Editing Jesus Army (section)

==Distinctive features==
The Jesus Fellowship operated like the [[house church]] movements, or the more radical elements of the larger, more conventional churches.<ref>[[Stephen J. Hunt]], ''Alternative Religions: A Sociological Introduction'' (Aldershot: Ashgate, 2003), p. 113: "In many respects, however, the movement was not that different from other New Churches that sprung up at the time, though it did differ in its emphasis on communal life and a membership that was not predominantly middle-class in composition."</ref> It was affected by the [[charismatic movement]] of the late 1960s and early '70s, and influenced by the [[Jesus people]] movement in the United States.<ref>Keith Newell in ''Charismatic Christianity: Sociological Perspectives'', ed. Hunt et al., (St. Martin's Press Inc, 1997), p.122: "Under the leadership of the pastor, Noel Stanton (who still holds this position), a number of Chrismatics gathered at Bugbrooke Baptist Chapel, near Northampton, in 1969. At this point there were some similarities with the Jesus Movement in California (Palms, 1971). For the first three years the group that met at the chapel to participate in Charismatic life included bikers, drug-users, hippies and others who lived through the counter-culture. Very diverse people joined in the years that followed, including a number of evangelicals from Oxford, and to a lesser extent, Cambridge University."</ref><ref>Nigel Wright in ''Charismatic Christianity: Sociological Perspectives'', p.66: "A full description of Restorationism ought to include a reference to the Bugbrooke Community or Jesus Fellowship in Northamptonshire. In the 1970s an ordinary village Baptist church passed under the leadership of its lay pastor, Noel Stanton, into Charismatic renewal and then into practising the community of goods in the style of the Anabaptist Hutterites."</ref> According to author William Kay,<ref>Kay, p.151</ref> Stanton was highly influenced by [[Arthur Wallis (Bible teacher)|Arthur Wallis]]'s book ''In the Day of Thy Power'',<ref>Arthur Wallis, ''In the Day of Thy Power'' (London: CLC, 1956)</ref> and associated with a number of the early leaders within the [[Charismatic Restorationism|British New Church movement]]. The beliefs of the Jesus Fellowship are in line with historic Christian orthodoxy.<ref>Chryssides, p.149: "the group is thoroughly orthodox, professing allegiance to Christianity's historic creeds; it neither seeks to add to scripture nor claims new present-day prophets, although, in common with many mainstream Christians, it believes in continuing revelation through the Holy Spirit's inspiration."</ref> Nevertheless, there are various aspects of the Fellowship's way of practising [[Christianity]] that are distinctive when compared with more conventional churches.<ref name=Kay2004/>

===Jesus Army, evangelism and ministry to the marginalised===
[[File:London 11 July 2009 (36090446683).jpg|thumb|A Jesus Army minibus in 2009]]
The British public were most likely to be aware of the Jesus Army by its brightly coloured minibuses and coaches, and the highly visible multi-coloured camouflage jackets often worn by Jesus Army [[evangelism|evangelists]] on the street.<ref>David V. Barrett, ''The New Believers'' (London, Cassell & Co., 2001), p.228</ref> The Jesus Army was launched in 1987 as the campaigning identity of the Jesus Fellowship. Following the example of the early [[Salvation Army]], and with a stated intention to "go where others will not go,"<ref>Kay, p.156</ref> the Jesus Army engaged in what has been called "aggressive and effective street evangelism among the marginalized sections of society."<ref>Nigel Wright, in ''Charismatic Christianity '', p.66: "the Jesus Army has engaged in aggressive and effective street evangelism among the marginalized sections of society."</ref> The Jesus Army's mission was described as "essentially one to the poor, the disadvantaged and the marginalized."<ref>Chryssides, p.154</ref> Since 1987 the Jesus Army held an annual high-profile gospel event in [[London]] called London Jesus Day<ref>{{Cite web|title = London Jesus Day 2016|url = http://londonjesusday.com/|website = londonjesusday.com|accessdate = 19 November 2015|archive-date = 19 November 2015|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151119200105/http://londonjesusday.com/|url-status = dead}}</ref> with a three-hour public event on [[Trafalgar Square]], then (until 2005) an evening event in a marquee on [[Roundwood Park]].

