God's Forever Family: The Jesus People Movement in America

by Larry Eskridge

Winner of the 2014 Christianity Today Book of the Year First Place Winner of the Religion Newswriters Association's Non-fiction Religion Book of the Year The Jesus People movement was a unique combination of the hippie counterculture and evangelical Christianity. It first appeared in the famed "Summer of Love" of 1967, in San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury district, and spread like wildfire in Southern California and beyond, to cities like Seattle, Atlanta, and Milwaukee. In 1971 the growing movement found its way into the national media spotlight and gained momentum, attracting a huge new following among evangelical church youth, who enthusiastically adopted the Jesus People persona as their own. Within a few years, however, the movement disappeared and was largely forgotten by everyone but those who had filled its ranks.God's Forever Family argues that the Jesus People movement was one of the most important American religious movements of the second half of the 20th-century. Not only do such new and burgeoning evangelical groups as Calvary Chapel and the Vineyard trace back to the Jesus People, but the movement paved the way for the huge Contemporary Christian Music industry and the rise of "Praise Music" in the nation's churches. More significantly, it revolutionized evangelicals' relationship with youth and popular culture. Larry Eskridge makes the case that the Jesus People movement not only helped create a resurgent evangelicalism but must be considered one of the formative powers that shaped American youth in the late 1960s and 1970s.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Religion, Church History, Christian, Theology, American History

400 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2013

Reviews

[Brian Eshleman · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author successfully makes the case that this was a pivotal, if brief, time and the cultural development of the United States. He delves into the currents to which the Jesus Movement was responding and outlines its compelling personalities. He manages to convey the enthusiasm and romanticism of the times without trying to score cool points with his own cynicism or trying to prove his bona fides by reporting nothing but good things. If God has called him to be a historian of this time, he fulfills that calling faithfully.

He generally manages to pace this story very well. He spends enough time in the early stages of the hippie movement in 1967 San Francisco that the bloom, as he puts it, begins to come off the rose. The reader sees beyond liberal and conservative currents and begins to see young people who need to be ministered to. Those who reach out are not superheroes, even in retrospect, and it seems as though they are more likely to reach out because God has brought them through their own challenges. Without turning his book into a gigantic tome, the author is able to survey the reaction of the Church today needs the hippies present, both the determination to reach out to fellow humans and the prideful repulsion. Sadly, one matron of the church reacts in horror to the opportunity to help a young runaway with no desire to have "THAT between my sheets." On the other hand, he gives plenty of examples of actual organized churches that serve as the genesis for outreach movements in these tumultuous times. The author does spend quite a bit of time on the extremes of the Children of God movement, and this will, at times, bog down the story he wants to tell.

He could have shifted some of the ink the Children off God got to a more developed ending covering the lasting impact of the Jesus Movement. Indeed, he does spend some time on the impact of the movement on dress and music in the current day, but even more would have been better.

[Jared Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb. Meticulously researched, exhaustively reported, and deeply insightful. Also incredibly and increasingly relevant to understanding modern evangelical history. Perhaps not for the reader with a casual interest in the Jesus People Movement -- it is long and stuffed with anecdotal minutiae -- the reader with real interest will probably find no better treatment of the subject. I loved it.

[RANGER · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great book in many ways; a bygone era and feel-good slice of nostalgia and missed opportunity

God's Forever Family is a history of the Jesus People movement and its impact on the Church and the United States. As a history it is comprehensive in the deep dives it takes. For this reason, this is a needful history of the movement and important. But taken as a whole, there are a few issues with it.

For those who do not know, the Jesus People Movement was a spiritual revival among American street people that began in one of the least likely places at one of the the least likely times: among the street characters, hippies, and drug addicts of 1965-67 San Francisco, California, USA. The revival morphed into the larger and more mainstream movement of Jesus People on College and High School Campuses in the later sixties and early seventies, and eventually invaded Church youth ministries and the larger American culture via music and film well into the mid-70s. Among its innovations were Jesus Rock and Folk, Jesus festivals, Christian Communes, Christian radio, Jesus Freaks, casual church services and home-grown worship music, art, drama, newspapers, and not a few outright cults. Most importantly, it was a movement characterized by pragmatic street evangelism.

