counseling, gospel witness ... And they made me a much better follower of Jesus. I will never regret being part of this semi-Arminian , dispensationalist , separatist , tee-totaling , semi-victorious life , pietistic , biblicistic group called PEF. And

3168-406: Is usually run by a Christian pastor . A service is often divided into several parts, including congregational singing, a sermon, intercessory prayer , and other ministry. During worship there is usually a nursery for babies. Children and young people receive an adapted education, Sunday school , in a separate room. Places of worship are usually called "churches." In some megachurches ,

3264-478: The Articles of Religion , and some confessional Lutherans with pietistic convictions. The emphasis on historic Protestant orthodoxy among confessional evangelicals stands in direct contrast to an anticreedal outlook that has exerted its own influence on evangelicalism, particularly among churches strongly affected by revivalism and by pietism . Revivalist evangelicals are represented by some quarters of Methodism ,

3360-682: The Brethren Church ) are evangelical, and some Lutherans self-identify as evangelicals. There are also evangelical Anglicans and Quakers . In the early 20th century, evangelical influence declined within mainline Protestantism and Christian fundamentalism developed as a distinct religious movement. Between 1950 and 2000 a mainstream evangelical consensus developed that sought to be more inclusive and more culturally relevant than fundamentalism while maintaining theologically conservative Protestant teaching. According to Brian Stanley , professor of world Christianity , this new postwar consensus

3456-509: The Christian faith, a conversion which ultimately led to him accepting the call to be founding pastor of Westerly Road. The number of children in the congregation grew rapidly, with the Sunday school including 85 children within two years of the congregation's founding. This led to the addition of seven classrooms and an assembly hall in the spring of 1959, and another ten room addition in time for

3552-758: The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada , and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of England , who are not evangelical in the evangelikal sense but Protestant in the evangelisch sense, have translated the German term evangelisch (or Protestant) into the English term Evangelical , although the two German words have different meanings. In other parts of the world, especially in the English-speaking world, evangelical (German: evangelikal or pietistisch )

3648-877: The National Baptist Convention, USA . In 1969, in the Progressive National Baptist Convention . In 1975, in The Foursquare Church . For evangelicals, there are three interrelated meanings to the term worship . It can refer to living a "God-pleasing and God-focused way of life," specific actions of praise to God, and a public worship service . Diversity characterizes evangelical worship practices. Liturgical , contemporary , charismatic and seeker-sensitive worship styles can all be found among evangelical churches. Overall, evangelicals tend to be more flexible and experimental with worship practices than mainline Protestant churches. It

3744-477: The National Council of Churches , founded in 1950), and making separatism (rigid separation from nonfundamentalist churches and their culture ) a true test of faith. Most fundamentalists are Baptists and dispensationalist or Pentecostals and Charismatics . Great emphasis is placed on the literal interpretation of the Bible as the primary method of Bible study as well as the biblical inerrancy and

3840-473: The Princeton Junction Train Station and was trucked to the site at Westerly and Wilson Roads on the border of the former Princeton Borough and Princeton Township . At the time of construction, the roads were not yet put through and there was no opposition to the church's request for a zoning variance to allow for a religious use in a residential zone. The Harris siblings arranged to call

3936-536: The Rocky Hill Ridge on which the new building is located and the significant amount of stone that needed to be removed to allow for the foundation. The original building was demolished to allow for subdivision into residential lots in accordance with the zoning. The new fellowship hall was named in honor of the Harris family, the three siblings who founded the church and donated the original land. The new prayer chapel

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4032-566: The Second Coming of Christ as fundamental Christian doctrines. Fundamentalism arose among evangelicals in the 1920s—primarily as an American phenomenon, but with counterparts in Britain and British Empire —to combat modernist or liberal theology in mainline Protestant churches. Failing to reform the mainline churches, fundamentalists separated from them and established their own churches, refusing to participate in ecumenical organizations (such as

4128-620: The Wesleyan Holiness churches, the Pentecostal and charismatic churches, some Anabaptist churches, and some Baptists and Presbyterians. Revivalist evangelicals tend to place greater emphasis on religious experience than their confessional counterparts. Evangelicals dissatisfied with the movement's fundamentalism mainstream have been variously described as progressive evangelicals, postconservative evangelicals, open evangelicals and postevangelicals . Progressive evangelicals, also known as

