Jesus movement
Encyclopedia
The Jesus movement was a movement in Christianity
beginning on the West Coast of the United States
in the late 1960s and early 1970s and spreading primarily through North America
and Europe
, before dying out by the early 1980s. It was the major Christian
element within the hippie
counterculture
, or, conversely, the major hippie element within some strands of Protestantism
. Members of the movement were called Jesus people, or Jesus freak
s.
The Jesus movement left a legacy of various denomination
s and other Christian organizations, and had an impact on both the development of the contemporary Christian right
and the Christian left
. Jesus music
, which grew out of the movement, greatly influenced contemporary Christian music
, helping to create various musical subgenres such as Christian rock
and Christian metal
.
in his writings for the Hollywood Free Paper. The term Jesus freak was originally a pejorative
label imposed on the group by non-Christian hippies, but members of the Jesus movement reclaimed the phrase as a positive self-identifier.
Though still a part of the broader hippie movement, the Jesus movement was partly a reaction against the counterculture from which it originated. Some people became disenchanted with the status quo
and became hippies. Later, some of these people became disenchanted with the hippie lifestyle and became Jesus people.
, seeking to return to the original life of the early Christians. As a result, Jesus people often viewed churches
, especially those in the United States, as apostate
, and took a decidedly counter cultural political stance in general. The theology of the Jesus movement also called for a return to simple living
and asceticism
in some cases. The Jesus people had a strong belief in miracle
s, signs and wonders
, faith
, healing
, prayer
, The Bible, and powerful works of the Holy Spirit
. For example, a miracle-filled revival at Asbury College in 1970 grabbed the attention of the mainstream news media and became known nation-wide.
The movement tended towards strong evangelism
and millennialism
. Some of the most read books by those within the movement included Ron Sider
's Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger and Hal Lindsey
's The Late Great Planet Earth.
Perhaps the most illustrative aspect of the Jesus movement was its communal aspect. Many Jesus People lived in commune
s. Though there were some groups, such as the Calvary Chapel
movement, which did not live in communes, these remained more on the fringes of the Jesus movement. Within the commune, the group became more important than the individual and communal sharing of possessions was the norm. One example would be Graham Pulkingham's
community described in his book They Left Their Nets. Some of the communes became highly authoritarian.
communities and the Children of God attracted many new recruits while many other communes and fellowships sprang up.
Perhaps the height of the Jesus movement was in the week-long gathering in Dallas, Texas
known as Explo '72
. This gathering attracted 80,000 young people and brought the hippies of the Jesus movement together with young people from traditional Christian families and churches. The event was organized by the very traditional Campus Crusade for Christ
and involved such traditional leaders as Bill Bright
and Billy Graham
. Many of the young Jesus People attending Explo '72 discovered for the first time these and other traditional avenues of Christian worship and experience.
Although Explo '72 marked the highwater mark of media interest, the Jesus movement continued at a grass roots level with smaller individual groups and communities.
which continues to exist in Chicago), its influence on Christian culture can still be seen. Thousands of converts moved into leadership positions in churches and parachurch organisations. The informality of the Jesus movement's music and worship affected almost all evangelical churches. Some of the fastest growing US denominations of the late 20th century, such as Calvary Chapel
, Hope Chapel Churches, and the Vineyard Churches
, trace their roots directly back to the Jesus movement, as do parachurch organisations like Jews for Jesus
and the multi-million dollar contemporary Christian music industry. Perhaps the most significant and lasting influence, however, was the growth of an emerging strand within evangelical Christianity that appealed to the contemporary youth culture.
There has been a long legacy of Christian music connected to the Jesus movement. Jesus music, also known as gospel beat music in the UK
, primarily began when some hippie and street musicians of the late 1960s and early 1970s converted to Christianity. They continued to play the same style of music they had played previously but began to write lyrics with a Christian message. Many music groups developed out of this, and some became leaders within the Jesus movement, most notably Barry McGuire
, Love Song
, Second Chapter of Acts
, All Saved Freak Band
, Servant
, Petra
, Resurrection Band
, Phil Keaggy
, Dion DiMucci
, Paul Stookey of Peter, Paul, and Mary; Randy Stonehill
, Randy Matthews
, Andraé Crouch (and the Disciples)
, Nancy Honeytree
, Keith Green
, and Larry Norman
. The Joyful Noise Band traveled with a Christian community throughout the U.S. and Europe, performing in festivals held underneath giant tents. In the UK, Malcolm and Alwyn
were the most notable agents of the gospel beat.
