The Early History Of Peniel Bible Conference (Part 1): Zeal Without Knowledge (1933–1938)

By Caroline Weerstra

[Caroline Weerstra is a member of Calvary Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Schenectady, N.Y., and the author of the Westminster Shorter Catechism for Kids series and other Sunday school curriculum.]

Peniel Bible Conference has always been a shadowy enigma in Orthodox Presbyterian history. The controversy surrounding the group churned through the courts of the Presbytery of New York and New England, the Presbytery of Philadelphia, the Presbytery of Ohio, and the General Assembly of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church for more than thirty years. Yet today it is little known and poorly understood. Some histories of the Orthodox Presbyterian denomination ignore it entirely. Others give it a cursory mention and brief doctrinal analysis before moving on.[1] Probably the most in-depth and accurate account is presented in History for a Pilgrim People: The Historical Writings of Charles G. Dennison, which outlines the controversy from the perspective of the documentation of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church and from interviews with a handful of participants.[2]

While these summaries are helpful, they present an incomplete picture. Camp Peniel appears on the horizon of the narrative abruptly, leaving the reader with the impression that some external flash-in-the-pan organization influenced two or three Orthodox Presbyterian ministers. The OPC is reported to have taken a stand against it, and history moves on. In reality, the Peniel controversy is far more deeply rooted and complex. Peniel’s own records reveal a level of involvement with the OPC generally unknown to the OPC itself. Peniel’s influence on the OPC was so widespread and long-lasting that two members of the Peniel Prayer Council (the camp’s ruling assembly) served as elders in the Orthodox Presbyterian denomination from 1938 through the 1970s without interruption. Other lifelong Peniel adherants held office as ministers and elders in the OPC well past the year 2000.[3]

Comprehension of the lengthy timespan is crucial to a proper understanding of Peniel’s history. Peniel was not a static organization. Although many of the leaders remained the same, the theology and practices of the camp made dramatic shifts over the process of several decades. The most notorious events in Peniel’s saga took place almost exclusively in the 1930s and 1940s—before the broader OPC denomination was even aware of the existence of Peniel Bible Conference. The wheels of the Presbyterian discipline moved slowly. By the time rumors of Peniel’s unorthodox practices rippled into the mainstream, Peniel was already changing.

In this article, we will survey the early history of Peniel Bible Conference in two parts. First, we will examine the origins of Peniel Bible Conference and the circumstances that propelled it into the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. Second, we will consider the doctrinal transition of Peniel and the beginning of the controversy within the OPC.

The earliest years of Peniel (1933–1938) are undoubtedly the most bizarre, and scanty evidence remains of them except what little survived in a rickety cabinet in a damp basement at Peniel Bible Conference or in an obscure file buried in the OPC historical archives.[4] The story found there is so strange that one can only marvel that Peniel ever found its way into a sober denomination at all, let alone a theologically passionate organization like the OPC. Yet this convergence of Peniel Bible Conference with the Orthodox Presbyterian denomination occurred with seamless ease, a mere two years after the founding of the OPC. On November 4, 1938, the Presbytery of New York and New England noted in their minutes:

A communication from Calvary Presbyterian Church of Schenectady was read in which they requested admittance into the Presbytery. In response to their request the Presbytery decided to receive the Calvary Presbyterian Church of Schenectady, N.Y., as a particular church in the Presbytery. 

A call issued by the Calvary Presbyterian Church of Schenectady to Mr. Raymond Meiners was received by the Presbytery and placed in the hands of Mr. Meiners. Mr. Meiners signified his willingness to receive the call.[5]

With that business pleasantly concluded, the Presbytery of New York and New England returned to the larger business at hand—dealing with a messy split at Calvin Church in Connecticut. In the records of the meeting, no mention was made of the fact that “Calvary Presbyterian Church” was, in fact, Peniel Bible Conference, nor that Raymond Meiners had been converted at a Peniel event and was now an active member of Peniel’s Prayer Council. It remains an open question whether the Presbytery knew that Peniel existed when they linked themselves to it. It is virtually certain that they lacked any awareness of the teachings of Peniel, or of the profound loyalty its members exhibited—a loyalty that far exceeded their tenuous ties to the Orthodox Presbyterian Church.

In the eyes of Peniel Bible Conference, the marriage with the OPC was convenient. Denominational ties lent an air of legitimacy to an organization which had always been marginalized and recently entirely cut off from its Methodist roots. For the most part, Peniel knew little and cared nothing about Reformed doctrine. One glance into the practices of Peniel would have shaken the Presbytery of New York and New England, but Peniel had learned to conceal its less appealing qualities in order to achieve its goals. Few people had access to the inner workings of Peniel, and those who did had learned to keep its secrets.

The initial idea for Peniel Bible camp first occurred to Mildred Keyser in the early 1930s. Young Miss Keyser had grown up in a Methodist home, the daughter of a moderately wealthy family in Schenectady, New York.[6] Although her parents attended church, Mildred apparently received little instruction about the Bible. She later claimed that she grew up in a non-Christian home and complained that her church lacked spiritual vigor. She was not troubled by this deficiency, however, until the fateful day that she happened to read a gospel tract. The tract warned her of God’s judgment on sinners and urged her to be certain of her salvation. For the first time, Mildred questioned whether her understanding of God was sufficient. She began inquiring of those around her, growing increasingly frantic at her inability to find satisfactory answers. As her anxiety grew, she spent more time in her room, praying for hours on end. Her mother suspected that Mildred was losing her mind. Mildred’s ability to function in daily life dwindled. She froze over every decision, wondering whether it was right or wrong in the eyes of God.[7]

Relief finally came from an acquaintance who agreed to instruct the teenage girl in spiritual matters. She told Mildred that God’s will regarding any decision in life—no matter how large or small—could be determined by means of internal promptings of the mind. Mildred became convinced that, if she achieved sufficient holiness, God would be able to communicate his will to her directly. By obeying these “witnesses” in her spirit, she believed that she could live a victorious life.[8]

Small and unimposing as she was, Mildred Keyser possessed an energetic and charismatic nature. Convinced that she had stumbled upon the secret to real spiritual health, she immediately began preaching it to others. Miss Keyser became a dynamic leader of the youth group at First Methodist Church in Schenectady, New York. Soon she had gathered a group of loyal followers—primarily young women, along with a few young men who admired the young women. Among these admirers was Robert Y. McCullough, whom Mildred always referred to by his initials “R.Y.” Robert McCullough had been converted by Miss Keyser, and he was impressed with her bubbly personality and commitment to her faith. He wanted to marry her. Miss Keyser, however, was far too busy with her “ministry” to consider romance. She permitted McCullough’s overtures and she welcomed his help with leading the youth group, but she refused to entertain any ideas of a quick marriage.