4224-541: The Wilberforce School , providing direction to its mission to provide a distinctly Christian education within a classical framework. Under the Rev. Ristuccia's leadership, the church experienced significant growth and started a number of new initiatives. In the 1980s the Learning Center was founded to supplement the education of homeschooled students with classes led by experienced teachers. The relationship with

4320-814: The confessions of the Reformed churches ) provides such protection. Confessional evangelicals are represented by conservative Presbyterian churches (emphasizing the Westminster Confession ), certain Baptist churches that emphasize historic Baptist confessions such as the Second London Confession , evangelical Anglicans who emphasize the Thirty-Nine Articles (such as in the Anglican Diocese of Sydney , Australia ), Methodist churches that adhere to

4416-491: The emerging church movement from postevangelicals and antievangelicals. Tomlinson argues that "linguistically, the distinction [between evangelical and postevangelical] resembles the one that sociologists make between the modern and postmodern eras". Stone Hill Church of Princeton Stone Hill Church of Princeton is a gospel-centered, nondenominational church in Princeton, New Jersey , United States. The church

4512-539: The evangelical left , share theological or social views with other progressive Christians while also identifying with evangelicalism. Progressive evangelicals commonly advocate for women's equality, pacifism and social justice . As described by Baptist theologian Roger E. Olson , postconservative evangelicalism is a theological school of thought that adheres to the four marks of evangelicalism, while being less rigid and more inclusive of other Christians. According to Olson, postconservatives believe that doctrinal truth

4608-745: The infallibility of their interpretation . Mainstream evangelicalism is historically divided between two main orientations: confessionalism and revivalism . These two streams have been critical of each other. Confessional evangelicals have been suspicious of unguarded religious experience , while revivalist evangelicals have been critical of overly intellectual teaching that (they suspect) stifles vibrant spirituality . In an effort to broaden their appeal, many contemporary evangelical congregations intentionally avoid identifying with any single form of evangelicalism. These "generic evangelicals" are usually theologically and socially conservative, but their churches often present themselves as nondenominational (or, if

4704-626: The ordination of women in churches. The female ministry is justified by the fact that Mary Magdalene was chosen by Jesus to announce his resurrection to the apostles. The first Baptist woman who was consecrated pastor is the American Clarissa Danforth in the denomination Free Will Baptist in 1815. In 1882, in the American Baptist Churches USA . In the Assemblies of God of the United States, since 1927. In 1965, in

4800-466: The resurrection of Jesus , that offers forgiveness of sins and new life. This is understood most commonly in terms of a substitutionary atonement , in which Christ died as a substitute for sinful humanity by taking on himself the guilt and punishment for sin. Activism describes the tendency toward active expression and sharing of the gospel in diverse ways that include preaching and social action. This aspect of evangelicalism continues to be seen today in

4896-579: The sacraments or ordinances ( baptism and the Lord's Supper , but some evangelicals also count footwashing as an ordinance as well). Many evangelical traditions adhere to the doctrine of the believers' Church , which teaches that one becomes a member of the Church by the new birth and profession of faith. This originated in the Radical Reformation with Anabaptists but is held by denominations that practice believer's baptism . Evangelicals in

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4992-784: The think tank Discovery Institute , established in 1991 in Seattle , defends this thesis. Other evangelicals who accept the scientific consensus on evolution and the age of Earth believe in theistic evolution or evolutionary creation —the notion that God used the process of evolution to create life; a Christian organization that espouses this view is the BioLogos Foundation . The Reformed , Baptist , Methodist , Pentecostal , Churches of Christ , Plymouth Brethren , charismatic Protestant , and nondenominational Protestant traditions have all had strong influence within contemporary evangelicalism. Some Anabaptist denominations (such as

5088-570: The 1980s, the neo-charismatic movement re-emphasized miracles and faith healing . In certain churches, a special place is thus reserved for faith healings with laying on of hands during worship services or for evangelization campaigns. Faith healing or divine healing is considered to be an inheritance of Jesus acquired by his death and resurrection. This view is typically ascribed to Pentecostal denominations, and not others that are cessationist (believing that miraculous gifts have ceased.) In terms of denominational beliefs regarding science and

