Revision as of 01:11, 21 December 2021

Princeton Evangelical Fellowship (PEF) is one of the oldest campus ministries of its type, and also one of the largest student ministries at Princeton University, a non-denominational student ministry founded in 1931 by Princeton alum (1913) Dr. Donald Fullerton. It was founded after the dissolution of a long-standing evangelical student ministry founded in 1825 known as the Philadelphian Society, following a rough decade of institutional liberalizing away from its earlier theological commitments. Both the PS and the subsequent PEF staunchly supported "commitment to the authority of the inerrant scripture, an emphasis on personal conversion, and that salvation is found through the atoning work of Christ alone".

In the Fall of 1931, the mother of a Princeton student asked Dr. Fuller if he would start meeting with her son and others interested. Dr. Fullerton earned an honorary doctorate at Grace Seminary that became serious in his commitment to Christ while serving with the 313th Field Artillery in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive of World War One, where he turned his life over to Christ. After the War, he spent time as a PB missionary on the northwest frontier of what was then British India, now the border region of Pakistan and Afghanistan. He returned to the U.S. due to illness, attempting to return in 1929 but was prevented due to a collision of the ship with a train ferry, and within two years was electing to equip others to take his place via this newfound ministry at his alma mater.

PEF was not publicly advertised until 1937, the first undergrad president, Archibald Fletcher, wrote in the Daily Princetonian that, "The purpose of this Fellowship shall be to provide an opportunity for students at Princeton University to enjoy Christian fellowship one with another, to bear united witness to the faith of its members in the whole Bible as the inspired Word of God and to encourage other students to take, with them, a definite stand for Christ on the Campus." In 1947, in the same year that the

Fullerton's discipleship and evangelistic efforts personally impacted many, including noted missiologist Arthur Glasser, young earth creationist Jack Whitcomb, and also a significant impact on Judge Paul Pressler, a "leader in the conservative resurgence in the Southern Baptist Convention", as well as John Frame, a respected Reformed theologian.

In the 1970's, there was a notable diversifying of ethnicity, culture and gender, and the musical fare changed from organs and hymnals to contemporary Christian music with guitars. Dr. Fullerton continued in leadership with the PEF until 1975, replaced by Wayne Wever (class of '65), Donald continued to attend prayer meetings until 1980 at the age of 88. "One of the hallmarks of Dr. Fullerton's ministry was meeting with students one-on-one, a practice that became a central part of PCF's approach to discipleship." Donald was promoted to Glory at the age of 92 in 1985, and is buried in the Princeton cemetery. His tombstone quotes Philippians 3:10: "That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death."

In 1996, Rev. Dr. Bill Boyce ('79) became the third PCF director, who continues to serve the ministry with his wife Debbie ('79). The website history indicates that recent years has seen the advent of a graduate student ministry, GPCF, which has alumni serving on the faculty of other Ivy League schools, including Harvard, Cornell, Notre Dame, Wheaton, Baylor, etc. Other graduate alumni use the opportunity provided by their Princeton degree to gain access to countries otherwise closed to the gospel. The ministry was renamed Princeton Christian Fellowship (PCF) in 2017.

=Sources= & Also See

• Stephen Meek
• PCF history
• PCF wiki