Another of Mildred Keyser’s converts was a young engineering student named Raymond Meiners. Like Miss Keyser, Meiners had been raised in a nominally Christian home, and he knew little about the Bible. He began attending the youth group near his college mostly for social reasons, but he was soon deeply impressed by the fervent prayers and testimonies of the young people. In February of 1932, he dedicated his life to Christ. Only a few weeks later, he dropped his engineering major, transferred to a Christian college, and prepared for seminary. He also began courting Edith Harrison, one of Miss Keyser’s closest allies.[9]

Mildred Keyser and her friends began Peniel Bible Conference as a Bible camp for young people—a common idea during that era. Although advertised as an inter-denominational camp, it maintained close ties with the Methodist church where Miss Keyser continued to lead the youth group. Robert McCullough and Ray Meiners were the only two men deeply involved in the early days of Peniel, and their role remained peripheral for several years. Though always called upon when business arrangements were necessary, they were not among the teachers at Peniel Bible Conference. Teaching roles belonged to the women—especially Rhoda Armstrong and Susan Beers, both single ladies who had briefly taught classes at Albany Bible College. Of the two of them, Susan Beers had the most experience in ministry; she had recently returned from five years of mission work in Japan. Miss Beers had found her fellow missionaries frustrating:

She [Susan Beers] felt that, generally speaking, the missionaries were babes in Christ, instead of being matured Christian warriors, who could cope with the wiles and opposition of the Principalities and Powers of darkness, (I Cor. 3; Eph. 6), as they entrenched themselves without hindrance in a heathen land.”[10]

Miss Beers dreamed of training missionaries according to her own convictions and sending them out all over the world. She found her opportunity at Peniel Bible Conference.

The historiography of Peniel’s early days is hobbled by the fact that it is always told by those who founded it. The recordings and articles relating the story are a wearisome hodge-podge of “miracles” and “leadings,” to the extent that it is difficult to draw out the plot line. The description of the choice of location varies. All stories agree that Mildred Keyser insisted upon Lake Luzerne in upstate New York as the center of the camp activities. Miss Keyser herself variously claimed that she chose it for fond memories of her childhood vacations or because of an impulse in her spirit guiding her against her will.[11] Most stories claim that finding a site in Lake Luzerne was very difficult, and the decision was held off until the very last minute:

Wednesday, July 3, the cook gave up and unpacked her belongings, which she had all ready to go to the lake, saying as she did so, “There will be no Bible camp at Lake Luzerne this year.” Several persons who were intensely interested in this new project of the Lord’s telephoned suggesting available places for the appropriate dates at other places in the Adirondacks. The pressure upon the Prayer Council to accept one of these suggestions was tremendous. . . . Friday, July 5, the Lord spoke to one of us saying, “Look in the morning paper at the Classified Ads.” Now we had covered all the papers and all the possibilities for summer camps every day. What was the use of doing it now? But we did look in the morning paper, in obedience to the word of the Lord, and there we found a summer camp advertised for rent at Lake Luzerne![12]

Throwing some question upon this suspenseful story is a matter-of-fact observation in a letter written by Raymond Meiners’s wife, Edith, about her memories of Peniel in the 1930s: “I next recall going to Luzerne to Mildred’s dad’s camp.”[13] It is possible that Edith was describing an earlier version of the camp that existed prior to 1933, but minimally, it suggests that at least some of Miss Keyser’s camp events took place on family property at Lake Luzerne, and that the site-finding in 1933 was probably not as precarious as later described.

Peniel held its first camp from July 6 through July 20 of 1933, with fifteen young people in attendance.[14] It was a sort of honeymoon for Mildred Keyser and Robert McCullough, since only a few weeks previously young Miss Keyser had finally wed her long-time admirer. Romance was still far from her feelings, but marriage had been set forth as necessary by the members of the Peniel Prayer Council, who pointed out that a group of teenagers and college students could scarcely go gallivanting around in the woods for weeks at a time without raising the eyebrows of good society. If they wanted parents to entrust children to their camp, then Penielists must look respectable, and so the leaders must be married. Thus with her duty set before her, Mildred Keyser finally exchanged vows with the persistent “R.Y.” and became Mrs. McCullough (often affectionately referred to “Mrs. Mac” in Peniel documents).[15] This marriage set a precedent for Peniel’s future. Having surrendered her will for the greater good on the subject of matrimony, Mrs. McCullough expected others to do the same. Marriages were thereafter largely considered to be matters of ministerial convenience, and finding a partner was the business of the Peniel Prayer Council rather than personal inclination.

Divine guidance remained a high priority in Peniel during the first years. Prayer meetings often lasted for hours as the group sought God’s will on some matter and then waited for a feeling of peace and joy to descend upon them regarding the right decision. Since peace and joy are listed among the “fruit of the Spirit” in Galatians,[16] the Penielists believed that these emotions indicated the leading of the Holy Spirit in some particular direction. Unity was absolutely mandatory. The Penielists reasoned that God would only lead them in one direction. If they disagreed on that direction, it signaled a lack of ability to feel his leading, which could only arise from some impurity among them. Such a profound horror of disunity led to intense pressure for conformity. Anyone who disagreed with the majority decision was held to be outside the will of God, doubtless for some hidden sin of thought or deed. Members of the Prayer Council frequently sought out Penielists to “deal with them” when they felt that someone lacked commitment or proper enthusiasm for Peniel’s teachings. These hours-long sessions produced severe psychological pressure on the accused as he or she was criticized, prayed over, and urged to repent.[17]

In the 1930s, a commitment to Peniel was a commitment of the whole life. Peniel drained time, money, and energy in abundance. However, the Penielists could well afford it. They were all very young and (until the Keyser-McCullough marriage) all single. Nearly all of them came from middle-class non-Christian or nominally Christian families, and their conversion alienated them from their families and former friends. At Peniel they forged a new pseudo-family, relying on each other for support, guidance, and instruction. Considering that none of them was properly trained in biblical doctrine, the resulting skew into heresy was predictable. Their self-reinforcement and reliance upon their own system of “divine guidance” set the stage for disaster, as it made them impenetrable to outside reasoning. After all, with God leading them, why should they listen to anyone else?