5184-602: The Anglican, Methodist and Reformed traditions practice infant baptism as one's initiation into the community of faith and the New Testament counterpart to circumcision , while also stressing the necessity of personal conversion later in life for salvation . Some evangelical denominations operate according to episcopal polity or presbyterian polity . However, the most common form of church government within Evangelicalism

5280-591: The Greek word for ' gospel ' or 'good news': εὐαγγέλιον euangelion , from eu 'good', angel- the stem of, among other words, angelos 'messenger, angel', and the neuter suffix -ion . By the English Middle Ages, the term had expanded semantically to include not only the message, but also the New Testament which contained the message as well as more specifically the Gospels , which portray

5376-540: The Protestant Reformation". While approving of the evangelical distinctions proposed by Bebbington, confessional evangelicals believe that authentic evangelicalism requires more concrete definition in order to protect the movement from theological liberalism and from heresy . According to confessional evangelicals, subscription to the ecumenical creeds and to the Reformation-era confessions of faith (such as

5472-409: The Rev. Edward H. Morgan of Roanoke, VA, their cousin, as the first pastor, a position which he would hold until his retirement in 1980. The parsonage was built at 25 Westerly Road, which would later serve as the church offices until the relocation to 1025 Bunn Drive. The first services were held on November 25, 1956 with 100 in attendance at the morning service and 30 at the evening. The Rev. Morgan

5568-508: The Socialist movement." This usage refers to evangelism , rather than evangelicalism as discussed here; though sharing an etymology and conceptual basis, the words have diverged significantly in meaning. One influential definition of evangelicalism has been proposed by historian David Bebbington. Bebbington notes four distinctive aspects of evangelical faith: conversionism , biblicism , crucicentrism , and activism, noting, "Together they form

5664-400: The United States and Switzerland speak of satisfying sexuality as a gift from God and a component of a Christian marriage harmonious, in messages during worship services or conferences. Many evangelical books and websites are specialized on the subject. The book The Act of Marriage: The Beauty of Sexual Love published in 1976 by Baptist pastor Tim LaHaye and his wife Beverly LaHaye

5760-572: The book of Acts, Peter proclaims to the Gentiles how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power and how he went about doing good and healing the oppressed. For nearly six decades, this church and its works have been a model of this very text, heeding God's call here in the Princeton area and around the world. Now, with your beautiful new facility, I know these good works will only grow and strengthen. I have enjoyed my many visits over

5856-533: The broad English term Protestant and should not be confused with the narrower German term evangelikal , or the term pietistisch (a term etymologically related to the Pietist and Radical Pietist movements), which are used to described Evangelicalism in the sense used in this article. Mainline Protestant denominations with a Lutheran or semi-Lutheran background, like the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America ,

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5952-415: The building is called "campus." The architecture of places of worship is mainly characterized by its sobriety. The Latin cross is one of the only spiritual symbols that can usually be seen on the building of an evangelical church and that identifies the place's belonging. Some services take place in theaters, schools or multipurpose rooms, rented for Sunday only. Because of their understanding of

6048-507: The change in life it leads to is marked by both a rejection of sin and a corresponding personal holiness of life. A conversion experience can be emotional, including grief and sorrow for sin followed by great relief at receiving forgiveness. The stress on conversion differentiates evangelicalism from other forms of Protestantism by the associated belief that an assurance will accompany conversion. Among evangelicals, individuals have testified to both sudden and gradual conversions. Biblicism

6144-543: The church attempted to relocate to a site on Princeton Pike in Lawrence Township but the requested zoning variance was denied. In 2010, a piece of property became available at 1025 Bunn Drive in the northeast section of Princeton, with zoning appropriate for a church. After a lengthy process of approvals, marked by some vocal opposition, the congregation gained the requisite permissions to build and relocate. A new LEED certified facility of nearly 50,000 square feet