===Jesus Army Charitable Trust and Jesus Centres===
[[File:Northampton-jesus-centre.jpg|thumb|The Northampton Jesus Centre in a converted cinema]]
Growing from the Jesus Army's work among homeless street people, those involved in drug or alcohol abuse, and prisoners and ex-prisoners,<ref>Barrett, p.228</ref> the Jesus Army/Jesus Fellowship founded a charitable trust "to develop and enhance its existing work with many disadvantaged groups and individuals",<ref>{{Cite web | title=Jesus Centres Trust {{!}} Jesus Centres | work=Jesus Centres | access-date=17 May 2019 | url=https://jesuscentre.org.uk/about-jesus-centres/jesus-centres-trust/ | archive-date=17 May 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190517222334/https://jesuscentre.org.uk/about-jesus-centres/jesus-centres-trust/ | url-status=dead }}</ref> largely through the founding and running of "Jesus Centres" in UK cities and towns.<ref name=charity-1165925/>

In 2002, the Jesus Fellowship opened the Coventry Jesus Centre including a Drop-In Centre known as "The Bridge", which provided services such as a subsidised breakfast, free clothing, showers and hot drinks, as well as [[social support]], job training and providing medical help to vulnerable people. The centre also assisted in finding rented accommodation for the homeless, though a major emphasis of these activities was evangelistic, "bringing people to Jesus".<ref>Stephen J. Hunt, in ''[[Pneuma: The Journal of the Society for Pentecostal Studies]]'', Vol 20, Number 1, Spring 1998 (Hagerstown, Maryland, USA), p.21–41 [pp.39ff]</ref><ref>''Coventry Evening Telegraph'', 2 May 2007.</ref> Other Jesus Centres were opened in Northampton (2004), Central London (2008) and [[Sheffield]] (2011).

===Multiply Christian Network===
The Jesus Fellowship was also linked to around 250 other churches and groups in the UK and elsewhere through the Multiply Christian Network, which it initiated in 1992.<ref>''Idea'' [magazine of the Evangelical Alliance], May 1999: "Multiply Christian Network{{nbsp}}[...] links more than 30 churches in England and Wales with others abroad. Multiply was initiated in 1992 by the Jesus Fellowship Church."</ref><ref>William Kay in C. Partridge (ed), ''Encyclopedia of New Religions'' Oxford: Lion Publishing, 2004: "The Army is noted for{{nbsp}}[...] its linkage with more than 40 other independent Christian churches in the Multiply Network."</ref><ref>[http://www.multiply.org.uk/multiply/yourarea_index.shtml Multiply website] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081010134423/http://www.multiply.org.uk/multiply/yourarea_index.shtml |date=10 October 2008 }} (accessed 14 October 8): "There are around 250 churches and groups in the Multiply Christian Network."</ref>

===Youth ministry===
From 2007 to 2017 the Jesus Army hosted a yearly event for young people aged between 15 and 35 called "RAW (Real and Wild)".<ref>[http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/faith/article5294092.ece?token=null&offset=12&page=2 Times Online]{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} (accessed 26 March 9): "The Jesus Army, for example, a Baptist-inspired Christian youth movement, regularly offers chances to create legal graffiti on walls, boards or panels as part of its annual RAW youth outreach, which attracts several hundred young people each summer in Northampton."</ref> In contrast with many Christian churches which often have an aging population,<ref>[http://www.whychurch.org.uk/age.php Whychurch website] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081211125922/http://www.whychurch.org.uk/age.php |date=11 December 2008 }} (accessed 30 October 8)</ref> the Jesus Army had a comparatively high proportion of young members.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Jesus Army|url=http://www.jesusarmy.co.uk/|website=The Jesus Army|access-date=22 January 2016|archive-date=1 February 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160201193312/http://jesusarmy.co.uk/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===New Creation Christian Community===
[[File:Bugbrooke Baptist Chapel - geograph.org.uk - 1328138.jpg|thumb|Bugbrooke Baptist Chapel in 2008]]
In the early years of the Jesus Fellowship, a residential Christian community was founded for its growing membership. Initially, a large Anglican rectory in Bugbrooke was purchased and renamed "New Creation Hall". Several members of the Jesus Fellowship moved in and it became the first centre of a community lifestyle. By 1979, several other large houses in the surrounding area were purchased and "New Creation Christian Community," as the entire community was named, was established, with some 350 residents.<ref>Hunt in ''Pneuma'', p. 25</ref> At its height in the early 1990s there were roughly 850 residents in about 60 communal households, but their numbers later dropped to less than 200 persons.{{citation needed|date=June 2022}} Motivation for the Jesus Fellowship's venture into residential communal living and the sharing of possessions came primarily from their interpretation of Biblical descriptions of the early church.<ref name=Kay2004>William Kay in C. Partridge (ed), ''Encyclopedia of New Religions, a Guide'' (Oxford: Lion Publishing, 2004).</ref>

