The Way International (TWI) has been on cult watchers’ radar screens for decades. We ourselves have two articles in our website concerning that movement. Started in the early 1950s by the late Victor Paul Wierwille (1916-1985), the original organization was called the Way Incorporated. It is now known as the The Way International, and is headquartered in New Knoxville, Ohio. Read the background on that movement at the following links on the MarketFaith website:
Whatever Happened to The Way International? – http://www.marketfaith.org/whatever-happened-to-the-way-international/
Update on The Way International and Its Offspring – http://www.marketfaith.org/2018/04/update-on-the-way-international-and-its-offspring/
As we have noted in the past, it is usually the case that when the supposedly divinely inspired founder of a cult or sect dies, competition arises among those jockeying to succeed the dead leader. That is exactly what happened to TWI. In the 1980s and 90s, after Wierwille’s death, the movement began to lose members. One reason was that Wierwille’s handpicked top leaders were accused of moral failures and corruption. Consequently, many dedicated members withdrew from TWI and formed new organizations that continued to teach the bizarre doctrines of Victor Paul Wierwille. Those splinter groups included:
∙ Christian Research and Fellowship of Destin, Fla., founded by John Hendricks;
∙ Christian Educational Services of Indianapolis, Ind., AKA: Spirit & Truth Fellowship International, led by Mark Graeser, John Lynn, and John Schoenheit; and
∙ Pacific West Fellowship led by Steve Sann. (See above update article)
We do not know if all those groups are still in business or still have the same leaders.
In any case, we have just become aware of another such TWI offspring group called Christian Family Fellowship (CFF) located in Tipp City, Ohio. (Note: Other churches around the U.S. use the name “Christian Family Fellowship” but have no relationship with the one in Tipp City, OH. We are focused only on this group and other churches affiliated with it.) Apparently CFF began in 1996. CFF’s current senior pastor is named Tonia Shroyer. Other teaching leaders include Tom Dill, Kevin Guigou, and Wayne Clapp. The group’s website (www.cffm.org) has a list of other “Pastoral Care” ministers and contacts located in 30 states. It also claims chapters in 10 foreign countries. We have been unable to find any biographical information about any of the leaders on their website or elsewhere.
Another individual associated with this group is Jon O. Nessle. He has written a number of books on the Sermon on the Mount and other subjects. One of his books was apparently published by an evangelical Christian publisher who withdrew it when it learned about Nessle’s background. His bio is available on amazon.com with his book, Leadership in the Body of Christ. Oddly, it mentions that he was at one time a research assistant to the “President of a ministry” but does not identify the president or the ministry. That may refer to one of the former TWI presidents, Victor Paul Wierwille or L. Craig Martindale, or to present leaders such as Rosalie F. Rivenbark, and Jean-Yves De Lisle. In any case, the bio states that in 2001 he was ordained a minister in Christian Family Fellowship. Some of his audio lectures are posted on the CFF website.
So why do we think that Christian Family Fellowship is related to TWI? After all, they never refer to TWI or Victor Paul Wierwille anywhere on their website that we can find. Also, Christian Family Fellowship’s website does have a brief statement of faith titled “What We Believe”. Here is what it says:
“We believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth; And in Jesus Christ his only Son, our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; the third day he rose from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from there he shall come to judge the living and the dead. We believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy universal church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.”
As you might notice, it sounds almost verbatim like the Apostles Creed. Regardless of their orthodox sounding statement, a careful analysis of the CFF website reveals a number of subtle clues as to the true origin and nature of its unchristian theology. To begin with, the writers on the website use many of the same methods of biblical exegesis and theological terminology as does The Way International.
Two examples are what they mean by a couple of specific points in their statement of faith quoted above. In the unitarian theology of Victor Paul Wierwille and his theological progenies (like CFF), “Jesus Christ his only Son, our Lord” does not mean he is equal to God the Father. Jesus is only the “Son of God,” but not fully God. Wierwille taught that Jesus Christ did not actually preexist, but was only conceptually “The Word” in the foreknowledge of God. He was totally created at His physical conception. Nonetheless, He was born a perfect man whose soul was specially created by God and given “holy spirit.” Therefore, Jesus can be regarded as the “Son of God” but not “God the Son.”
The second example, according to Wierwille, is that the Greek term hagios pneuma (holy spirit) is used in two distinct ways in Scripture. The “Holy Spirit,” with capital letters, as in the CFF statement of faith, is only a synonym for the Father God, but not a separate person. It is a name of God describing His nature as Spirit (see John 4:24). The other use of the term is “holy spirit” (same Greek words but not capitalized). In Wierwille’s literature, and in that of CFF, “holy spirit” refers to the gift of God given to believers by the Holy Spirit. It is the energizing power of God given on the inside of the believer that is manifested on the outside by speaking in tongues. In other words, the CFF, like Wierwille, absolutely denies the historic doctrine of the Trinity. In fact, one of Wierwille’s most important books was titled Jesus is Not God.
These Wierwillian doctrines and terminology are found sprinkled throughout CFF’s website articles and in sermons that are streamed audibly online. Apparently, CFF does not want the casual reader or listener, who may lack a discerning knowledge of cult deception, to easily recognize its critical doctrinal deviations from historic Christianity, or its dependence on Wierwille’s theology. They hope, using a strategy employed by most cults, that a potential convert will become innocently enmeshed in the church’s fellowship before being slowly indoctrinated into its eccentric theological concepts.