Its influence is still felt to this day in the Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) industry, in the Mega-church movement, and among the thousands of lesser-known independent churches, fellowships and missionary activities that were spawned by former Jesus Freaks turned mainstream evangelicals in the 80s and 90s.

This book covers the key centers, events, and personalities of Jesus People revival throughout the US and the foreign enclaves in the UK, Australia, Germany, France, and Scandinavia. Many key leaders are identified and their place in the vast network that grew out of the California epicenter is mapped out. I like that this book had a lot of historical detail. But sometimes it talks around the topic instead of getting to the point. The portion on the Children of God is one such place. We never get too much detail on the doctrinal problems of the David Moses Berg cult, only seeing the movement in the context of its conflicts with the more orthodox wings of the revival.

There are a handful of other issues:
- It would have been nice to have an appendix entitled "Where are they now?" explaining what happened to the key people who shaped this revival.
- It would have been helpful to hear more about the church movements that grew out of this revival. We get a lot on Calvary Chapel and a bit on the Vineyard but that is all. There were/are many others. Praise Chapel, Christian Fellowship Ministries, New Hope Christian Fellowship, and others all deserve their own paragraph at least. They were not just copy-cats, although many Calvary Chapel people assume otherwise. And despite a comment in the book otherwise, many Calvinist/Reformed movements turned emergent Church, took their cues from the Jesus People.
- It would have been helpful to have a chapter speak about the strengths and weaknesses of the movement that have borne fruit (both Godly and rotten) over the last 40 years since the movement "disappeared." Among the strengths I would include pragmatic, aggressive evangelism, and an emphasis on spiritual gifts. Among the weaknesses are an over-emphasis on "communal" and para-church fellowships versus the local Church, a disinterest in serious mission-ology, and an emphasis on "do-your-own-thing" antinomianism instead of solid Christian discipleship and holiness. Those are my view. Others might have different conclusions... but they would be valuable to consider.

Finally, there are a lot of nostalgic and sentimental interviews with former participants. These are nice. But I was too young to experience the Jesus People movement. As a Christian pastor, I am the recipient of both the blessings of a revival that possibly saved our nation and revived the Church... and the curses of movement that set some bad precedents that hinder a follow-on revival in this generation. It's a mixed bag.

This book is recommended. As a Church history, this is an important and vital book. If you are a former Jesus Person, this will bring back some nice memories. If you are a regular, post-modern, American Christian, you should know that the Jesus People revival really happened. May God help us to see such a revival again... only more so, LORD!
And then COME QUICKLY, LORD JESUS!
Be blessed.

[Brittany · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating and helpful look into a movement dear to my heart. A little too detailed than necessary, I think, but I found the stories, photos, and accounts very interesting. What a wonderful move of God!

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Told from a historian's perspective, I enjoyed reading about a 30,000 foot view of pretty much every different aspect of the Jesus Movement. I was interested in this book as we attended for a few years a church that was a plant out of one of the original churches from the Jesus Movement and were blessed by it - truly marked by it in a highly positive way.

"The memory of the movement, or the movement's template, still lingers within the evangelical subculture, and an enduring hope abides that a new revival might spring up from among future generations coming of age within a culture that many believers feel has turned its back on God." (p. 284)

"...Just note this, I'm fifteen and I want the Jesus Movement again. I want it in my family. I want it in my family. I want it in the hall of my high school. My generation is crying for more...we need it here stronger than before, so strong, to be moved by Jesus; moved out of complacency, pride, religion, out of darkness. Don't once think the Jesus Movement is completely gone..." (p. 284)

[Anthony Locke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating dive into West Coast Christianity and into church history over the last 70 years. Listened to this because a friend said JMac recommended it to seminarians. Learned a lot about how the hippie/drug movement intersected with the Christian movement, most notably highlighting the role of music, communal living, and the rise of the come-as-you-are philosophy of ministry. Eskridge describes a series of movements in the book including the Jesus people, Children of God, and Calvary Chapel. This book, in part, helped me understand the culture of Christianity that my parents (and their friends) came from highlighting the origins and power of songs like Pass It On.

[Aaron Irlbacher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating history. The modern cultural relevance of the Jesus People Movement is incredible. Read this book, and learn about an important cultural and Spiritual force that has impacted your life.