6240-634: The church from the University, the Seminary, Westminster Choir College , and the College of New Jersey . The congregation partners with ministries including the Princeton Christian Fellowship , Princeton Faith and Action , and Manna Christian Fellowship . In July, 2020 Pastor Ristuccia retired after 35 years of service. He was succeeded by his longtime associate pastor, Tracy Troxel. The congregation remained on Westerly Road for 57 years but by

6336-640: The church on his retirement that, "We believe in fundamentals, an adherence to what we believe the Word of God teaches about itself and the Lord." At the founding of the church it was the intention of the Harris siblings that the congregation have a strong commitment to missions. By the time that the Rev. Morgan retired in 1980, the congregation was giving 50% of all general fund contributions to mission work, including providing partial support for 28 missionary families. Most of those families were made up of those who had grown up in

6432-400: The church or entered it as students at the university. Pastor Morgan helped to initiate and encourage the longstanding connection of the congregation to Princeton University by speaking on campus in conjunction with the Princeton Christian Fellowship . This connection to PCF and the campus brought the future theologian John Frame into the congregation. He said of his time at Princeton as

6528-464: The church that, “At Westerly Road Church, the people who were there wanted to be there. The sermon was really relevant and involved understanding the Bible as a text, much like English lit.” Pastor Ristuccia also met his wife, Karen, during his time as an undergraduate, their romance as students providing fodder for a piece in a local newspaper in later years. Karen now serves as the Academic Dean of

6624-424: The church's tenth anniversary in 1966. The young congregation was one of the first in Princeton to offer Vacation Bible School with attendance nearing 100 children by the summer of 1962. The church was also an early supporter of dedicated youth ministry, including supporting a Princeton chapter of Young Life when it faced opposition from other area clergy. In 1964, Ed Morgan said of Young Life that, "They reach

6720-605: The days when the fellowship was exclusively male. Despite the many changes over the decades PCF continues to be cited by students and alumni as a principal life influence. Dr. Justin Hastings of the Princeton Class of 2001 wrote at the end of his senior year: The Princeton Evangelical Fellowship was the reason I came to Princeton ... Now, four years later, PEF is most assuredly the best thing to happen to me at Princeton ... PEF has prepared me morally and spiritually for life after Princeton, much more so than any class I've taken here over

6816-481: The early members of Westerly Road, including Elmer Engstrom , were previously communicants of First Presbyterian Church but were dissatisfied with its theological direction under the Rev. Dr. John R. Bodo. Their intention was to have a church where Biblical teaching and missionary activity were emphasized. The original structure cost $ 30,000, raised by the 22 charter members, and was bought pre-fabricated from U.S. Steel Homes Inc. The sanctuary arrived via train at

6912-515: The establishment of elementary and secondary schools. It also enabled the development of several bible colleges , colleges and universities in the United States during the 19th century. Other evangelical universities have been established in various countries of the world. The Council for Christian Colleges and Universities was founded in 1976. In 2023, the CCCU had 185 members in 21 countries. The Association of Christian Schools International

7008-874: The greatest part of that experience was the godly example of Donald B. Fullerton. He was not a perfect man, but I am yet today an imitator of his, since he imitated Jesus. The fellowship has grown steadily over time, with under 30 members in 1959, up to 70 by the 1978, and 150 by the late 90s. It now includes a dedicated graduate student ministry, the Graduate Princeton Christian Fellowship . PCF's members have included several Princeton University valedictorians, salutatorians, and two young alumni trustees among recipients of many other university awards. According to one source PCF's alumni include "prominent seminary professors, scientists, denominational leaders, influential authors, as well as missionaries in more than twenty-five countries. As an independent group from

7104-687: The largest proportion of evangelicals in the world. American evangelicals are a quarter of the nation's population and its single largest religious group . As a transdenominational praxis, evangelicals may be found in nearly every Protestant denomination and tradition, particularly within the Reformed ( Continental Reformed , Anglicanism , Presbyterian , Congregational ), Plymouth Brethren , Baptist , Methodist ( Wesleyan–Arminian ), Lutheran , Moravian , Free Church , Mennonite , Quaker , Pentecostal / charismatic and non-denominational churches. The word evangelical has its etymological roots in