According to The Jesus People: Old-Time Religion in the Age of Aquarius by Enroth, Ericson, and Peters, Chuck Smith
of Calvary Chapel in Costa Mesa, California
founded the first Christian rock
labels when he launched the Maranatha! Music
label in 1971 as an outlet for the Jesus music bands performing at Calvary worship services. However, in 1970 Larry Norman
recorded, produced, and released two albums: Street Level
and Born Twice for Randy Stonehill
. on One Way Records
.
on Music Row
between the public housing and several universities – Peabody, Vanderbilt
and Belmont College etc. By the summer of 1971, the membership roll had dropped to about 75 elderly members. The church had mainstream roots in the Churches of Christ, but was transformed and firmly placed in the Jesus movement by an influx of countercultural Christians.
Seating ran out, with people sitting on the window sills or on the stage. It was not uncommon to find them walking the worst parts of Lower Broadway witnessing to hookers and addicts. Within a year or two the fellowship grew to hundreds and the famous Koinonia Coffee House was opened by Bob and Peggy Hughey. Koinonia had been an old "Five and Dime" store on Music Square that had closed down. The concerts held there on weekends helped east coast Christian music
to grow in popularity. The house band was Dogwood, and many famous musicians regularly hit the stage, including Amy Grant
, Brown Bannister
, Chris Christian
, Don Francisco
, Fireworks, Annie and Steve Chapman, Clay In The Potter's Hand and many others.
, Jack Sparks, who led the Christian World Liberation Front, as well as Lonnie Frisbee
, who worked for a time along with Chuck Smith
, founder of the Calvary Chapel
movement. Frisbee was a key evangelist during the growth of the Calvary churches; Smith was one of the few pastors who welcomed in the hippies who after coming to faith, eventually became known as Jesus people, and thus allowed for the dramatic future growth of his affiliate church network. Sparks and Pederson later became priests in the Eastern Orthodox Church
. The international Potter's House
Church (CFM) was birthed out of the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel, a church movement based in Los Angeles where Chuck Smith, the pastor of Calvary Chapel, received his early theological training.
, in 1971. Each Saturday night hippies and Jesus People gathered for worship, songs and fellowship. In 1972 several people who were highly involved in the Kingdom Come graduated from high schools and dispersed in several colleges and universities throughout the Southeastern United States. Each one started a Fellowship House Church. Maynard Pittendreigh
established one at Erskine College
, Jay Holmes established one at the University of South Carolina
, Steve Freeman
established one at Furman University
, etc. Leadership moved from Steve Freeman to a charismatic preacher named Erskine Holt
, a self-described apostle of the movement who lived in Florida. By 1973 nearly every campus throughout Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina and Georgia had Fellowship House Churches. These generally died out by 1977, with many of the members moving to more traditional campus ministries. Many, however, moved onto similar ministry in such organizations as Calvary Chapel
.
was among the groups most influenced by the Jesus movement, embracing (former) hippies, bikers and drug addicts, among others. Many of the church adopted a communal lifestyle, which continues to this day, with around 600 living in Christian Community.
movement was the largest Jesus People communal movement in the United States in the 1970s. Founded by John Higgins in 1968 as a small communal house in Costa Mesa, CA, the movement quickly grew to a very large movement catering mostly to disaffected college-age youth. There were over 100,000 people involved and 175 communal houses established during its lifespan. Two years after the movement's founding, Higgins and some of the core members of the movement bought 90 acres (364,217.4 m²) of land near Dexter, Oregon
and built a new headquarters which they called "The Land".
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
beginning on the West Coast of the United States
West Coast of the United States
West Coast or Pacific Coast are terms for the westernmost coastal states of the United States. The term most often refers to the states of California, Oregon, and Washington. Although not part of the contiguous United States, Alaska and Hawaii do border the Pacific Ocean but can't be included in...
in the late 1960s and early 1970s and spreading primarily through North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, before dying out by the early 1980s. It was the major Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
element within the hippie
Hippie
The hippie subculture was originally a youth movement that arose in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to other countries around the world. The etymology of the term 'hippie' is from hipster, and was initially used to describe beatniks who had moved into San Francisco's...
counterculture
Counterculture
Counterculture is a sociological term used to describe the values and norms of behavior of a cultural group, or subculture, that run counter to those of the social mainstream of the day, the cultural equivalent of political opposition. Counterculture can also be described as a group whose behavior...