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely fascinating.

[Scott Jeffries · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I was in college, a "revival" broke out on our campus, at least that is what the papers told us. The word spread among fellow Christians, and people started traveling from all over the state to be a part of our movement. A handful of our students were being asked to come to other college campuses and churches to testify to the movement of God among our young people. We heard reports of lives being changed at these spots where the testimonies were given. Still, I saw very little change in my own observations of campus life and those I associated with.

What exactly was I looking for that I wasn't seeing in my experience? Frankly, what I wanted to see was something that looked similar to what is described in Larry Eskridge's book God's Forever Family. This book is one of kind, a thorough and historical look at the Jesus People Movement of the late 1960's and early 70's. If you are not familiar with this movement, think Hippies who are Born Again but refuse to shed some their Hippie characteristics.

The most moving and inspiring parts of Eskridge's book are the stories of transformation in individual lives that then caused a ripple effect of drawing others to the same kind of life. There is Lonnie Frisbee, a drugged out and freaked out Hippie on the streets of San Francisco who gets taken in by a small group of Hippie Christians. Later, Frisbee just happens to land in Southern California and meets Chuck Smith and together they help spark a growth in young people coming to the Lord that is still felt today. There is the story of a Baptist logger, John Breithaupt, and his family moving from rural Washington to Seattle to serve the Lord. Eventually, this "straight" befriends Hippie young people and starts a "House of Zaccheus" where 20 or so Hippies could live, grow in their faith, and minister to other young people. This humble effort led to one of the strongest segments of the Jesus People movement in the Northwest.

There seemed to be very little that could stop young people from coming to the Lord. Eskridge provides little explanation for young hippies suddenly showing up at the local Baptist church. In the early stages of the Jesus movement, the only explanation was the movement of the Holy Spirit. It wasn't programs. In fact, in some cases, the resistance from church goers to the benefits of reaching out to young people was very strong. Yet, these spiritually hungry kids were not to be deterred and they always seemed to bring others with them.



The Jesus Movement seemed to be marked by four characteristics - complete infatuation with Jesus , a hunger for God's word, a desire to live out the faith in community, and a desire to evangelize. Eskridge doesn't flesh these out as he sees his role as a recorder of what happened. He also wants to emphasize the impact and influence the movement had on the church as it progressed towards the end of the 20th century.

I am so grateful for this book for it reminds me that great movements of God are not limited to the distant past or only a limited type of person. I also appreciate Eskridge's balancing act between the historical and sociological need to cover this moment in time with obvious joy in telling one of the most colorful, whimsical, and inspiring stories of Western Christianity. The chapter on the Children of God and its conflict with other Jesus People groups, though dark and disconcerting, reads like a psychological suspense thriller. Eskridge obviously had fun with that one.

What happened at my college in the 1990s should not be overlooked or ridiculed, though I have done both. God did work during that time but it was not a revival or a movement; God's Forever Family showed me that. The Jesus People Movement was messy, unorganized, and suffered from naivety and lack of sophistication but it was rich with Jesus and his love, mercy, and transformation. The movement was grassroots and unexpected, much like Jesus himself.

Oh, come Jesus,

take your place with the young

and searching today.

Work in your unexpected ways

among unexpected people.

This is where you seem to work best.

[Steve Watson · Rating 3 out of 5]

First, what I didn't like.

Eskridge took a fascinating topic, and in the second half of the book, lost my interest. Perhaps it's important to take a chapter and focus it on the rise of the Contemporary Christian Music Industry, for instance. I don't know. But the fading years of the Jesus movement likely have more interesting stories and plot lines than what Eskridge provides. The dissolution of various groups into financial disasters or cults is fascinating, but needs a more interesting storyline to tie it together. And I've got to think there are tensions in mid 70s and 80s between keeping the idealism of the movement alive, cultural conformity, and burnout that could get more attention.

Instead, I feel like Eskridge is trying to explain how the Jesus Movement led more seamlessly than we'd think to the rise of conservative evangelicalism in the 70s and 80s and is trying to cheer that storyline on. One, I don't entirely root for that story, and two, it's a heck of a lot more complicated than is discussed here. Where's the story around race and segregation? Where's the discussion of how much the Jesus People boomers lost when they burned out on this era and went conservative? Where's the analysis of what groups like the Vineyard (given almost no attention here) were up to in trying - in some sense - to extend the Jesus People years, or at least aspects of them?