7200-490: The life, death, and resurrection of Jesus . The first published use of evangelical in English was in 1531, when William Tyndale wrote "He exhorteth them to proceed constantly in the evangelical truth." One year later, Thomas More wrote the earliest recorded use in reference to a theological distinction when he spoke of "Tyndale [and] his evangelical brother Barns." During the Reformation , Protestant theologians embraced

7296-654: The mid 1990s the church was housing a congregation of 500 in a building designed for 125 and sought to add a two-story addition to the property on Westerly Road. Under the existing zoning, the proposed 23,000 square foot final structure was permitted. In response to the church's proposal the Princeton Township Committee passed a zoning amendment that would severely restrict the ability of the church to expand on its current property. The zoning change limited churches in residential zones in Princeton Township to

7392-584: The northwest frontier of British India , the border regions of modern-day Pakistan and Afghanistan , but was forced off the mission field by ill health. He made an attempt to return to the mission field in 1929, sailing out on the RMS Mauretania . He prayed that God would turn the ship around if it was not His will that he return to the mission field. While still in New York harbor the Mauretania collided with

7488-592: The only option for many Christians to live their faith in community. For example, there is the Evangelical house churches in China movement. The meetings thus take place in private houses, in secret and in illegality. The main Christian feasts celebrated by the Evangelicals are Christmas , Pentecost (by a majority of Evangelical denominations) and Easter for all believers. Evangelical churches have been involved in

7584-868: The origin of the earth and human life, some evangelicals support young Earth creationism . For example, Answers in Genesis , founded in Australia in 1986, is an evangelical organization that seeks to defend the thesis. In 2007, they founded the Creation Museum in Petersburg, in Kentucky and in 2016 the Ark Encounter in Williamstown . Since the end of the 20th century, literalist creationism has been abandoned by some evangelicals in favor of intelligent design . For example,

7680-530: The past four years. In the fall of 2017 the ministry changed its name to Princeton Christian Fellowship, due to the perception that the term 'evangelical' had too much of a political connotation rather than a theological one, with Boyce stating "There might be certain assumptions that all evangelicals are Republicans". Evangelical Evangelicalism ( / ˌ iː v æ n ˈ dʒ ɛ l ɪ k əl ɪ z əm , ˌ ɛ v æ n -, - ə n -/ ), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism ,

7776-453: The preaching of the gospel had ultimate authority over the practices of the Church . The origins of modern evangelicalism are usually traced to 1738, with various theological streams contributing to its foundation, including Pietism and Radical Pietism , Puritanism , Quakerism and Moravianism (in particular its bishop Nicolaus Zinzendorf and his community at Herrnhut ). Preeminently, John Wesley and other early Methodists were at

7872-415: The proliferation of evangelical voluntary religious groups and parachurch organizations . The word church has several meanings among evangelicals. It can refer to the universal church (the body of Christ ) including all Christians everywhere. It can also refer to the church (congregation) , which is the visible representation of the invisible church . It is responsible for teaching and administering

7968-645: The root of sparking this new movement during the First Great Awakening . Today, evangelicals are found across many Protestant branches, as well as in various denominations around the world, not subsumed to a specific branch. Among leaders and major figures of the evangelical Protestant movement were Nicolaus Zinzendorf , George Fox , John Wesley , George Whitefield , Jonathan Edwards , Billy Graham , Bill Bright , Harold Ockenga , Gudina Tumsa , John Stott , Francisco Olazábal , William J. Seymour , and Martyn Lloyd-Jones . Evangelicalism has long had

8064-656: The second of the Ten Commandments , some evangelicals do not have religious material representations such as statues, icons, or paintings in their places of worship. There is usually a baptistery on what is variously known as the chancel (also called sanctuary) or stage, though they may be alternatively found in a separate room, for the baptisms by immersion . In some countries of the world which apply sharia or communism , government authorizations for worship are complex for Evangelical Christians. Because of persecution of Christians , Evangelical house churches are

8160-554: The term as referring to "gospel truth." Martin Luther referred to the evangelische Kirche ("evangelical church") to distinguish Protestants from Catholics in the Catholic Church . Into the 21st century, evangelical has continued in use as a synonym for Mainline Protestant in continental Europe . This usage is reflected in the names of Protestant denominations, such as the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America . The German term evangelisch more accurately corresponds to