, or, conversely, the major hippie element within some strands of Protestantism
Protestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
. Members of the movement were called Jesus people, or Jesus freak
Jesus freak
Jesus freak is a term arising from the late 1960s and early 1970s counterculture and is incorrectly used as a pejorative for those involved in the Jesus movement...
s.
The Jesus movement left a legacy of various denomination
Christian denomination
A Christian denomination is an identifiable religious body under a common name, structure, and doctrine within Christianity. In the Orthodox tradition, Churches are divided often along ethnic and linguistic lines, into separate churches and traditions. Technically, divisions between one group and...
s and other Christian organizations, and had an impact on both the development of the contemporary Christian right
Christian right
Christian right is a term used predominantly in the United States to describe "right-wing" Christian political groups that are characterized by their strong support of socially conservative policies...
and the Christian left
Christian left
The Christian left is a term originating in the United States, used to describe a spectrum of left-wing Christian political and social movements which largely embraces social justice....
. Jesus music
Jesus music
Jesus music, known as gospel beat music in the United Kingdom, is a style of Christian music which originated on the West Coast of the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s. This musical genre developed in parallel to the Jesus movement...
, which grew out of the movement, greatly influenced contemporary Christian music
Contemporary Christian music
Contemporary Christian music is a genre of modern popular music which is lyrically focused on matters concerned with the Christian faith...
, helping to create various musical subgenres such as Christian rock
Christian rock
Christian rock is a form of rock music played by individuals and bands whose members are Christians and who often focus the lyrics on matters concerned with the Christian faith. The extent to which their lyrics are explicitly Christian varies between bands...
and Christian metal
Christian metal
Christian metal, also known as white metal, is a form of heavy metal music usually defined by its message in a song's lyrics as well as the band's dedication to Christianity...
.
Origins
The terms Jesus movement and Jesus people were coined by Duane PedersonDuane Pederson
The Rev. Fr. Duane Pederson is a former Jesus freak and leader of the Jesus movement who, in his capacity as founding editor of the Hollywood Free Paper first coined the terms Jesus people and Jesus movement....
in his writings for the Hollywood Free Paper. The term Jesus freak was originally a pejorative
Pejorative
Pejoratives , including name slurs, are words or grammatical forms that connote negativity and express contempt or distaste. A term can be regarded as pejorative in some social groups but not in others, e.g., hacker is a term used for computer criminals as well as quick and clever computer experts...
label imposed on the group by non-Christian hippies, but members of the Jesus movement reclaimed the phrase as a positive self-identifier.
Though still a part of the broader hippie movement, the Jesus movement was partly a reaction against the counterculture from which it originated. Some people became disenchanted with the status quo
Status quo
Statu quo, a commonly used form of the original Latin "statu quo" – literally "the state in which" – is a Latin term meaning the current or existing state of affairs. To maintain the status quo is to keep the things the way they presently are...
and became hippies. Later, some of these people became disenchanted with the hippie lifestyle and became Jesus people.
Beliefs and practices
The Jesus movement was restorationist in theologyTheology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
, seeking to return to the original life of the early Christians. As a result, Jesus people often viewed churches
Christian Church
The Christian Church is the assembly or association of followers of Jesus Christ. The Greek term ἐκκλησία that in its appearances in the New Testament is usually translated as "church" basically means "assembly"...
, especially those in the United States, as apostate
Apostasy
Apostasy , 'a defection or revolt', from ἀπό, apo, 'away, apart', στάσις, stasis, 'stand, 'standing') is the formal disaffiliation from or abandonment or renunciation of a religion by a person. One who commits apostasy is known as an apostate. These terms have a pejorative implication in everyday...
, and took a decidedly counter cultural political stance in general. The theology of the Jesus movement also called for a return to simple living
Simple living
Simple living encompasses a number of different voluntary practices to simplify one's lifestyle. These may include reducing one's possessions or increasing self-sufficiency, for example. Simple living may be characterized by individuals being satisfied with what they need rather than want...
and asceticism
Asceticism
Asceticism describes a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from various sorts of worldly pleasures often with the aim of pursuing religious and spiritual goals...
in some cases. The Jesus people had a strong belief in miracle
Miracle
A miracle often denotes an event attributed to divine intervention. Alternatively, it may be an event attributed to a miracle worker, saint, or religious leader. A miracle is sometimes thought of as a perceptible interruption of the laws of nature. Others suggest that a god may work with the laws...
s, signs and wonders
Signs and Wonders
Signs and Wonders was a phrase used often by leaders of the Charismatic movement in the late 1980s and early 1990s. It is closely associated with the ministry of John Wimber and the Vineyard Movement...