In 1936, the same year that Machen and his colleagues founded the Orthodox Presbyterian Church, Peniel Bible Conference embarked on a disastrous project. The mixture of youthful ignorance, zeal, and belief in infallible personal guidance spun together to form the perfect storm.

We, the prayer council of The Peniel Bible Conference came together one evening in April to wait before the Lord to know His plan and His choice regarding the actual housing facilities which He would have us to have for the conference for 1936.[18] As we prayed, submitting every thought to the captivity of Christ and calling upon Him to witness to us by the Holy Spirit, His will in the matter, one after another suggestion which came to our minds as possibilities was dismissed on the grounds that there was not that witness inside to its being Gods will. Instead of there being life in them, they were lifeless and not until we considered, even with doubt, Ye Wayside Inn, was there a sign of life. So we held the Wayside Inn before God, refusing to have anything but His highest, for we knew (and we know) that we could easily rent a large efficient building and hire a cook and a few saved people and open up a camp, but after all is in readiness, we would lack the one essential, The Lord God Almighty and His power and presence to work the work of righteousness in the hearts of those who came (I Cor. 3:11–15) (Matt. 7:25–27). We teach in Peniel the Holy Word of God, respecting II Cor. 10:5, Prov. 3:5,6, James 1:5, and the numbers of others commands which God has given that we follow not the dictates of our carnal minds but bring into captivity unto to Christ every thought. And we prayed the prayer after David, “cause me to know the way wherein I should walk for I lift up my soul unto Thee”. Having peace that we should get in touch with the owners of Ye Wayside Inn immediately, we inquired as to the owner and were directed to see Mr. Marcus Hellitzer of Glens Falls.[19]

Ye Wayside Inn was a large, abandoned hotel on the shore of Lake Luzerne.[20] It had once been the pride of upstate New York—a lavish vacation getaway for the rich and famous. The Astors and Vanderbilts had frequently stayed here, and even U.S. presidents had been known to rent a room. During the Great Depression, however, tourism collapsed in Lake Luzerne. The hotel, with its expansive grounds and luxurious furnishings, could not downsize well. It fell into disrepair and finally closed its doors. The owners were anxious to sell, but after years of neglect, the building had been deemed a fire hazard. Insurance companies declined to insure the property, and so banks refused to offer a mortgage on it. Deals with potential buyers fell through over and over again. Only a fool would purchase that monstrosity.

Into this trap wandered the naïve Penielists, searching for a new home for their expanding camp. They firmly believed that God would give them the very best, and externally, Ye Wayside Inn had many attractive features. It was a beautiful structure—large and imposing, situated only a few yards from the shore of Lake Luzerne. Once the Penielists had been granted a tour of the inside, their fate was sealed. Thus far they had been roughing it in the woods, living in tents and cooking over campfires. They were tired of sleeping on the ground. Ye Wayside Inn looked like heaven itself.

As we set foot inside the main building, we had a foreshadowing that some day it would be ours. But, oh, its grandeur! It was four stories high and had accommodations for one hundred people. The rooms were completely furnished, having been modernized with Simmons beds and with running water in the rooms. Many bathrooms were distributed throughout the building, and the corridors and stairs were carpeted with padded velvet, imparting an air of silence as well as an air of elegance to the halls. A host of priceless antiques, such as mahogany tables, chairs, mirrors, and desks, and a concert piano were there. . . . Opposite the lobby fireplace, in the spacious hotel “parlor” which opened off this lobby, with its back directly against its counterpart in the other room, was the twin to the red brick fireplace, only it was black. Beautiful old mahogany tables, chairs, and sofas of the period furnished the room. But its chief attraction was an exquisite huge crystal chandelier, a perfect piece of delicate workmanship.[21]

The youthful inexperience of the group made them easy targets, and yet no one could claim they were not warned. In fact, Peniel had tremendous difficulty obtaining the property due to its condemnation as a fire hazard. They were informed that the property had been without insurance for two years because no company would take the risk. Their offers to even rent the facility were turned down repeatedly as the owner declared the “rental amount too small, the risk too great.”[22] He made plans with another buyer. The Penielists were incensed that anyone else might have the property that God had promised them. They launched into fervent prayers and railed against the wiles of Satan. At times, they even doubted that this idea was for the best, but then they chided themselves for their unbelief:

Just then the Lord rebuked in a severe way. Dare we to give up now? What blasphemy, what unbelief. Had not the children fallen in the wilderness at a point just such as this? So in shere brute determination we said it shall be done, for God is able. And Robert said, either we live what we teach and preach or we quit right here. Either Peniel shall go forward as God says or Peniel will stop. Not once did we consider another place. We would have God’s place or none.[23]

At last came the news that the owner’s latest attempt at selling the property had failed, and he was willing to let them have it after all. Peniel exploded in joy in a completely un-Calvinist manner: “PRAISE THE LORD. HE NEVER FAILETH, BUT MUCH, MUCH, EVERYTHING DEPENDS ON US.”[24]

With the property rented, the Penielists rushed to purchase it, lest it be bought from under them. Peniel launched into a frenzy of fundraising among their supporters. They began a circular letter, which was a level of organization never previously attempted.