The Jesus Fellowship's community had many features in common with other charismatic Christian [[intentional community|intentional communities]]<ref>Hunt in ''Pneuma'', p.21</ref> and part of the initial stimulation towards starting the New Creation Christian Community came from the [[Church of the Redeemer (Houston, Texas)|Church of the Redeemer]], Houston, Texas, established by the Episcopalian priest [[Graham Pulkingham]].<ref>Hunt in ''Pneuma'', p.22: "Pulkingham's model of community living epitomized the conviction that collective life would provide a deeper expression of the Christian faith and the charismatic experience, his ministry to the poor inspired a number of Christians in Britain committed to ministering to the needy, the Jesus Fellowship among them."</ref> New Creation Christian Community was one of the largest intentional Christian communities in Europe.<ref name="Hunt">Hunt in ''Pneuma'', p.22</ref> According to sociologist [[Stephen J. Hunt]], the Jesus Fellowship's community "has been a source of inspiration and frequently attracts visitors from Europe and beyond who wish to observe, and sometimes imitate, a vibrant and enduring model of charismatic community life."<ref name="Hunt"/> Residents of each community house ranged in number from 6 to 60 people.<ref name=Kay2004/> The pattern of community life in the largest, down to the smallest residence, was modelled along the same principles and pattern. Those dwelling in a community house, along with the majority of members who lived outside but who are formally attached to it, made up the "church household". The church household was the basic unit of the Jesus Fellowship, usually comprising both members who lived in community and a majority who did not. Several church households usually came together to form congregations for public worship along with members of the public who wished to attend.<ref>Hunt in ''Pneuma'', p.31</ref> Jesus Fellowship congregations typically met in a hired venue such as a school or community centre, although latterly the church purchased "Jesus Centres" in some cities and towns: the Jesus Fellowship in these places used these centres as their venue for public meetings.

The community founded a series of Christian businesses (House of Goodness group) employing once up to 250 people. Profits from the businesses helped fund the wider work of the Jesus Fellowship. Businesses and community houses were owned by a Trust Fund ultimately controlled by the members.<ref>Newell in ''Charismatic Christianity'', pp.131–132</ref> In 2001, one of the houses was featured in a [[Channel 4]] television documentary, ''Battlecentre''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.diverse.tv/programme.aspx?id=20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060522201233/http://www.diverse.tv/programme.aspx?id=20 |url-status=dead |archive-date=22 May 2006 |title=Diverse.tv |website=diverse.tv |access-date=17 May 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/Reader_Review/0,,-90304,00.html |title=Battlecentre (2001) - Reviews - guardian.co.uk Film |website=The Guardian |access-date=17 May 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/realmedia/sunday/s20011216f.ram |title=BBC interview with producer  |website=www.bbc.co.uk |access-date=17 May 2019}}</ref>

===Membership===
There were a variety of levels of commitment in the Jesus Fellowship with corresponding types of membership. Those in the loosest forms of membership may have been merely attached to a Jesus Fellowship weeknight "[[cell group]]" or attended only on Sundays.<ref>Chryssides, p.155</ref> Others were more involved. The committed core membership of the Jesus Fellowship consisted of "covenant members", those who had made a "covenant", or pledge expressing an intention of lifelong loyalty to the Jesus Fellowship.<ref>[http://www.jesus.org.uk/vault/library_hottopics12.shtml Jesus Army:Vault-Library-Hot Topics 12] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080218031818/http://www.jesus.org.uk/vault/library_hottopics12.shtml |date=18 February 2008 }} (accessed 11 December 7): "In the Jesus Fellowship many have entered into a membership covenant, joining together as a committed brotherhood-church. This covenant, like those made between people in the Bible, is made before God and is viewed as being unbreakable. We agree to be bonded with one another and to work out the implications of such a pledge of brotherly love.{{nbsp}}[...] We promise never to let one another down. We help one another through difficulties. We forgive and encourage one another. We fight together to save sinners with the gospel, sharing in sufferings and disappointments. We build strong brotherhood relationships and 'find' ourselves. This vow of covenant brotherhood is part of the strength of our church."</ref> Even within covenant membership, there were four different "styles". "Style 1" was the non-resident membership, with a similar membership practice to that of most members of other churches. "Style 2" covenant members entered into closer financial and general accountability.

