INSIDE THE JESUS CULT

ROUTE TO FREEDOM

Source : 21/09/1986 Sunday Mirror

A secret 'resistance' movement has been set up to help disillusioned cult followers escape from the clutches of the Jesus Fellowship. Several members have already got away through the underground network.

The 'freedom fighters', with the exception of the network's leader - an ex-cult member - don't want to be named for fear of jeopardising the escape route. But the Sunday Mirror can reveal that the network has an insider in the Fellowship.

One of the most dramatic recent escapes involved a girl in her late teens. Explained one of the network team members: 'She arrived on my doorstep in a terrible state. She was frightened to death that the Elders would find her.

'I drove her to a safe place to stay the night. This poor girl was trembling with fear and sobbing.'

At his home, the network's leader, said he aimed to set up a 'safe house' for escapees when they want to leave the sect. They're filled with doubts,' he said.

'It isn't a physical fear of being forcibly kept within the community, but a psychological one. They've been told that everyone on the outside is dammed.'