8256-494: The university continues to flourish, marked by the presence of faculty members such as Dr. James Rankin of the German Department, who started his service as church pianist in the early 1990s. Dr. Rankin described the church to the campus newspaper as marked by prayer, study of scripture, and music, saying "A community of believers is something that I want to be a part of, just like in the New Testament." Many students attend

8352-410: The work of Dr. James Rankin in mentoring students and playing piano and keyboard with the fellowship's worship team . Over its more than eighty years of existence the PCF has seen many changes. The hymn books of earlier years gave way to guitars and contemporary worship music . Suits and ties have given way to shorts and flip-flops, and the introduction of coeducation to Princeton in 1969 ended

8448-524: Was a pioneer in the field. The perceptions of homosexuality in the Evangelical Churches are varied. They range from liberal to fundamentalist or moderate conservative and neutral. A 2011 Pew Research Center study found that 84 percent of evangelical leaders surveyed believed homosexuality should be discouraged. It is in the fundamentalist conservative positions that there are antigay activists on TV or radio who claim that homosexuality

8544-495: Was called as senior pastor. Educated at Phillips Academy and Princeton, he received a degree in Master of Divinity from Grace Theological Seminary and his doctor of ministry from Dallas Theological Seminary . The Rev. Ristuccia first joined the church after experiencing an evangelical conversion during his time as an undergraduate at the nearby university. On his 25th anniversary as senior pastor he said of his initial introduction to

8640-670: Was educated at Hotchkiss , a member of the Princeton University class of 1938, and a 1942 graduate of the Princeton Theological Seminary . He was a member of one of Princeton's oldest families of ministers, including a great-uncle, William Henry Green , who spent fifty years as a professor of Princeton Seminary. The Rev. Morgan had already been serving as the pastor of a Presbyterian church in Philadelphia when he experienced what he described as his true conversion to

8736-614: Was first used in 1831. In 1812, the term evangelicalism appeared in The History of Lynn by William Richards . In the summer of 1811 the term evangelicalists was used in The Sin and Danger of Schism by Rev. Dr. Andrew Burnaby , Archdeacon of Leicester . The term may also be used outside any religious context to characterize a generic missionary, reforming, or redeeming impulse or purpose. For example, The Times Literary Supplement refers to "the rise and fall of evangelical fervor within

8832-402: Was founded at the initiative of two sisters, Helen and Dorothy Harris, with the support of their brother W. Butler Harris, on land along Westerly Road which they donated to the church. The Harris siblings were the children of noted Princeton Professor Walter Butler Harris, and grandchildren of the Rev. William Harris, a treasurer of Princeton University. The Harris siblings, along with many of

8928-461: Was founded in 1956 as Westerly Road Church at the intersection of Westerly and Wilson Roads. In 2013, it constructed a new facility and relocated to 1025 Bunn Drive and changed its name to Stone Hill Church of Princeton. The Rev. Dr. Matthew P. Ristuccia, a member of the Princeton University class of 1975, served as senior pastor from 1985 until his retirement in 2020. Westerly Road Church

9024-497: Was founded in 1978 by 3 American associations of evangelical Christian schools. Various international schools have joined the network. In 2023, it had 23,000 schools in 100 countries. The International Council for Evangelical Theological Education was founded in 1980 by the Theological Commission of the World Evangelical Alliance . In 2023, it had 850 member schools in 113 countries. In matters of sexuality , there

9120-406: Was named in honor of Westerly and became home to the previous building's communion table and cross. On the occasion of the dedication of Stone Hill Church, Congressman Rush Holt wrote I regret that I cannot join you in person for today's celebration, but I want to congratulate the leaders and congregants on this momentous occasion in the history of Westerly Road - and now, Stone Hill - Church. In

9216-523: Was opened in December 2013. The church granted a permanent conservation easement over the wetlands on the southern third of the site, allowing for trail access to the Herrontown Woods Arboretum from Bunn Drive. With the departure from Westerly Road, a name change was deemed appropriate, and the church elders unanimously agreed upon Stone Hill Church of Princeton. The Stone Hill is a reference to

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