The Jesus Fellowship was founded in Bugbrooke Chapel, Northamptonshire, in 1969 by the late Baptist preacher, Noel Stanton. Members were put to work at Jesus Fellowship businesses and then bused into city centres at the weekend to encourage others to join the movement
The activities of the Fellowship included giving sermons, exorcisms and speaking in tongues and members of the congregation were urged to publicly recant their sins. They recruited thousands of people to live in close-knit, puritanical communities in Northamptonshire, London and the Midlands.
Fifty years on from the establishment of the Jesus Fellowship it was discovered that:
- One in six children were estimated to have been sexually abused
- 539 individuals were identified as perpetrators of alleged abuse
- The Jesus Fellowship Community Trust (JFCT) accepted ultimate responsibility for 264 alleged abusers, 61% of them former leaders
- In 2020, five senior leaders known as the Apostles, were found to have covered-up the abuse of women and childrenfollowing an independent inquiry commissioned by the Jesus Fellowship.
The JFCT, which has been winding up the group’s affairs, said it was sorry for “the severely detrimental impact” on people’s lives, and hoped the conclusion of the redress scheme would “provide an opportunity to look to the future” for all those affected during a 50-year period.
In 2019, when the Fellowship was eventually closed down, it was discovered that amongst it’s assets was a property portfolio worth an estimated £50 million.
[BBC News/13/09/2024]