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Formed: 1978 Established: 1980
Jesus Christians
Sydney, New South Wales,
Australia
(mostly based in the Sydney area, but do travel around the country in a decked out bus.)
Los Angeles, California,
United States
(teams travel around the country in RVs and pickups with campers.)
London,
United Kingdom
(We move frequently, and also travel in campers.)
Nairobi,
Kenya
(Large permanent base in a rural village, which teaches English to thousands of school students each week, using local and international volunteers. Accommodation and meals provided for all live-in volunteers. No formal qualifications needed to help with reading program.)
 We have been operating as a community for more than 25 years. Our community grew out of an experiment with literal obedience to the teachings of Jesus. Although we don't fit into any neat category, we have often been referred to as Christian anarchists. We keenly support much that Leo Tolstoy wrote about the "kingdom of heaven'. Because we believe that attitudes toward money are fundamental in all human relationship, "living in community" for us means "common ownership." There is a strong Quaker connection, with our co-founders being members of the unprogrammed Quakers in Australia.
No member of our community works for money, and we generally live a very frugal lifestyle. Many of our members are fregans, living largely off things that the rest of society throws away.
The community is now widely spread, over four or five continents, even though the membership is still very small. This means that 'teams' may only consist of two or three members in a given location, although the community is, by comparison, quite large in Kenya, with provisions for twenty or more volunteers in the one compound.
 
Website: http://jesuschristians.com
Contact:
Dave
Box A678
Sydney South, New South Wales 1235 Australia
Phone: +61-(0)2-9699-8647
Send an Email
Jesse
124-L, 5221 West 102nd Street
Los Angeles, California 90045 United States
Phone: 310-367-0983
Send an Email
Roland
Box 580
Guildford, GU1 1GR United Kingdom
Phone: +44-(0)7803-893-527, +44-(0)7968-633-385
Send an Email
Christine
Box 17
Shinyalu, Western District 50107 Kenya
Phone: +254-(0)735-890-876, +254-(0)723-349-354
Send an Email
Jeremy
141-F Pelham Drive #252
Colombia, South Carolina 29209 United States
Phone: 310-488-1754
Send an Email
Links:
http://cust.idl.net.au/fold/
Former/Other Names: Christians, Rappville Christians, Medowie Christian Volunteers, Voices in the Wilderness, The Australians
Last Updated:3/19/2008
 