, faith
Faith
Faith is confidence or trust in a person or thing, or a belief that is not based on proof. In religion, faith is a belief in a transcendent reality, a religious teacher, a set of teachings or a Supreme Being. Generally speaking, it is offered as a means by which the truth of the proposition,...
, healing
Healing
Physiological healing is the restoration of damaged living tissue, organs and biological system to normal function. It is the process by which the cells in the body regenerate and repair to reduce the size of a damaged or necrotic area....
, prayer
Prayer
Prayer is a form of religious practice that seeks to activate a volitional rapport to a deity through deliberate practice. Prayer may be either individual or communal and take place in public or in private. It may involve the use of words or song. When language is used, prayer may take the form of...
, The Bible, and powerful works of the Holy Spirit
Holy Spirit
Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of the Hebrew Bible, but understood differently in the main Abrahamic religions.While the general concept of a "Spirit" that permeates the cosmos has been used in various religions Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of...
. For example, a miracle-filled revival at Asbury College in 1970 grabbed the attention of the mainstream news media and became known nation-wide.
The movement tended towards strong evangelism
Evangelism
Evangelism refers to the practice of relaying information about a particular set of beliefs to others who do not hold those beliefs. The term is often used in reference to Christianity....
and millennialism
Millennialism
Millennialism , or chiliasm in Greek, is a belief held by some Christian denominations that there will be a Golden Age or Paradise on Earth in which "Christ will reign" for 1000 years prior to the final judgment and future eternal state...
. Some of the most read books by those within the movement included Ron Sider
Ron Sider
Ronald James Sider is a Canadian-born American theologian and Christian activist. He is often identified by others with the Christian left, though he personally disclaims any political inclination. He is the founder of Evangelicals for Social Action, a think-tank which seeks to develop biblical...
's Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger and Hal Lindsey
Hal Lindsey
Harold Lee "Hal" Lindsey is an American evangelist and Christian writer. He is a Christian Zionist and dispensationalist author. He currently resides in Texas.-Biography:...
's The Late Great Planet Earth.
Perhaps the most illustrative aspect of the Jesus movement was its communal aspect. Many Jesus People lived in commune
Commune (intentional community)
A commune is an intentional community of people living together, sharing common interests, property, possessions, resources, and, in some communes, work and income. In addition to the communal economy, consensus decision-making, non-hierarchical structures and ecological living have become...
s. Though there were some groups, such as the Calvary Chapel
Calvary Chapel
Calvary Chapel is an evangelical association of Christian churches with over one thousand congregations worldwide. Calvary Chapel also maintains a number of radio stations around the world and operates many local Calvary Chapel Bible College programs. It presents itself as a "fellowship of...
movement, which did not live in communes, these remained more on the fringes of the Jesus movement. Within the commune, the group became more important than the individual and communal sharing of possessions was the norm. One example would be Graham Pulkingham's
Graham Pulkingham
The Reverend W. Graham Pulkingham was the rector at the Church of the Redeemer in Houston, Texas, from 1963 until 1975. He and his wife Betty began the developments that led to the founding of the Community of Celebration and the worship band The Fisherfolk...
community described in his book They Left Their Nets. Some of the communes became highly authoritarian.
Growth and decline
Secular and Christian media exposure in 1971 and 1972 caused the Jesus movement to explode across the United States, attracting evangelical youth eager to identify with the movement. The ShilohShiloh Youth Revival Centers
The Shiloh Youth Revival Centers movement was the largest Jesus People communal movement in the United States in the 1970s. Founded by John Higgins in 1968 as a small communal house – House of Miracles – in Costa Mesa, CA, the movement quickly grew to a very large movement catering mostly to...
communities and the Children of God attracted many new recruits while many other communes and fellowships sprang up.
Perhaps the height of the Jesus movement was in the week-long gathering in Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
known as Explo '72
Explo '72
Explo '72 was an evangelistic conference sponsored by Campus Crusade for Christ, planned and directed by Paul Eshleman. Explo '72 has been called the most visible event of the 1970s Jesus movement, and came to be associated with the same, even though its primary attendees were not directly involved...
