New allegations of sexual and domestic abuse made against Jesus Army cult
About 60 former members of the Jesus Army, a cult described as one of the most abusive in British history, have come forward with new allegations against the group, according to a lawyer representing claimants.
The cases range from allegations of sexual or domestic abuse to claims for unpaid work from women who served as “domestic sisters” in the cult, which at its peak in the mid-2000s had several thousand members, many of whom surrendered their assets to the leadership.
Married women living in the group’s many communal houses were required to work long hours, unpaid, and some lawyers believe they were treated as modern slaves. Some of the claimants also allege they reported abuse to the Jesus Army’s leadership, who failed to act.
Founded in Northampton in 1969 by Baptist pastor Noel Stanton, the group’s leadership controlled members’ finances and enforced strict rules, including banning Christmas, snacks and cinema outings.
The Jesus Army closed down about six years ago amid widespread allegations of abuse and a cover-up by the group’s leaders. A redress scheme has previously paid out compensation to more than 500 former members of the Jesus Army for sexual, physical and emotional abuse. The scheme, which was implemented by the trust and open from September 2022 to December 2023, identified 264 alleged perpetrators, of whom 61% held leadership positions in the church, and estimated that one in six children in the group were sexually abused.
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...-army-cult
About 60 former members of the Jesus Army, a cult described as one of the most abusive in British history, have come forward with new allegations against the group, according to a lawyer representing claimants.
The cases range from allegations of sexual or domestic abuse to claims for unpaid work from women who served as “domestic sisters” in the cult, which at its peak in the mid-2000s had several thousand members, many of whom surrendered their assets to the leadership.
Married women living in the group’s many communal houses were required to work long hours, unpaid, and some lawyers believe they were treated as modern slaves. Some of the claimants also allege they reported abuse to the Jesus Army’s leadership, who failed to act.
Founded in Northampton in 1969 by Baptist pastor Noel Stanton, the group’s leadership controlled members’ finances and enforced strict rules, including banning Christmas, snacks and cinema outings.
The Jesus Army closed down about six years ago amid widespread allegations of abuse and a cover-up by the group’s leaders. A redress scheme has previously paid out compensation to more than 500 former members of the Jesus Army for sexual, physical and emotional abuse. The scheme, which was implemented by the trust and open from September 2022 to December 2023, identified 264 alleged perpetrators, of whom 61% held leadership positions in the church, and estimated that one in six children in the group were sexually abused.
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...-army-cult
teachings of the Bible are so muddled and self-contradictory that it was possible for Christians to happily burn heretics alive for five long centuries. It was even possible for the most venerated patriarchs of the Church, like St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas, to conclude that heretics should be tortured (Augustine) or killed outright (Aquinas). Martin Luther and John Calvin advocated the wholesale murder of heretics, apostates, Jews, and witches. - Sam Harris, "Letter To A Christian Nation"