We pray that because He finds us faithful, our God shall be able to do a mightier and more far-reaching work at Peniel in 1937. . . . A mighty undertaking toward this very end is now in progress in our midst because God has commanded us to lengthen our cords and strengthen our stakes (Isaiah 54:2). To know the will of the Lord and to do it in every detail has been the chief aim of the Peniel Bible Conference, and the sure word of the Lord to purchase Ye Wayside Inn as His own permanent home for Peniel comes to us as a tremendous indication that He has planned great things for us. This is also a real test of our faith for the Lord Himself must supply all that is needed to make the purchase. Many hours we have prayed to be certain of the mind of the Lord and for the willingness to do such a thing in faith. Now all whose hearts are willing and in whose spirits there is a response to this work of the Lord’s upbuilding are called upon to pray earnestly that every hindrance of sin and Satan shall be removed and that the Lord’s own plan of financing for this purchase shall be fully pushed through. . . . Make your pledges just as much as the Lord directs you to do. . . . We have asked the question many times. “Is a bar of candy or an ice-cream cone more important to us than an active part in the work of bringing young people to the Lord Jesus Christ and helping them live successful happy Christian lives?”[25]

By 1937, Peniel succeeded in its goal. It raised enough money for a down payment, and it found an obscure insurance company willing to provide a minimal policy on the property. The papers were signed, the mortgage obtained, and Peniel Bible Conference owned Ye Wayside Inn.

The Penielists spent a brilliant summer in the inn, surrounded by comforts of every kind. With the luxurious accommodations, they attracted a few more adults and college students, especially young men, which was new for the female-dominated organization. Still, the numbers remained small. Phyllis Anderson, a newcomer at Peniel that year, noted her disappointment at finding upon her arrival that “there was a grand total of 35 people ‘rattling around’ the huge Wayside.”[26] Ever optimistic, Peniel closed its summer camp in triumph in 1937, feeling the favor of God shining upon them, and expecting a bright future.

Preparation began early in 1938 at 242 Union Street in Schenectady, the home of Robert and Mildred McCullough, which was gradually being converted to an office for Peniel winter activities. There was much to do in the months before Peniel opened for the summer. By early April, the brochures had already been printed. The Prayer Council gathered to pray and to discuss various details of the upcoming season. Then the phone rang. Robert McCullough answered it and relayed the news to the rest of the council: Ye Wayside Inn had burned to the ground during the night. The group sat stunned, trying to grasp the news. The huge hotel on the water’s edge with the soft sofas, the fully furnished kitchen, the concert piano, the beds—everything was gone in one blow. Even the supplies Peniel had stored at the hotel for the upcoming season were destroyed.[27]

By all accounts it was a glorious fire, the talk of Lake Luzerne for years. It began at night, while the neighbors were all sleeping. By the time it was noticed, the hotel was too far gone.

The fire fighters of those North Woods had fought a mighty fight. The Lake Luzerne Fire Department with neighboring companies courageously strained every muscle to overcome the blaze. They pumped water from the ice-bound lake while the moon looked on at the raging inferno. Boy Scouts had been posted at various strategic places to kill all flying sparks as the wind roaringly swept them abroad. Auxiliary aid was given by many other residents of the village, but all to no avail. The Wayside Inn was completely consumed.[28]

The burning of Ye Wayside Inn dealt a devastating setback to Peniel. Their bright future seemed to have gone up in flames as well. The insurance covered only a fraction of the value of the building and nothing of the furnishings or supplies inside. More importantly, it forced a crisis of belief upon the Penielists. They had been so sure they were following the direction of God. They had rejected all other advice as “attacks of the devil.” How were they to understand such a crushing blow?

The Prayer Council turned back to the one method they knew to decide such matters—praying for guidance. With tears and wails of grief, they asked God whether they had made a mistake. However, long dependence on “guidance” had rendered Penielists unaccustomed to assuming responsibility for their actions. The impulses of their minds indicated that they were innocent of all wrongdoing, and that it was merely a test of faith. Peniel would go on, they declared. Somehow, it would hold its camp that summer.[29]

Some people, however, did not take such a benign perspective on Peniel’s behavior. Tension had been building with First Methodist Church, and now it boiled over. The details of the ensuing battle are lost. Mildred McCullough later claimed that the church’s leaders were not preaching the gospel as they should and had no spiritual answers for the youth.[30] It is impossible to know whether her accusation had any credibility. It is certainly conceivable that the Methodists may have been infected with the modernism so prevalent in Schenectady churches. However, it must also be noted that Peniel tossed similar accusations at anyone who opposed them. After all, they believed that they were receiving guidance from God himself. The only logical conclusion would be that people who disagreed with their direction were rebelling against God. To Mrs. McCullough, the “gospel” centered primarily on holiness (referred to by Penielists as “accepting the cross”) in order to receive divine guidance.

Mildred McCullough and her allies decided to move ahead on their guiding impulses. They prayed for God to provide them with a new location. Little money remained after the disaster at Ye Wayside Inn, and expensive hotels were out of the question. Peniel’s only option was to return to a campground existence. They dressed it up as best as they could. Mrs. McCullough proclaimed that God was calling them to return to the fields, declaring as their God-given anthem the lyrics of the hymn: “Lead on, O King Eternal . . . henceforth in fields of conquest, Thy tents shall be our home.”[31] She declared that their obedience in the face of trials would cause their blessings to overflow.[32]

As they prepared to open camp in 1938, the situation with their home church only worsened. No direct evidence remains regarding the reasons, but it is easy to suppose that the rash decisions made by the Penielists regarding Ye Wayside Inn played a large role in the problem, and that the choice to continue following Mildred McCullough’s impulses only aggravated it. The Penielists had openly raised funds for the purchase of the inn, and it is certain that finances had come at least in part from the members of First Methodist Church. Now that the hotel was destroyed, the foolishness of ignoring the fire hazard must have been painfully evident—evident to everyone except the Penielists, who took just a few days to produce yet another proclamation about a witness in their spirits to purchase a campground. To what extent this played a role in the break with the Methodists is uncertain. Penielists later claimed that they were ostracized and accused of preaching a false gospel.[33] They were not prepared to accept that rebuke.