. This gathering attracted 80,000 young people and brought the hippies of the Jesus movement together with young people from traditional Christian families and churches. The event was organized by the very traditional Campus Crusade for Christ
Campus Crusade for Christ
Campus Crusade for Christ is an interdenominational Christian organization that promotes evangelism and discipleship in more than 190 countries...
and involved such traditional leaders as Bill Bright
Bill Bright
William R. "Bill" Bright was an American evangelist. The founder of Campus Crusade for Christ, he wrote The Four Spiritual Laws in 1952 and produced the Jesus Film in 1979.-Early life:...
and Billy Graham
Billy Graham
William Franklin "Billy" Graham, Jr. is an American evangelical Christian evangelist. As of April 25, 2010, when he met with Barack Obama, Graham has spent personal time with twelve United States Presidents dating back to Harry S. Truman, and is number seven on Gallup's list of admired people for...
. Many of the young Jesus People attending Explo '72 discovered for the first time these and other traditional avenues of Christian worship and experience.
Although Explo '72 marked the highwater mark of media interest, the Jesus movement continued at a grass roots level with smaller individual groups and communities.
Legacy
Although the Jesus movement lasted no more than a decade (except for the Jesus People USAJesus People USA
Jesus People USA is a Christian intentional community in Uptown, on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. It was founded in 1972, coming out of Jesus People Milwaukee in the Jesus Movement, and is the largest of the few remaining communes from that movement...
which continues to exist in Chicago), its influence on Christian culture can still be seen. Thousands of converts moved into leadership positions in churches and parachurch organisations. The informality of the Jesus movement's music and worship affected almost all evangelical churches. Some of the fastest growing US denominations of the late 20th century, such as Calvary Chapel
Calvary Chapel
Calvary Chapel is an evangelical association of Christian churches with over one thousand congregations worldwide. Calvary Chapel also maintains a number of radio stations around the world and operates many local Calvary Chapel Bible College programs. It presents itself as a "fellowship of...
, Hope Chapel Churches, and the Vineyard Churches
Association of Vineyard Churches
The Association of Vineyard Churches, also known as the Vineyard Movement, is a neocharismatic evangelical Christian denomination with over 1,500 affiliated churches worldwide....
, trace their roots directly back to the Jesus movement, as do parachurch organisations like Jews for Jesus
Jews for Jesus
Jews for Jesus is a conservative, Christian evangelical organization that focuses on the conversion of Jews to Christianity. Its members consider themselves to be Jews – either as defined by Jewish law, or as according to the view of Jews for Jesus. Jews for Jesus defines “Jewish” in terms of...
and the multi-million dollar contemporary Christian music industry. Perhaps the most significant and lasting influence, however, was the growth of an emerging strand within evangelical Christianity that appealed to the contemporary youth culture.
Jesus music
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, primarily began when some hippie and street musicians of the late 1960s and early 1970s converted to Christianity. They continued to play the same style of music they had played previously but began to write lyrics with a Christian message. Many music groups developed out of this, and some became leaders within the Jesus movement, most notably Barry McGuire
Barry McGuire
Barry McGuire is an American singer-songwriter best known for the hit song "Eve of Destruction", and later as a pioneering singer and songwriter of Contemporary Christian Music.-Early life:...
, Love Song
Love Song (band)
Love Song was one of the main Jesus music bands, one of the first Christian rock bands. It was founded in 1970 by Chuck Girard, Tommy Coomes, Jay Truax, and Fred Field. Additionally, the earliest members included David Ingram on keyboards, Ernie Earnshaw on drums and Jack Schaeffer on bass. It was...
, Second Chapter of Acts
2nd Chapter of Acts
The 2nd Chapter of Acts was a Jesus Music and early Contemporary Christian Music group composed of sisters Annie Herring and Nelly Greisen and brother Matthew Ward. They began performing in 1973 and enjoyed their period of greatest success during the 1970s...
, All Saved Freak Band
All Saved Freak Band
The All Saved Freak Band was one of the earliest influences in what has since become a distinct sub-category of Rock and Roll, Contemporary Christian Music...
, Servant
Servant (band)
Servant was a Christian rock group that grew out of the counter-culture Jesus Movement of the sixties and seventies. The band was founded in Victoria, British Columbia in 1976 by Jim Palosaari and performed to audiences throughout North America, Europe and Australia for over 12 years. Originally...
, Petra
Petra (band)
Petra is a music group regarded as a pioneer of the Christian rock and contemporary Christian music genres. Formed in 1972, the band took its name from the Greek word for "rock"...
, Resurrection Band
Resurrection Band
Resurrection Band, also known as Rez Band or REZ, was a Christian rock band formed in 1972. They were part of the Jesus People USA Christian community in Chicago and most of its members have continued in that community to this day. Known for their blend of blues-rock and hard rock, Resurrection...