"Style 3" covenant members were the residential members of the New Creation Christian Community: all their income, wealth and possessions were shared, though they may have reclaimed them should they subsequently decide to leave. While they were members, the value of their contribution was protected by the Trust Fund. Becoming a member of the Jesus Fellowship's community was a gradual process<ref name="Alt">Hunt, ''Alternative Religions '', p.114</ref> and most of those who joined the community had already belonged to the Jesus Fellowship as part of its broader membership first. "Style 4" was for covenant members who lived at a distance and were unable to join regularly in the life of the church.<ref name="Alt"/>

===Celibacy and marriage===
The Jesus Fellowship was the only new church stream that advocated and practised [[celibacy]],<ref>Hunt in ''Pneuma'', p.36</ref> claiming that it led to a full life for single people. Within the Jesus Fellowship there were both couples and male and female celibates. The Jesus Fellowship claimed both as high callings. The main justification used for advocating celibacy was that it freed a member for ministry, particularly in the unsocial hours that Jesus Army campaigning required.<ref>Newell in ''Charismatic Christianity'', p.130: "JF is the only new church stream that advocates and practices celibacy for those called to it, claiming it leads to a full life for single people. There are couples and celibates, male and female, and JF claims both as high callings. A main justification for celibacy, following St Paul, is that it frees a member for ministry, particularly in the unsocial hours that Jesus Army campaigning can require."</ref> Some critics maintained that the Jesus Fellowship taught celibacy as a better or higher way, and that single members felt pressured into making the vow.<ref>Newell in ''Charismatic Christianity'', p.130 "Critics have maintained that JF teaches celibacy as a better or higher way and that single brothers and sisters are pressurized into the vow, though I have not myself seen any evidence of this."</ref> Others denied this and insisted that both marriage and family life, and celibacy were held in high regard in the Jesus Fellowship.<ref>Nigel Scotland, ''Charismatics and the New Millennium'', (Eagle, 2000), p.113 "The Jesus Fellowship themselves attach value to both marriage and celibacy. Both are seen as callings from God. Families are needed to 'provide the essential base of homeliness and security'. Celibates on the other hand, are free to engage in pioneering and evangelistic work"</ref> Celibacy was, however, described by the Jesus Fellowship as "a precious gem".<ref name="Chr">Chryssides, p.158</ref> At most some 200 Fellowship members were committed to celibacy, plus a further 100 or so probationers.<ref name="Chr"/> There were instances where committed celibates subsequently entered into married life within the Jesus Fellowship, but this was not taken lightly. Such a step could involve sanctions such as having one's leadership responsibilities reduced.<ref name="Chr"/>

[[Noel Stanton]], the Jesus Fellowship's original leader, was himself a celibate, and the senior leadership of the church was made up of roughly 50 percent celibates and 50 percent who were married.<ref>Chryssides, p.159</ref> Despite this high view of celibacy, studies indicate that marriage and the family were afforded a high priority by the Jesus Fellowship. According to sociologist Stephen J. Hunt, marriage in the Jesus Fellowship was seen as "a ministering relationship in which human warmth and Christian fellowship can be offered to others, providing spiritual parenting for those who are emotionally damaged."<ref>Hunt in ''Pneuma'', p.33</ref> Hunt found that "where problems in child-rearing occur, support and advice for the parents is on hand from fellow members. Even those children brought up in the New Creation Christian Community are not totally separated from the outside world." The Jesus Fellowship's children attended state schools.<ref>Hunt in ''Pneuma'', p.34 "All children go to state school since there are not the resources to run an independent school, although this type of schooling would remain an ideal."</ref>