In June 1938 Robert McCullough sent out a letter to all the most loyal Penielists in the Schenectady area:

Believing that you are one of several people in the city of Schenectady and vicinity who are sincerely interested in the establishment here of a church in which the Lord our God may be worshipped in spirit and in truth, in which the cross of Calvary shall be given the place it rightfully deserves in the high purposes of God, and in which shall be celebrated the victory of the Lord Jesus Christ over all the power of the enemy, together with the possibilities of similar victory in the lives of all who meet Christ’s requirement of union with Him in His death and resurrection, and 

Believing that there is now in the city of Schenectady in the person of Raymond M. Meiners, recently graduated from Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, PA, and soon to be ordained a minister of the Presbyterian Church of America,[34] one who will earnestly and diligently preach this Gospel of the Word of God, 

You are hereby cordially invited to meet together with all like minded Christian people at the home of the undersigned, 242 Union Street, Schenectady, NY on the evening of Wednesday, June 29, 1938 for the establishment of such a church in this city.[35]

The year 1938 had begun with Peniel still loosely affiliated with a Methodist church in Schenectady and with every expectation of a growing ministry in a luxury lakeside resort. The fire had brought a swift end to that chapter of Peniel’s history. Back in a campground and living in tents, the Penielists decided to separate once and for all from the Methodist church that overshadowed and discouraged them.

Peniel had long ceased to look to the Methodist church (or any other church) for instruction. They believed themselves to be spiritually far superior to the “dead” churches they encountered. Now they began to dream of a church of their own—a place where sermons would advise them how to better “accept the cross” and where they could hold prayer meetings openly to seek guidance from the Lord. However, Peniel struggled with another dilemma—going out on their own meant losing the last traces of denominational affiliation. Already Peniel styled itself as an inter-denominational camp. The idea of resigning themselves to the fringes of Christianity seemed to make Penielists uncomfortable. Peniel needed to maintain a healthy, wholesome face to the public in order to draw in new recruits, and denominational affiliation helped maintain their image. They decided to join their church to the Orthodox Presbyterian denomination.

This decision could not have been less appropriate for their circumstances. Peniel Bible Conference was founded and taught by women, a highly unusual structure for a Reformed organization. The dependence upon personal divine guidance for daily decisions was an affront to the opening chapter of the Westminster Confession, to which every OPC church officer must subscribe. All but one of the Penielists were entirely ignorant of Reformed theology, or, for that matter, of any coherent system of theology.[36]

It was the very ignorance of the Penielists that propelled them forward in this decision. The Orthodox Presbyterian Church had lately been in the news for taking a stand against modernism and unbelief. Peniel had recently suffered for its own stand against the unbelief of the Methodists in what Peniel perceived to be “God’s commands” (the guiding impulses in Mildred McCullough’s mind). Without any coherent grasp of doctrine, they cheerfully assumed that their understanding of Scripture did not differ much from that of the OPC. After all, Peniel believed the Bible, and so did the OPC, and so they must have reached similar conclusions about it. While they dimly grasped some variation in teaching, they dismissed it as minor and unimportant. They expected the Orthodox Presbyterians to admire them, to see in them what the Methodists failed to see—a wonderful group of Christian young people reaching the world for Christ. They speculated that they may have been brought to the OPC to enlighten the new organization on the teachings of guidance. Doubtless the word would soon spread far and wide, and the Orthodox Presbyterian Church would send its ministers to Peniel to meet with God. Penielists even made plans about reaching “key people” in the Orthodox Presbyterian denomination and Westminster Theological Seminary, who would then lead others. By this means, they were certain that Peniel would spread its message of divine guidance, and the Orthodox Presbyterian Church and Peniel Bible Conference would thereafter dwell under the same vine and fig tree.[37]

These wildly unrealistic expectations seemed perfectly reasonable to the young, ambitious, and guidance-addled minds of the Penielists. They knew nothing about Presbyterianism; and what they did not know, they filled in from their own imaginations in their own favor. The ignorance of the Penielists was so profound that it is virtually certain they would have failed utterly in their quest to join the OPC were it not for a very peculiar link between the two widely divergent systems. Raymond Meiners, one of Mildred’s first converts and a member of the Peniel Prayer Council, had recently graduated from Westminster Theological Seminary.

The transition of Ray Meiners from Peniel to Westminster had been a long, winding journey. It began in 1932, only a few weeks after Meiners’s conversion. J. Gresham Machen, founder of Westminster Theological Seminary, was traveling from church to church, speaking out about the threat of modernism in the PCUSA and other denominations. In the spring of 1932, he stopped in Schenectady, New York, to give a speech to a local congregation. Although the exact location of the speech is no longer known, it was probably delivered at either First Presbyterian Church or Union Presbyterian Church, both located only a short distance from Union College, where Meiners was still enrolled in engineering studies. People from various churches gathered to hear Machen’s call to return to faith, and young Meiners tagged along.

Ray Meiners never forgot that speech. Having been raised in a nominally Christian home, he identified with many of Machen’s concerns. Meiners knew that numerous people in supposedly Christian churches were never taught the basics of Christian faith—they attended church as they would attend a nice social event rather than as a meeting with the living God. He had been one of those people, and he felt deeply indebted to those who had awakened his spirit to the reality of God and the necessity of full devotion to him. Although Meiners lacked the Presbyterian background necessary to understand everything that Machen said, he was impressed enough to purchase a few of Machen’s books.[38]

As Ray Meiners’s plans for seminary progressed he transferred to Elmhurst College in Illinois, but he remained in close contact with Peniel, returning often during summer breaks to participate in Peniel activities and to see his girlfriend, Edith Harrison. Meiners grew disillusioned with Elmhurst. He felt that the college did not promote faith and holiness as a Christian institution should. In 1935, when faced with the challenge of choosing a seminary, he was determined to learn from his previous mistake. He sought a seminary that would proclaim the gospel boldly and without compromise. Recalling Machen’s stirring speech, Meiners enrolled in Westminster Theological Seminary.

The level of academic work at Westminster caught Meiners completely by surprise. After four years of study in a Christian college and summers working at Peniel, Meiners assumed that he was well prepared. However, he lacked any real grasp of Reformed theology. Meiners had never really studied the Westminster Confession. He also had never taken an in-depth philosophy course.

“I sat through a whole semester of Van Til’s class on apologetics with my mouth open,” he joked later.[39]

Hard work and persistence paid off—Meiners gradually improved his grades. But he never felt entirely comfortable at Westminster. It must be asked whether he ever even fully understood his studies. Peniel had developed its own “language.” Christian words like “holiness” and “commandments” meant entirely different things at Peniel than they did at Westminster. In later sermons and writings, Meiners often seemed to take Reformed statements and fit them into his pre-existing framework of Peniel interpretation. “Keeping the commands of God” might mean obedience to Scripture at Westminster, whereas at Peniel it involved a prayer circle and impulses of the spirit.