Visitors Accepted
 (Visitors are generally expected to participate in all group activities and to stay for a maximum of one week. The Quaker Community in Kenya (Takatifu Gardens) is an exception. Volunteers can stay on indefinitely, as long as they contribute to the work of the community and conform with other disciplines of the community.)
Visitor Process: Visitors should email us, specifying which location is most convenient for them. They should also visit our website (and/or request printed information about our beliefs), and then give us some indication that they understand something about what we believe and teach. Nothing quite takes the place of a personal encounter, but it could be a waste of everyone's time if we do not have a fair bit in common before you arrive. The new community in Kenya is an exception with regard to visitors/volunteers. As long as we have accommodation, and as long as visitors are contributing to the various volunteer projects of the community, they will be able to stay on indefinitely. This community, in rural Kenya, represents a radical departure from the stricter requirements on people who stay on as members/disciples in the other communities.
Population
Adult Members:
25
Child Members:
1
Non-member Residents:
10
(Non-members usually only stay for a maximum of a week at a time, except in Kenya, where there is accommodation for up to 20 volunteers at any one time.)
Open to new adults:
Yes
Open to new children:
Yes
Gender Balance:
67% M 33% F
Ethnic Diversity:
20% identify as 'people of color'
(There is a higher African percentage amongst 'volunteers' because our volunteer base is located in Kenya.)
Age Focus:
Young Adults
(We find that young adults are more open to the radical lifestyle and sometimes rigorous living conditions.)
Age Restrictions:
No
Government
Decision Making:
By consensus
(theoretically it is by vote, but in practice most decisions are arrived at by concensus)
Identified Leader:
Yes
(Some bases have long-term leaders and others select a new leader each week/month. Selection is generally by concensus.)
Leadership Core Group:
No
(not really. People who have been members longer usually have more influence, but there is no official governing body, and new members have as much say in decision making as anyone else.)
Labor and Money
Financial Style:
100% income sharing
(All income is shared in common, although various bases continue to experiment with small rewards as a form of pocket-money. All basic needs, however, are met from the communal purse. Visitors are asked not to use private funds while staying with us, so that they can experience more deeply what it means to be partakers of the common purse.)
Open to Members with Pre-existing Debt:
Yes
(Consider, yes, but no guarantees that we would accept them. We would look for ways for them to erase their debts before joining.)
Labor Contribution:
Expected
(We believe in 'plurking', which does not distinguish between play and work. By concensus we may agree to have certain periods of 'free time', but often even games are part of the daily schedule. We tend to work fairly hard, but do take into consideration how much each person is capable of.)
Join Fee:
Yes
(New members forsake all that they own when they join, and they do not get it back if they decide to leave later. Visitors pay nothing to stay with us, and if they want to contribute something towards their stay, we encourage them to do it at the END of their visit, so that neither party will feel obligated.)
Regular Fees:
Yes
(We regularly share all that we have with each other. We all have equal say over how money is spent, however, so that no one goes without, and no one has unchecked access to the common funds.)
Land and Buildings
Other
(We are a Christian outreach community, and, as such, we feel that we need to be where the masses are. However, the Kenyan community is rural. It is able to reach via 4WD dozens of schools in that area of western Kenya.)
Area:
7.4 acres (3.0 hectares)
(We only own land in Kenya, which is being used as a permaculture experiment as well as accommodation for a team of volunteers who will undertake projects in the larger community, including an anti-litter campaign, and volunteer English teaching in 35 Quaker schools in the immediate vicinity.)
Land Owned By:
Other
(We do not own land (apart from the Kenya experiment (see above). We rent houses when members choose to stay in buildings. However, vehicles are registered in the names of long-standing members. The land in Kenya is presently in the name of two of our longest term members there, but it may be signed over to a committee in 2009, when we hope to move on to start another such community.)
Number of Residences:
3
(We rent a one-bedroom flat in Sydney, and own land and buildings in Kenya (Takatifu Gardens). The land includes nine separate bedrooms, several outdoor toilets, and a two-room mud hut with an adjoining kitchen. We have a large hall which is being used as a restaurant for the general public as well as a meeting room for ourselves.)
Cohousing:
No
Food, etc.
Percentage of Food Grown:
6-20%
(small permaculture farm in Kenya, with fish pond going in, late 2006. Other bases are urban and do virtually no farming.)
Share Community Meals:
Nearly all meals
(Lunches are often eaten on the road, depending on what is happening during the day.)
Dietary Choice or Restrictions:
Diet is up to each individual
(We try to accommodate genuine issues of conscience or health needs. However, in general, we encourage people to be flexible, especially with regard to the needs of visitors.)
Dietary Practice:
Omnivorous
(We have a few vegetarians and tend to eat less meat than most members of the public.)
Alcohol Use:
Used occasionally
(In Kenya, because we work with Quakers who are total abstainers, there is no alcohol allowed. Elsewhere, however, limit of two drinks twice a week except under special circumstances.)
Tobacco Use:
Seldom used
(We do not ban tobacco, but most new members eventually lose interest in smoking. marijuana and other illegal substances are banned.)
Social Factors
Open to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and/or Transgender members:
Yes
(perhaps "no" is a more correct tick, but it could be misleading. We teach sexual abstinence for all but married (heterosexual) members, although we have tried to listen sympathetically to issues as understood by gay friends/members)
Shared Spiritual Path:
Yes
(It centers around the teachings of Jesus, but varies from individual to individual, especially in the light of our understanding of sincerity (i.e. "walking in the Light that each person has discerned from their own conscience".)
Which Spiritual Path(s):
Other
(A few members are practicing (unprogrammed) Quakers, but the primary emphasis is sincerity, based on Jesus' attitude toward such people as the Good Samaritan. We have a background of fundamentalism and protestantism which gives an interesting accent to our Christian anarchist stance at the moment.)
Educational Style(s):
Home schooling
 
 


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