, Phil Keaggy
Phil Keaggy
Phil Keaggy is an American acoustic and electric guitarist and vocalist who has released more than 50 albums and contributed to many more recordings in both the contemporary Christian music and mainstream markets...
, Dion DiMucci
Dion DiMucci
Dion Francis DiMucci , better known as Dion, is an American singer-songwriter whose work has incorporated elements of doo-wop, pop oldies music, rock and R&B styles....
, Paul Stookey of Peter, Paul, and Mary; Randy Stonehill
Randy Stonehill
Randall Evan "Randy" Stonehill is an American singer-songwriter from Stockton, California, best known as one of the so-called "fathers of contemporary Christian music". His music is primarily folk rock in the style of James Taylor, but he has assayed other styles, with various albums focused on...
, Randy Matthews
Randy Matthews
Randy Matthews is a Christian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and pioneer of Jesus music. He was born into a family with at least five ordained ministers, including his father, Monty, a founding member of the Jordanaires. When Randy was in high school in Lamar, Mo., he sang in a quartet called The...
, Andraé Crouch (and the Disciples)
Andrae Crouch
Andraé Crouch is a seven-time Grammy Award-winning American gospel singer, songwriter, arranger, recording artist, record producer, and pastor.-Early years:Born Andraé Edward Crouch in San Francisco, California....
, Nancy Honeytree
Nancy Honeytree
Nancy "Honeytree" Henigbaum is an American Christian musician and one of the leaders in what was known as Jesus music.- Personal background :...
, Keith Green
Keith Green
Keith Gordon Green was an American gospel singer, songwriter, musician, and Contemporary Christian Music artist originally from Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, New York. Beyond his music, Green is best known for his strong devotion to Christian evangelism and challenging others to the same...
, and Larry Norman
Larry Norman
Larry David Norman was an American Christian musician, singer, songwriter, record label owner, and record producer, who worked with Christian rock music...
. The Joyful Noise Band traveled with a Christian community throughout the U.S. and Europe, performing in festivals held underneath giant tents. In the UK, Malcolm and Alwyn
Malcolm and Alwyn
Malcolm and Alwyn were a popular British gospel beat music group in the 1970s. They played Beatles-influenced rock music with lyrics reflecting their conversion to Christianity. The duo was composed of Malcolm Wild and Alwyn Wall, who had been performing together in a band called The Zodiacs prior...
were the most notable agents of the gospel beat.
According to The Jesus People: Old-Time Religion in the Age of Aquarius by Enroth, Ericson, and Peters, Chuck Smith
Chuck Smith (pastor)
Charles Ward “Chuck” Smith, , is the senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa and the founder of the Calvary Chapel movement...
of Calvary Chapel in Costa Mesa, California
Costa Mesa, California
Costa Mesa is a city in Orange County, California. The population was 109,960 at the 2010 census. Since its incorporation in 1953, the city has grown from a semi-rural farming community of 16,840 to a primarily suburban and "edge" city with an economy based on retail, commerce, and light...
founded the first Christian rock
Christian rock
Christian rock is a form of rock music played by individuals and bands whose members are Christians and who often focus the lyrics on matters concerned with the Christian faith. The extent to which their lyrics are explicitly Christian varies between bands...
labels when he launched the Maranatha! Music
Maranatha! Music
Maranatha! Music began as a non-profit outreach of Calvary Chapel in 1971. The Jesus People of the late 1960s and early 1970s began to write new hymns and worship songs with a folk-rock style. Maranatha! Music was founded at this time in order to publish and promote this new type of Christian...
label in 1971 as an outlet for the Jesus music bands performing at Calvary worship services. However, in 1970 Larry Norman
Larry Norman
Larry David Norman was an American Christian musician, singer, songwriter, record label owner, and record producer, who worked with Christian rock music...
recorded, produced, and released two albums: Street Level
Street Level (album)
Street Level is the title of an live album recorded by Larry Norman in 1970. The 2005 CD re-issue has the same selection of tracks as the original 1970 LP release. The second LP version released in 1971 and 1972 under the same name has a different B-side. The 2001 CD issue combines the tracks...
and Born Twice for Randy Stonehill
Randy Stonehill
Randall Evan "Randy" Stonehill is an American singer-songwriter from Stockton, California, best known as one of the so-called "fathers of contemporary Christian music". His music is primarily folk rock in the style of James Taylor, but he has assayed other styles, with various albums focused on...