Although Meiners voiced commitment to Peniel when he spoke to Penielists, he had grown increasingly aware of the embarrassing nature of Peniel fanaticism in the face of Reformed churches. Meiners developed a split theological personality—among Reformed people he quoted Spurgeon and Hodge. To Penielists he proclaimed divine guidance. To himself, he seems to have justified his divided persona by acknowledging the many strengths of Reformed theology, but believing that Reformed Christians had not yet quite arrived at the spiritual depth of Peniel.

In 1941 Ray Meiners wrote to his friend Herman Petersen (then a student at Westminster):

I think I can understand your difficulty and I can see how you want to be very careful to maintain the distinctiveness of the Scriptures and to steer clear of any subjective guidance and personal special revelation. I went thru all that in Westminster and I was tempted several times to tone down what Peniel stands for in order to make it fit into Reformed theology. But I’m convinced that no toning down is necessary. Furthermore I’m convinced that the truth of the cross and the certainty of knowing the will of God that has been so graciously revealed to us, is a dangerous heresy on any other presupposition than the Reformed Faith in all its glory of salvation by grace alone.[40]

Meiners continued to return to Peniel during summers, and in 1936, he wrote from Westminster Theological Seminary to accept a position on the Prayer Council, casually noting that his acceptance letter was a “matter of form.”[41] However, his heart yearned to be free of it. “I prayed that, when I graduated, God would send me anywhere but Schenectady,” he later recalled.[42]

He might have eventually broken away from Peniel had it not been for the fire at the Wayside Inn. After that, events moved with stunning rapidity. By June, his fate was already decided. The Penielists had split from the Methodist congregation to form their own church. A church needed a pastor, and the Penielists knew none except Ray Meiners.

There is no known record of the first invitation issued by Peniel to Ray Meiners regarding the pastorate of their still-hypothetical church, but knowing how decisions were made in Peniel in 1938, it is safe to assume that it was handed down from the other members of the Prayer Council as an edict from God. In Meiners’s mind, refusing it would have meant rejecting God’s will for his life—a poor way to begin a career in ministry. The offer from the Penielist church did not even include financial support, but still Meiners acquiesced. He made plans to marry Edith Harrison, and he applied for transfer of his preaching license to the Presbytery of New York and New England.

In the summer of 1938, Peniel defiantly held its camp—first on the grounds of the ruined Wayside Inn, and then relocating to a plot of land that had once been a boys’ camp. The latter location had been chosen by Mildred McCullough. Her retelling of the story later contained all the imaginative drama of a fairy tale:

As we prayed before God, Mr. McCullough and I happened to remember a canoe trip we took when we were engaged. . . . We came up to Lake Luzerne, rented canoes, and came all the way up to the channel, and we got halfway there and a terrific electrical storm set in. And it was so black at 7:00 that you couldn’t see a thing, and I hadn’t thought to bring flashlights. . . . And we switched the canoes around, came down the channel, waited each time for a flash of lightning to know where the next curve was. We got down to the bridge, and by the time we got down to the bridge, we had to yell at one another in order to make each other hear, because it was a howling storm. . . . 

Well, as we were howling directions back and forth and yelling what we should do, we saw lanterns coming down the hill. . . . A man came down; he was the director of Song Hawk Camp. He had a woodcraft camp for boys. . . . He came down and he said, “This is some storm! You had better come up!” . . . So we did. What a shack, I never saw. . . . So after the storm subsided, we went down, turned our canoes right-side up, put them on the lake, went back over the lake and went home. 

After that, I never thought another thing about that trip or that property. It never dawned on me. But when we needed the next place for Peniel—and we went all over looking for a place, and we were offered places other than Lake Luzerne, but God had said, “Lake Luzerne”—as we were on our knees before the Lord, the thought came to us, “What was that place that we spent that couple of hours until that storm subsided?”[43]

Mildred McCullough and her husband Robert hiked up the hillside out to see the property. Recalling her new anthem about tents being their home, she insisted that it must have tents, if it were the place God had chosen for them. Upon their arrival, they discovered three tents remaining at the site, along with two ramshackle buildings.

So we sat down on this tent platform and began to pray, and while we were praying and saying to God, “Lord, is this the place? Are You leading here? Is this what You mean by sending us forward into fields instead of a palace?” 

And while we were praying, I heard a noise, and I looked up, and there was a gypsy lady. Now, where she came from, I don’t know. . . . She said to us, “If you will cross my palm, I’ll tell you what to do.” 

I said, “No, you won’t. We are asking our God what to do, and only He knows what to do.” And so she went on down her way, and we prayed, and, to make a long story short, this was the place.[44]

With Satan in the form of a mysterious gypsy temptress duly defeated, and encouraged by the sign of the tents in “fields of conquest,” Peniel Bible Conference took possession of the campground. Peniel’s 1938 camp season turned out to be a meager success, in spite of lacking good facilities. Many of the college students who had attended the previous year returned, willing to rough it in the forest for the sake of the companionship of other Penielists. Even a few new people enrolled. One of these newcomers was a sensitive and thoughtful young man named Herman Petersen. He had recently graduated from college and was seeking direction for his life. Young people in search of guidance were always welcome at Peniel, and he was invited out to the camp. Men were still rare at Peniel, which had been dominated by women throughout its history. Peniel leaders were not oblivious to the fact that long-term involvement of young men often depended on their interest in Peniel women. Herman Petersen was immediately suggested as a possible “life partner” for Bertha Ives, a pretty young woman who had been involved in Peniel for years through her membership at the Methodist church.[45] Petersen had not even yet met Miss Ives when Mrs. McCullough declared that she felt in her spirit that they were meant to be married. Bertha Ives recorded in her journal the events that transpired when she arrived at camp in Lake Luzerne in the summer of 1938 to be told that she was destined to be the love interest of the new man at Peniel. He was described to her in glowing terms as devastatingly attractive and like a “teddy bear”:

I was rushed to a bedroom where my hair was arranged while the discussion continued. By the time the men came from the building they were tearing down, I was intensely interested, not to say excited. Mrs. McCullough and I were still in the bedroom when Teddy Bear walked by the window. The introduction was immediately made.[46]

Like Ray Meiners, Herman Petersen always credited Peniel Bible Conference with leading him to an understanding of the gospel and an acceptance of Christ as his Savior.47 The mixture of good and bad at Peniel Bible Conference created a whirl of confusion. Here Petersen first read the Scriptures and put his faith in Christ, and yet here he also learned to trust impulses of the mind for direction in life.

