A Durham man has given a harrowing insight into life inside one of the UK's most notorious cults. John Everett was a member of the Jesus Fellowship Church - known more commonly as the Jesus Army - between 1977 and 1982.
Joining the 'white-hot' hub of the JFC, the New Creation Christian Community, members were made to sell their possessions - including former homes - and donate the proceeds to a central community trust fund. The cult, which is the focus of new BBC documentary Inside the Cult of the Jesus Army, claimed to offer a safe haven to members.
But the truth was far more sinister as children were caned with the birch and historic sexual abuse cases came to light after the death of leader Noel Stanton in 2009.
John said: "A lot of the bad press we had in the past focused on the fact children used to be rodded. They were given corporal punishment with the use of the birch twig. That was stopped in the 1990s but up until then we were taught if we spared the rod we would spoil the child.
"There were one or two occasions where I was present when some parents mercilessly caned their children. I think some parents saw it as a loving form of discipline. Inevitably, when that form of discipline is promoted there will be people who abuse it.
"It was all part of the culture that was created that allowed people to behave abusively and cover up their abuses because they were swept under the carpet of the leadership who wanted to convey the impression that the fellowship of the Jesus Army was a wonderful beacon to lost people within the world.
"The Jesus Army, as it became known, with all their combat jackets and brightly coloured double decker buses made a big play in the fact they were going out amongst the most vulnerable people in society to help them.
"But the aim of it all was that they should become members of the Jesus Fellowship - that was the way they were helped."
Despite members being allowed to have contact with their families outside, they were told they were not their real families.
John said: "His [Noel Stanton] suggestion was if we were more devoted to our actual family than the fellowship then we weren't true disciples of Jesus Christ. We kept limited contact with our families after articles appeared in the News of the World. For example we were encouraged to keep a bit closer contact to our families. This was purely to stave off further negative press.
"What we were taught was that our natural feelings were that we belonged to the family of God. My family didn't [raise concerns] but lots of families did.
"There was huge tension because of that. We didn't engage in any kind of worldly activity, there was no cinema, no theatre, no competitive sports, no music, nothing that had aspects of the world to it. There was no celebration of Christmas. Some people's natural family members found this incredibly difficult."
John said: "He also refused to let us engage in charitable work and said thousands and thousands of Christian money had been wasted supporting people starving children in Africa, which he said was the result of God's judgement. These things really hurt me."
John said Stanton was a "bad tempered, playground bully boy", adding: "He frequently lost his temper with people, he was coercive, he lied, and he didn't care that individuals were being harmed as long as they were fitting into their place as compliant pawns within his grand masterplan."
John was studying at university when Stanton asked him to write a thesis that would exonerate the community. But it was during his studies that he began to understand more of the mechanisms of a cult and realised the Jesus Army had "all the characteristics of a cult in our organisational DNA".
He added: "I was quite naïve, wanting a less materialistic lifestyle and something where people made sacrificial commitments to each other where people gave up their possessions. I thought this was the way of God and I truly believed that for several years. Because of that I swept all these doubts away."
John eventually left the cult but was warned by Stanton he would "face the judgement of God". In 1986, John moved to Durham to train to be a vicar at Durham University. It was then he suffered a devastating mental breakdown.
Now aged 68, John is retired and has written a book - War and Defeat - The Jesus Army and Fellowship Revisited - about his time in the cult. He dedicates his time to raising awareness about his time in the cult.
It was the death of Stanton in 2009 that ultimately caused the collapse of the cult which had been operating for four decades, as a new leadership took over the community which began a disclosure process so people could submit incidents of abuse. He said: "I think it was down to Noel Stanton refusing to relinquish control and he was an authoritarian. He was not going to allow it to crumble. It was not long after his death that things began to fall apart.
Northampton Police launched Operation Lifeboat in 2015 which led to the convictions of five members with two sent to prison.