It is common practice among cult groups to disguise their flawed teachings by using terms familiar to people who have some background in Christianity. Cults often use Christian words and phrases, but have their own definitions for them. In my many years of cult investigation, I have talked to numerous well-meaning ex-cultists who admitted they were duped by the familiarity of the words used and by the friendliness of those seeking to proselytize them into the cult. Also, many naive seekers are attracted to the dynamic personality of the cult leader who seems to have a clear, unique, or “hidden” understanding of the Bible. Wierwille was that kind of leader.
The proliferation of cult movements in America, contrary to the assumptions of even many evangelical observers, has not abated in recent years. We may not hear as much about them as we did a couple decades ago, but they still cunningly seek to deceive even Christians into their false teachings. Christian Family Fellowship appears to be one of them. Keep your radar screens operational!
© 2020 Tal Davis
So interesting that these see the only organizations listed here. I was born into TWi in 1981. My family was fired and left in 1986. I have observed so many shifts and off shoots of TWI develop over the years.
Would you be willing to share the names? I’m a former member doing some research
Just to inform you Wayne Clapp ran the family corp out of rome city ID when i was in it in 1991 at the age of 13 with my family
There is an organization called, “The PA Bible Teaching Fellowship” that came straight out of, “The Way International.” It was founded by The Late Jeff Duclos and is now run by Shen Weir.
Reverend Jon Nessle couldn’t have been the research assistant to Reverend Rivenbark or Reverend De Lisle, because he left before Reverend De Lisle became president, and reverend Rivenbark did not participate in Biblical Research. Also, Christian Educational Services split into two groups with Reverend John Lynn leading Living Truth Fellowship and Reverend John Schoenheit. I have no idea what happened to Mark Graeser.
Thanks for the updated info.
–Tal Davis
One plants another waters God makes the increase! Be a workman not ashamed rightly dividing the Word of truth! The Witness of the Stars! Astrology and Astronomy from God in The Beginning?
Uh…okay.?
The pseudo therapy methods they use on you after they convince you that your ailments and trauma responses are devil spirits attacking you unfortunately cause more trauma. Anyone?
I have a weird connection to CFFM, that gives me insight into the connections between them and TWI.
The current senior pastor Tonya Shroyer is the wife of Jeff Shroyer, who’s parents John and Mary Lou founded CFFM. John Shroyer’s parents were devout followers of Wierwille and at various points both worked for him directly in the administration of TWI. John and Mary Lou lead a whole “branch” at one point in TWI, and were active in helping to support new house fellowships in getting started; what I would call “church-planting.”
Associate Pastor Kevin Guigou is married to Wierwille’s daughter Sara, a fact that another associate pastor, Tom Dill, once told me excitedly like he thought it should matter to me… I had no idea who Wierwille was at the time.
I know gossip around the split, specifically around Wayne and Kevin’s part in it; but no real details other than… almost the entirety of TWI’s membership in Colorado went with the Shroyers when it happened.
Anyone who is familiar at all with TWI styles of worship would immediately recognize the link; and at the time when I first began to be familiar with CFFM in approximately 2005 they were still acknowledging the connection to a degree, but people in the house fellowship I visited did comment that the leadership was referencing Wierwille’s teachings less and “really coming into their own as teachers.” By the time I spent an extended weekend at their headquarters just a year or so later there was almost no apparent acknowledgement of their past, and other youth on that same trip were actually completely unaware that there was a connection.
Looking back it’s really fascinating to me how familiar and close to the leadership of CFFM I got as a total outsider. Kevin even spent time intentionally teaching me his exegetical process and what tools he used in Bible study because he “saw a lot of potential for leadership” in me. Yet by the end of that weekend it was really quite clear that the relationship that had brought me into that place was over, and I knew for certain that I did NOT share CFFM’s beliefs. It took four months for them to stop calling and inviting me to house meetings.
I am posting this, although years after the original post, to warn anyone thinking about joining CR&F. This is a cult. No doubt about it. I was involved with CR&F for one year and felt welcome, loved, involved, etc.. all the things I was desiring at a vulnerable point in my life. I loved attending fellowship also. One day I was told that I either needed to “be on the same page as them” (they meant hurry up and know all that we know or you’re not committed, and basically catch up) or I “was not welcome”. They also told me that the difficult times I was experiencing were happening because I believed them/willed them to happen out of my own fear.. this is garbage and not God’s will or His Word. PLEASE be aware of this group- they will lead you astray so fast you won’t realize you’ve been in a cult the whole time and then call you a “goat”. I feel sorry for the people who have been sucked in and told to hush or get out and the people born into this awful and evil organization who call themselves Christian. Other red flags- it was always strange to me that they refer to Rochelle as some higher being, saying she’s “the woman of God” and how mysterious she is, they use their own phrases and always turn them around on you- for example you’re either “not loving, off the word, or you need to renew your mind”, and the biggest one is they lead you away from your family and justify it by saying you need to “put off your old man”. They tack on real verses onto what they’re saying so that you won’t question anything, but I’m here to call them out and say RUN THE OTHER DIRECTION. It’s been years since I left and I am still dealing with the impacts of their version of brainwashing. Please take this seriously. You will walk away questioning God, who you thought you knew and it will be a hard road back to The Truth.
Can 100% confirm that CFF is essentially an offshoot of TWI. I went there basically right when it started, went to their youth summer church camps, heck even Wierwilles’ grandson went there (was friends with him when I attended). So yes, why it seems so similar is because everyone who started it used to belong to TWI.
There are so many splinter groups, I grew up in them. Scriptural Study Groups of central Ohio, The PA Bible teaching fellowship. There are still so many in Tennessee, New Jersey, California, all over the country. I was a part of the group that followed Chris Geer and “the foundational classes.” I can’t even count how many times I had to sit through the class growing up. Eventually, Tom Burke wasn’t approved to run it anymore, so we just had our own days in the word and weekends in the word that he approved.