Petersen had long harbored an ambition to become a minister, and like Ray Meiners, he began to act on that desire within weeks of his conversion. Since Petersen had already completed his undergraduate degree, he began considering seminaries immediately. Peniel, however, insisted that the decision could not be left to his own preferences, but must be “taken before the Lord.” Almost immediately, they added that they felt Westminster Theological Seminary to be God’s choice, noting that the Lord had already sent Ray Meiners there. Petersen protested that he ought to consider all his options.

He ordered catalogs. The Penielists held a prayer meeting about it, ostensibly seeking God’s will, but Petersen later remarked, “Of course Westminster was a foregone conclusion—they all had the same witness about it.”[48]

Sincerely seeking to honor the Lord whom he had so recently learned to love, Herman Petersen did as Peniel instructed. He enrolled at Westminster Theological Seminary, and he began courting Bertha Ives. Ironically, both ideas forced upon Petersen turned out well for him, but within a decade, both would prove disastrous for Peniel Bible Conference.

With Ray Meiners having graduated and Herman Petersen sent off to Westminster, Peniel turned its attention to the founding of their new church in Schenectady. Petersen’s girlfriend, Bertha Ives, joined Edith Harrison, Robert and Mildred McCullough, and several other Penielists as charter members of their new congregation. They held prayer meetings, seeking guidance for the location of the church and the meeting times. The name of the church gave them some difficulty. Petersen later recounted, “One member got a witness that it was to be called ‘St. Paul’s’, but Peniel leaders dealt with her until she was convinced that the suggestion was from her carnal mind.”[49]

On September 18, 1938, Peniel made their new church official. They drafted and signed a declaration. In doing so, they must have relied heavily on the advice of Ray Meiners, the only member of their group competent to craft a document that would appeal to the Orthodox Presbyterian Church (then still known as the Presbyterian Church of America):

We, a company of Christian people, do hereby associate ourselves together as a particular church of the visible church of Christ on earth and do apply to the Presbyterian Church of America through the Presbytery of New York and New England for admission as a particular church of that body to be known as Calvary Presbyterian Church of Schenectady, New York. 

As a particular church we solemnly declare our agreement with the doctrinal declarations of the Presbyterian Church of America: (1) That the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are the Word of God, the only infallible rule of faith and practice. (2) That the Westminster Confession of Faith and catechisms contain the system of doctrine taught in the Holy Scriptures, and (3) That we subscribe to and maintain the principles of Presbyterian church government as being founded on and agreeable to the Word of God.[50]

The document was signed by thirteen people. Eleven of the thirteen were women. All thirteen were Penielists. It is highly doubtful that any of them had even read the Westminster Confession.[51] Furthermore, it is certain that they would not have agreed with it had they read it. According to Herman Petersen’s testimony, no doctrinal classes were held at all at Peniel in the months leading up to the formation of the church.[52] Whatever pretense of Presbyterian government existed, Peniel’s Prayer Council held the reins of authority in the newly formed congregation. However, the Penielists seemed to lack any sense of the seriousness of the discrepancy, and the Reformed disguise of the wording of their declaration hid Peniel’s true intentions perfectly.

On November 4, 1938, Ray Meiners was examined for ordination by various members of the Presbytery of New York and New England, including John Murray and John Skilton. He passed convincingly, and he was duly ordained as a minister in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. Peniel, under the guise of “Calvary Presbyterian Church,” was received into the OPC at the same Presbytery meeting and promptly called Ray Meiners as its pastor.[53]

The process followed all the forms of proper procedure, and yet it lacked real Presbyterian spirit. Peniel needed to legitimize itself in order to survive. Without the backing of a known church, they were ruined. Peniel’s choice to join the OPC was largely a measure of convenience, further addled by delusions of their ability to convert Presbyterians to their understanding of guidance.[54] If Peniel had been opposed by the Presbytery on any point, another side to their “Presbyterian church” would have quickly emerged. Peniel loyalties ran deep. “Calvary Presbyterian Church” would have accepted no one besides Ray Meiners, a member of the Peniel Prayer Council, as pastor. Had he failed the exam, the entire endeavor would have almost certainly been dropped. Likewise, if their doctrinal errors had been discovered, they would have sought refuge in another denomination rather than reconsider their beliefs. Meiners’s Westminster education allowed him to dodge and weave successfully, convincing a roomful of Reformed seminary graduates that he was orthodox in his theology.

As for the Presbytery, they were distracted with bigger problems. Peniel slipped in quietly under their radar, warranting only a few lines in the meeting minutes to cover the entire event. It was a match made in hell, and it set the stage for the longest-running controversy in Orthodox Presbyterian history.

