John Von Casper "Jack" Wyrtzen (22 April 1913 – 17 April 1996) was an American youth evangelist and founder of Word of Life ministries, which operates Christian camps, conference centers and Bible institutes. Wyrtzen produced the ''Word of Life'' radio program, heard by a nationwide audience. He led the organization for fifty years until his retirement in 1991. Wyrtzen spoke in many churches and venues, holding meetings from the streets to stadiums; he is credited with influencing

Billy Graham William Franklin Graham Jr. (November 7, 1918 – February 21, 2018) was an American evangelist and an ordained Southern Baptist minister who became well known internationally in the late 1940s. He was a prominent evangelical Christi ...

George Verwer George Verwer (born July 3, 1938) is an Evangelist and is the founder of Operation Mobilisation (OM), a Christianity, Christian Mission (Christianity), missions organization. Verwer has written several books on various Christian themes. He is a pa ...

and other evangelistic leaders.

Early years and education

Wyrtzen was born in the

Woodhaven, Queens Woodhaven is a neighborhood in the southwestern section of the New York City borough of Queens. It is bordered on the north by Park Lane South and Forest Park, on the east by Richmond Hill, on the south by Ozone Park and Atlantic Avenue, and t ...

, section of New York City on 22 April 1913. His father was a foreman in a glass factory, and his mother was involved in

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

politics. Wyrtzen had two brothers. From 1929 to 1933, he led a dance band at night, playing the

trombone The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate ...

, and worked as an insurance salesman during the day until 1940. From 1938 to 1940, Wyrtzen attended Hawthorne Evening Bible School, in

Hawthorne, New Jersey Hawthorne is a borough in Passaic County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 18,791 honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hon ...

from the same school. In 1933, he helped to form XBA, Chi Beta Alpha (Christians Born Again), a Bible study and fellowship group for young men; Phi Gamma was organized for women. He worked with XBA until 1940.

Ministries

In 1940, he founded the

Word of Life Fellowship Word of Life Fellowship is an international evangelistic Christian ministry. The headquarters is in Schroon Lake, New York, in the United States. History In 1940, Word of Life Fellowship Bible Conference was founded by Jack Wyrtzen. In 1941, ...

Bible Conference. In 1941, he founded the Word of Life Camp Ministry and in 1946 he purchased an island on Schroon Lake, New York and opened a Word of Life Camp in 1947. Then he opened camps, conference centers, bible institutes, and church youth ministries in other countries.

Radio and television

Strongly influenced by another youth evangelist,

Percy Crawford Percy Bartimus Crawford (October 20, 1902 – October 31, 1960) was an Christian evangelism, evangelist and Christian fundamentalism, fundamentalist leader who especially emphasized youth ministry. During the late 1950s, he saw the potential of F ...

, Wyrtzen took to the air over WBBC as a preacher and then began the ''Word of Life'' broadcast over WHN in 1941. From the 1950s–1980s, Wyrtzen's daily ''Word of Life'' radio broadcast was heard nationwide, featuring Christian music, testimonies by young people, and his

sermons A sermon is a religious discourse or oration by a preacher, usually a member of clergy. Sermons address a scriptural, theological, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law, or behavior within both past and present contexts. E ...

, many recorded at the Schroon Lake camp. A scaled-back version of the broadcast continued for several years after Wyrtzen's death, hosted by George Theis, Wyrtzen's successor as leader of Word of Life."George Theis"
''The Ministry Dad'', Pastor Scott Foreman. Retrieved September 12, 2022.

Word of Life Fellowship

Wyrtzen began holding youth rallies in 1940 in New York City, the beginning of the

Youth for Christ Youth For Christ (YFC) is a worldwide Christian movement working with young people, whose main purpose is evangelism among teenagers. It began informally in New York City in 1940, when Jack Wyrtzen held evangelical Protestant rallies for teenagers ...

movement. He founded the Word of Life Fellowship Bible Conference and became director of Word of Life Ministries, serving until 1991. In 1942, he founded the Word of Life Camp Ministry and in 1946 he purchased an island on Schroon Lake, New York, for the Word of Life Camp, and then opened more camps in other cities in the U.S. and other countries. Wyrtzen crisscrossed America holding evangelistic crusades in major cities as well as in country churches. He is credited with developing Bible clubs in over 1,000 churches and starting youth ministries in over 70 countries. The Word of Life ministry developed conference centers at Schroon Lake and, in the 1980s, in

Hudson, Florida Hudson is a census-designated place (CDP) located at the westernmost end of Pasco County, Florida, Pasco County, Florida, United States, and is included in the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 201 ...

. Wyrtzen also developed overseas ministries and established Bible clubs for young people. In 1971, he started a Bible institute with co-director Harry Bollback.

Personal life and legacy

Wyrtzen married Margaret Smith on April 18, 1936. Two years after Margaret's death in 1984, he married Joan Steiner on May 6, 1986. Wyrtzen spoke in many churches and venues, holding meetings from the streets to stadiums; he is credited with influencing

and other evangelistic leaders. He died on April 17, 1996, survived by his second wife Joan and five children from his first marriage. One of his daughters, Betsy, has since passed away, but she is survived by her siblings Mary-Ann Cox (married to Word of Life missionary Dave Cox Sr.); pianist and composer Don Wyrtzen; pastor Dave Wyrtzen; and Ron Wyrtzen (husband to singer and songwriter Christine Wyrtzen). Currently, Word of Life is directed by Don Lough Jr.

References

External links

*https://web.archive.org/web/20030308083440/http://www.wol.org/about/jack/ - Ministry founded by Jack Wyrtzen. *https://web.archive.org/web/20090909195358/http://www.wheaton.edu/bgc/archives/GUIDES/446.htm - Papers of John Von Casper "Jack" Wyrtzen - Collection 446 {{DEFAULTSORT:Wyrtzen, Jack 1913 births 1996 deaths American evangelicals American evangelists Christian writers Radio evangelists