. on One Way Records
One Way Records
One Way Records was a record label established by Larry Norman in 1970 to distribute his own work, and that of other Christian musicians including Randy Stonehill, after he had been released by Capitol Records in 1969.-History:...
.
Belmont Avenue Church Of Christ
Don Finto was called to Belmont Avenue Church of Christ (now simply Belmont Church), an ailing old inner city church in Nashville, TennesseeNashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
on Music Row
Music Row
Music Row is an area just to the southwest of Downtown Nashville, Tennessee that is home to hundreds of businesses related to the country music, gospel music, and Contemporary Christian music industries...
between the public housing and several universities – Peabody, Vanderbilt
Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University is a private research university located in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, the university is named for shipping and rail magnate "Commodore" Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided Vanderbilt its initial $1 million endowment despite having never been to the...
and Belmont College etc. By the summer of 1971, the membership roll had dropped to about 75 elderly members. The church had mainstream roots in the Churches of Christ, but was transformed and firmly placed in the Jesus movement by an influx of countercultural Christians.
Seating ran out, with people sitting on the window sills or on the stage. It was not uncommon to find them walking the worst parts of Lower Broadway witnessing to hookers and addicts. Within a year or two the fellowship grew to hundreds and the famous Koinonia Coffee House was opened by Bob and Peggy Hughey. Koinonia had been an old "Five and Dime" store on Music Square that had closed down. The concerts held there on weekends helped east coast Christian music
Christian music
Christian music is music that has been written to express either personal or a communal belief regarding Christian life and faith. Common themes of Christian music include praise, worship, penitence, and lament, and its forms vary widely across the world....
to grow in popularity. The house band was Dogwood, and many famous musicians regularly hit the stage, including Amy Grant
Amy Grant
Amy Lee Grant is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, media personality and actress, best known for her Christian music. She has been referred to as "The Queen of Christian Pop"...
, Brown Bannister
Brown Bannister
Brown Bannister is a CCM producer and songwriter. Bannister released one album of his own, Talk to One Another, in 1981 on NewPax Records. It was reissued on the Reunion Records Label five years later, featuring a newer recording of the album's final cut, "Create In Me A Clean Heart"...
, Chris Christian
Chris Christian
Chris Christian is a songwriter, record producer, and a record label executive. His songs have been recorded by Elvis Presley, Olivia Newton-John, Natalie Cole, Sheena Easton, The Pointer Sisters, Al Jarreau, The Carpenters, Amy Grant, Patti Austin, Dionne Warwick, Amy Grant, The Imperials, B.J...
, Don Francisco
Don Francisco (Christian musician)
Don Francisco is an independent American singer, songwriter, and musician, specialising in the field of contemporary Christian music. He has won two Dove awards, 1980 song of the year , and 1980 Songwriter of the year....
, Fireworks, Annie and Steve Chapman, Clay In The Potter's Hand and many others.
Calvary Chapel
Unlike many other Christian movements, there was no single leader or figurehead of the Jesus movement. Some of the larger names include Duane PedersonDuane Pederson
The Rev. Fr. Duane Pederson is a former Jesus freak and leader of the Jesus movement who, in his capacity as founding editor of the Hollywood Free Paper first coined the terms Jesus people and Jesus movement....
, Jack Sparks, who led the Christian World Liberation Front, as well as Lonnie Frisbee
Lonnie Frisbee
Lonnie Frisbee was an American Pentecostal evangelist and self-described "seeing prophet" and mystic in the late 1960s and 1970s...
, who worked for a time along with Chuck Smith
Chuck Smith (pastor)
Charles Ward “Chuck” Smith, , is the senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa and the founder of the Calvary Chapel movement...
, founder of the Calvary Chapel
Calvary Chapel
Calvary Chapel is an evangelical association of Christian churches with over one thousand congregations worldwide. Calvary Chapel also maintains a number of radio stations around the world and operates many local Calvary Chapel Bible College programs. It presents itself as a "fellowship of...
movement. Frisbee was a key evangelist during the growth of the Calvary churches; Smith was one of the few pastors who welcomed in the hippies who after coming to faith, eventually became known as Jesus people, and thus allowed for the dramatic future growth of his affiliate church network. Sparks and Pederson later became priests in the Eastern Orthodox Church
Eastern Orthodox Church
The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...
. The international Potter's House
Potter's House Christian Fellowship
The Potter's House Christian Fellowship is a Christian Pentecostal church organization founded by Pastor Wayman Mitchell in Prescott, Arizona in 1970. The official organization title is Christian Fellowship Ministries or CFM....