Notes

1. D. G. Hart, Between the Times: The Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Transition, 1945-1990 (Philadelphia: Committee for the Historian of the OPC, 2011), a discussion of controversy in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church from the 1940s through the 1980s, makes no mention of the Peniel controversy. A brief history of the Peniel controversy with a doctrinal analysis of the theological issues involved can be found in D. G. Hart and John Muether, Fighting the Good Fight: A Brief History of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church (Philadelphia: Committee for the Historian of the OPC, 1995). Other lesser-known books and articles on OPC history vary in the depth of their inclusion and analysis of the controversy.
2. Danny Olinger and David Thompson, eds., History for a Pilgrim People: The Historical Writings of Charles G. Dennison (Philadelphia: Committee for the Historian of the OPC, 2002). This analysis of the history of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church is based on the writings of Charles G. Dennison.
3. Rev. Raymond Meiners had already been serving on the Peniel Prayer Council for more than two years before he was ordained in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church in 1938. He continued to hold both offices until his retirement in 1980. Robert McCullough had been on the Peniel Prayer Council from its inception and became an elder in the OPC in 1940. Like Rev. Meiners, McCullough served in the leadership of both Peniel and the OPC simultaneously for decades until his retirement. The list of OPC ministers and elders who were actively involved in Peniel (but not necessarily on the Prayer Council) is more extensive, including Rev. Herman Petersen, Rev. William Goodrow, Arthur Comstock, Bernard Grunstra, Rev. G. Travers Sloyer, Rev. Herbert Van DuMont, James Wood, James Coyle, Warren Chader, Rev. Arnold Kress, and others. Several of these men withdrew from the OPC, but others retained their OPC ordination for the remainder of their lives while also participating at Peniel Bible Conference. Of those listed, only two (Rev. Herman Petersen and Rev. William Goodrow) are known to have withdrawn from Peniel Bible Conference, and both subsequently withdrew from the OPC as well.
4. Materials referenced in this article were found in various locations, including the historical archive of Peniel Bible Conference in Lake Luzerne, N.Y., the OPC historical archive in Willow Grove, Pa., the archive of Calvary Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Schenectady, N.Y., the archive of the Presbytery of New York and New England in Rockport, Maine, and the personal collections of numerous Peniel ministers and attendees. The historical papers of Peniel Bible Conference were discovered to be in extremely poor condition in a file cabinet housed in a flooded basement. Emergency measures were required to dry and preserve them. These documents—augmented by a large assortment of audio recordings, correspondence, and photographs contributed from personal collections—are currently in the care of the author. I would like to especially thank Catherine Bailey for her assistance with Peniel historical research and Stephen Tracey for his support with the archive of the Presbytery of New York and New England. I would also like to thank Paul Caley, Wendell Caley, Thomas Foh, Bernard Grunstra, Dan Meiners, John Muether, Robert Sloyer, Thomas Trouwborst, and Ruben Zartman for their assistance throughout this project.
5. Minutes of the Meeting of the Presbytery of New York and New England, November 4, 1938 (Archives of the Presbytery of New York and New England).
6. Arnold Glover, personal interview by the author regarding Peniel Bible Conference, March 20, 2012.
7. Mildred McCullough, “The History of Peniel, 1933-1976” (speech delivered at the 40th anniversary of the founding of Peniel Bible Conference, Lake Luzerne, New York, August 10, 1973), audio recording.
8. Ibid.
9. Dan Meiners, phone interview by the author regarding the life of Rev. Raymond Meiners, April 3, 2012.
10. Robert McCullough, Mildred McCullough, and Rhoda Armstrong, “The Story of Peniel: How Peniel Began,” Peniel (April 1946): 8.
11. M. McCullough, “History of Peniel.”
12. R. McCullough, M. McCullough, and Armstrong, “The Story of Peniel,” 10.
13. Edith Harrison Meiners to Robert McCullough, September 23, 1980.
14. Robert McCullough to Don Mostrom, date unknown.
15. M. McCullough, “History of Peniel.”
16. Gal 5:22
17. The nature of guidance and the practice of dealing with those who failed to support the majority are commonly described in Peniel letters, journals, and speeches, as well as testimony by those who left the organization.
18. Written records from the early years of Peniel Bible Conference are frequently characterized by poor grammar, typographic errors, and idiosyncratic orthography. The quotations in this article are reproduced exactly as they appear in the original documents.
19. Peniel Prayer Council, “Ye Wayside Inn,” 1936, n.p.
20. In Peniel records, the hotel is spoken of variously as “Ye Wayside Inn” or simply “the Wayside Inn.” A historical marker in Lake Luzerne, New York, records the name as “Wayside Inn” and notes that it was built in 1869 by Col. Benjamin C. Butler. Today it is the site of Hadley-Luzerne Central School.
21. Robert McCullough, Mildred McCullough, and Marcia Vroman, “The Story of Peniel: The Wayside Inn,” Peniel (July 1946): 10.
22. Ibid., 11.
23. Peniel Prayer Council, “Ye Wayside Inn,” n.p.
24. Ibid. Capitalization and underlining in original.
25. Robert McCullough, Peniel circular letter, October 30, 1936.
26. Phyllis Anderson to Beth Whitnah, date unknown.
27. M. McCullough, “History of Peniel.”
28. R. McCullough, M. McCullough, and Vroman, “Story of Peniel,” 10.
29. M. McCullough, “History of Peniel.”
30. Ibid.
31. Ernest W. Shurtleff, “Lead On, O King Eternal” (1888).
32. M. McCullough, “History of Peniel.”
33. D. Meiners, phone interview.
34. The Orthodox Presbyterian Church originally formed under the name “Presbyterian Church of America.” A lawsuit by the PCUSA forced a change. In 1939, the denomination adopted “Orthodox Presbyterian Church” as its new name.
35. Robert McCullough to prospective members, June 24, 1938 (Archives of Calvary OPC, Schenectady, N.Y.).
36. The only known exception to the pervasive ignorance of Reformed theology was the seminary-trained Raymond Meiners.
37. Herman Petersen, “Testimony Regarding Peniel Bible Conference,” submitted to the Presbytery of New York and New England, August 10, 1950 (OPC Archives), 1.
38. D. Meiners, phone interview.
39. Ibid.
40. Raymond Meiners to Herman Petersen, February 17, 1941.
41. Raymond Meiners to Robert McCullough, February 29, 1936.
42. D. Meiners, phone interview.
43. M. McCullough, “History of Peniel.”
44. Ibid.
45. Petersen, “Testimony Regarding Peniel Bible Conference,” 2-3.
46. Bertha Ives, personal journal, July 3, 1938.
47. Petersen, “Testimony Regarding Peniel Bible Conference,” 1.
48. Ibid.
49. Ibid., 2
50. Calvary Presbyterian Church, “Letter of Affirmation,” September 18, 1938 (Archives of Calvary OPC, Schenectady, N.Y
51. Raymond Meiners, the only Penielist knowledgeable about Reformed theology, was not among the charter members of Calvary OPC in Schenectady. However, his fiancée, Edith Harrison, and her mother were among the thirteen founding members.
52. Petersen, “Testimony Regarding Peniel Bible Conference,” 1.
53. Minutes of the Meeting of the New York and New England Presbytery, November 4, 1938. Oddly, Calvary OPC was particularized as a church without the oversight of another OPC church, despite the lack of any ruling elders to form a Session.
54. Petersen, “Testimony Regarding Peniel Bible Conference,” 2.