Reachout Trust
Encyclopedia
Reachout Trust is a British
evangelical Christian organisation. Its stated aims are to "Examine in the light of the Christian gospel the beliefs and spirituality of people within the cult
s, occult
s, new age
and all not upholding to biblical truth."
Reachout Trust deals with many different groups including Jehovah's Witnesses
, the Latter Day Saint movement
, and Christadelphians
as well as the occult and New Age. Reachout Trust also produce information about other groups and religions and writes about various influential Christian figures (such as tele-evangelists and authors) and various groups within non-evangelical Christianity, such as Roman Catholicism.
Reachout Trust communicates perceived dangers of those groups' beliefs and/or practices to the evangelical
Christian community and presents Christian gospel
from an evangelical perspective to members of those groups. The organisation is based in Surrey
UK
. Reachout Trust produce articles on their website, publish books and booklets, and organise conferences.
newsletters. More recently, the organization has been consulted by the media in events relating to Satanism
., and the group Exclusive Brethren
The first Reachout Convention was held in New Malden Baptist Church in 1984. After that, it moved to Kingstanding Elim Church until 1991 when it was held at the Wycliffe Centre at High Wycombe. Having outgrown that venue, it moved in 1996 to the Pioneer Centre near Kidderminster. In 2008 it will again move to the more central location of Hothorpe Hall
, Leicestershire.
From a group of people at the first meeting, the organization has grown to over a hundred attending a full weekend of seminars. Seminars and workshops cover all the main religions the Reachout Trust considers cults, including he LDS Church and Jehovah's Witnesses
, but also other groups such as Freemasonry, as well as instruction in dealing with the occult and the New Age.
In 2002, David McKay of the group the Jesus Christians
contacted the Reachout Trust through a pseudonym
, in order to elicit a response which he could then utilize to manipulate the media. McKay's plan backfired, and the results were documented in an article in The Guardian
. Also in 2002, a member of the organization commented on the potential influence of the film Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
on young children, stating that it may influence children to explore the occult
. In 2004, the organization held a three-day conference in order to assist and consult with families affected by cults and the occult.
Other
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...
evangelical Christian organisation. Its stated aims are to "Examine in the light of the Christian gospel the beliefs and spirituality of people within the cult
Cult
The word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
s, occult
Occult
The word occult comes from the Latin word occultus , referring to "knowledge of the hidden". In the medical sense it is used to refer to a structure or process that is hidden, e.g...
s, new age
New Age
The New Age movement is a Western spiritual movement that developed in the second half of the 20th century. Its central precepts have been described as "drawing on both Eastern and Western spiritual and metaphysical traditions and then infusing them with influences from self-help and motivational...
and all not upholding to biblical truth."
Reachout Trust deals with many different groups including Jehovah's Witnesses
Jehovah's Witnesses
Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. The religion reports worldwide membership of over 7 million adherents involved in evangelism, convention attendance of over 12 million, and annual...
, the Latter Day Saint movement
Latter Day Saint movement
The Latter Day Saint movement is a group of independent churches tracing their origin to a Christian primitivist movement founded by Joseph Smith, Jr. in the late 1820s. Collectively, these churches have over 14 million members...
, and Christadelphians
Christadelphians
Christadelphians is a Christian group that developed in the United Kingdom and North America in the 19th century...
as well as the occult and New Age. Reachout Trust also produce information about other groups and religions and writes about various influential Christian figures (such as tele-evangelists and authors) and various groups within non-evangelical Christianity, such as Roman Catholicism.
Reachout Trust communicates perceived dangers of those groups' beliefs and/or practices to the evangelical
Evangelicalism
Evangelicalism is a Protestant Christian movement which began in Great Britain in the 1730s and gained popularity in the United States during the series of Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th century.Its key commitments are:...
Christian community and presents Christian gospel
Gospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
from an evangelical perspective to members of those groups. The organisation is based in Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
UK
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...
. Reachout Trust produce articles on their website, publish books and booklets, and organise conferences.
History
The organization was formed in 1982, under director Doug Harris. Their first newsletter produced in 1984, was four pages long and consisted of a few hundred photocopies. Today's Quarterly is sixteen pages and growing and goes out to several thousand individuals and churches across the country. This was later discussed further in La Fontaine's Speak of the Devil. In 1988 they published Awake! To the Watch Tower, later cited as a reference by Edwards and Crompton. Maureen Davies, formally of the Reachout Trust, was cited as a "reliable source of information." She also wrote a large section in one of the File 18File 18
File 18 was the title of a law enforcement newsletter published by Lt. Larry Jones of the Boise, Idaho police department and head of the Cult Crime Impact Network . Issue #1 was privately published on May 2, 1986....
newsletters. More recently, the organization has been consulted by the media in events relating to Satanism
Satanism
Satanism is a group of religions that is composed of a diverse number of ideological and philosophical beliefs and social phenomena. Their shared feature include symbolic association with, admiration for the character of, and even veneration of Satan or similar rebellious, promethean, and...
., and the group Exclusive Brethren
Exclusive Brethren
The Exclusive Brethren are a subset of the Christian evangelical movement generally described as the Plymouth Brethren. They are distinguished from the Open Brethren from whom they separated in 1848....
The first Reachout Convention was held in New Malden Baptist Church in 1984. After that, it moved to Kingstanding Elim Church until 1991 when it was held at the Wycliffe Centre at High Wycombe. Having outgrown that venue, it moved in 1996 to the Pioneer Centre near Kidderminster. In 2008 it will again move to the more central location of Hothorpe Hall
Hothorpe Hall
Hothorpe Hall, in Theddingworth, Leicestershire, is a Georgian manor house near Market Harborough. It was the birthplace of Simon Elwes. It is currently used as a conference centre.-History:...
, Leicestershire.
From a group of people at the first meeting, the organization has grown to over a hundred attending a full weekend of seminars. Seminars and workshops cover all the main religions the Reachout Trust considers cults, including he LDS Church and Jehovah's Witnesses
Jehovah's Witnesses
Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. The religion reports worldwide membership of over 7 million adherents involved in evangelism, convention attendance of over 12 million, and annual...
, but also other groups such as Freemasonry, as well as instruction in dealing with the occult and the New Age.
In 2002, David McKay of the group the Jesus Christians
Jesus Christians
Jesus Christians is a small Christian group that practices communal living and distributes Bible-based comics and books.-History:The group was started in New South Wales, Australia, by Dave and...
contacted the Reachout Trust through a pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
, in order to elicit a response which he could then utilize to manipulate the media. McKay's plan backfired, and the results were documented in an article in The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
. Also in 2002, a member of the organization commented on the potential influence of the film Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film)
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is a 2002 fantasy film directed by Chris Columbus and based on the novel of the same name by J. K. Rowling. It is the second instalment in the Harry Potter film series, written by Steve Kloves and produced by David Heyman...
on young children, stating that it may influence children to explore the occult
Occult
The word occult comes from the Latin word occultus , referring to "knowledge of the hidden". In the medical sense it is used to refer to a structure or process that is hidden, e.g...
. In 2004, the organization held a three-day conference in order to assist and consult with families affected by cults and the occult.
External links
Official links- Official Reachout Trust homepage
- Archives of the Reachout Trust homepage, as performed regularly by the UK Web Archiving ConsortiumUK Web Archiving ConsortiumThe UK Web Archiving Consortium is a consortium of six leading UK institutions working collaboratively on a pilot operation archiving selected UK websites...
Other
- Reachout Trust - SHIELDS, a response to Reachout Trust's work by the Scholarly & Historical Information Exchange for Latter-Day Saints