Church (CFM) was birthed out of the International Church of the Foursquare Gospel, a church movement based in Los Angeles where Chuck Smith, the pastor of Calvary Chapel, received his early theological training.
Fellowship House Church
Steve Freeman and others opened the Kingdom Come Christian Coffee House in Greenville, South CarolinaGreenville, South Carolina
-Law and government:The city of Greenville adopted the Council-Manager form of municipal government in 1976.-History:The area was part of the Cherokee Nation's protected grounds after the Treaty of 1763, which ended the French and Indian War. No White man was allowed to enter, though some families...
, in 1971. Each Saturday night hippies and Jesus People gathered for worship, songs and fellowship. In 1972 several people who were highly involved in the Kingdom Come graduated from high schools and dispersed in several colleges and universities throughout the Southeastern United States. Each one started a Fellowship House Church. Maynard Pittendreigh
Maynard Pittendreigh
The Rev. Dr. W. Maynard Pittendreigh is an astronomer, writer and an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church . As a minister, he has been a pioneer and leader in a movement toward multi-cultural/racial congregations, and in developing early Internet-based ministries.William Maynard...
established one at Erskine College
Erskine College
Erskine College is a four year, Christian liberal arts college located in Due West, South Carolina.-Early history:Established in 1839 by the Associate Reformed Synod of the South as an academy for men, Erskine College became the first four year, church-related college in South Carolina...
, Jay Holmes established one at the University of South Carolina
University of South Carolina
The University of South Carolina is a public, co-educational research university located in Columbia, South Carolina, United States, with 7 surrounding satellite campuses. Its historic campus covers over in downtown Columbia not far from the South Carolina State House...
, Steve Freeman
Steve Freeman
Steven Jay Freeman is a former American football defensive back.After playing college football at Mississippi State University, he was selected by the National Football League's New England Patriots in the 1975 NFL Draft. However, he was released by the Patriots before the start of the regular...
established one at Furman University
Furman University
Furman University is a selective, private, coeducational, liberal arts college in Greenville, South Carolina, United States. Furman is one of the oldest, and more selective private institutions in South Carolina...
, etc. Leadership moved from Steve Freeman to a charismatic preacher named Erskine Holt
Erskine Holt
Erskine Leo Holt was Christian minister, missionary and religious leader who established many independent House Church communities throughout the United States...
, a self-described apostle of the movement who lived in Florida. By 1973 nearly every campus throughout Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina and Georgia had Fellowship House Churches. These generally died out by 1977, with many of the members moving to more traditional campus ministries. Many, however, moved onto similar ministry in such organizations as Calvary Chapel
Calvary Chapel
Calvary Chapel is an evangelical association of Christian churches with over one thousand congregations worldwide. Calvary Chapel also maintains a number of radio stations around the world and operates many local Calvary Chapel Bible College programs. It presents itself as a "fellowship of...
.
Jesus Army
In the UK, the Jesus ArmyJesus Army
The Jesus Army is the identity that the Jesus Fellowship Church uses in its outreach and street-based work. It is a neocharismatic evangelical Christian movement based in the United Kingdom, that is part of the British New Church Movement....
was among the groups most influenced by the Jesus movement, embracing (former) hippies, bikers and drug addicts, among others. Many of the church adopted a communal lifestyle, which continues to this day, with around 600 living in Christian Community.
Shiloh Youth Revival Centers
The Shiloh Youth Revival CentersShiloh Youth Revival Centers
The Shiloh Youth Revival Centers movement was the largest Jesus People communal movement in the United States in the 1970s. Founded by John Higgins in 1968 as a small communal house – House of Miracles – in Costa Mesa, CA, the movement quickly grew to a very large movement catering mostly to...
movement was the largest Jesus People communal movement in the United States in the 1970s. Founded by John Higgins in 1968 as a small communal house in Costa Mesa, CA, the movement quickly grew to a very large movement catering mostly to disaffected college-age youth. There were over 100,000 people involved and 175 communal houses established during its lifespan. Two years after the movement's founding, Higgins and some of the core members of the movement bought 90 acres (364,217.4 m²) of land near Dexter, Oregon
Dexter, Oregon
Dexter is an unincorporated community in Lane County, Oregon, United States. It is located near Dexter Lake , a reservoir of the Willamette River along Oregon Route 58....
and built a new headquarters which they called "The Land".