I love the short anecdote Eskridge ends on of the 15-year old child of Jesus people who fills out her parents survey for herself and wants another era of fresh encounter with Jesus in her time and culture. And it's some of that same spirit that draws me to this era and helps me appreciate other aspects of the history told here so much.

The Jesus People movement is characterized as broadly evangelical (Bebbington's definition of bibliocentric, conversionist, crucicentric, and activist). (77) Then the leading features of the Jesus movement are described:
-its miraculous world (80)
-its apocalyptic orientation (85)
-its communal tendencies (87)
-its come as you are culture (89)
-its home in, and use of, (if also sometimes rebellion from) popular culture (90)

So much of that is compelling to me and I long for a movement with some of these qualities embedded in our own culture, just as some of the Jesus People's qualities that may have been part of its undoing are cautionary to me:
-its wholesale acceptance of fundamentalist theology and Bible interpretation, which drove it inward and away from culture
-its abuses of leadership and trust, which created unhealthy communities
-its unsustainable intensity

Lots of food for thought for a pastor......

[Todd Wilhelm · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good overall history of the Jesus People movement. I graduated from high school in 1976 so the movement was winding down in my formative years, but much of the music that came out of that movement was loved by me and my friends. It was interesting to read about all the artists I used to listen to - Chuck Girard and Love Song, Oden Fong and Mustard Seed Faith, Phil Keaggy, Paul Clark, Andre Crouch, Barry McGwire and Larry Norman.

The book dragged in parts, but I guess it's hard to avoid that when you are writing about what happened when.

"This study argues that the Jesus People movement is one of the most significant American religious phenomena of the postwar period."
(p. 7).

"The Jesus People’s taste for simple, folk-based melodies and scriptural passages in their corporate worship has had a profound impact on the worship of American evangelical congregations. The minstrels of the Jesus People movement were major architects of what has become known as praise and worship music."
(p. 8).

"By the time he hit Huntington Beach, Berg claimed he was “so bitter against the churches for their hypocritical, do-nothing religion, their multi-million dollar Gospel entertainment business, and their multi-billion dollar fancy church buildings” that he was “ready to declare war on the Church System!”"
(p. 66).

"IN THE WAKE of nationwide publicity in both the secular and religious press, the Jesus People showed up in nearly every corner of the United States in the early 1970s. In the process, it was transformed from being a religious expression of the counterculture to a widespread evangelical youth culture of choice. While the movement continued to make converts among the remnants of the counterculture and drug culture— providing the necessary streetwise bona fides and color for the movement— increasingly, the Jesus People’s demographic became younger and more middle class."
(p. 145). O

[Faith · Rating 4 out of 5]

It has been a while since I've read a more recent history book and it was an interesting experience to read about my parent's generation when they were my age and also about a movement that in many ways made evangelical Christianity (the tradition I grew up in) what it is today. Particularly evangelical youth culture has been greatly changed by the sixties and seventies, something I had hardly realized. Things in the book seem both familiar and strange, just yesterday and eons ago.

The author does a good job supporting his argument that the Jesus People were an important religious movement across the Untied States, though he sometimes gets mired a bit in the details. Certainly the first and last chapters are the most interesting- covering the beginnings of the movement and its ongoing impact. The one critique I would have is that the book is too male centered. The majority of leaders for the Jesus People (like other evangelicals) were men and so in some ways it makes sense Eskridge would focus on them, but the women that made the movement possible get lost in some places. It's also unclear how patriarchal the Jesus People were, a question that the author seems unable to answer. Part of this may be that the majority of his survey participants were men, which either reflects a male majority community or just that they happened to be the ones that took the survey. The question of gender and women's roles is certainly something that should be searched out more.

[Sir Michael Röhm · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent look into the origins, spread, and demise of the Jesus Movement, and the effect that it had on American evangelical Christians.

Largely forgotten now, the Jesus Movement was a series of evangelistic outreaches to the 60s counterculture. These outreaches often popped up independently across the country, suggesting more at work than just human effort (hint hint), and it reached a large number of kids disillusioned with the realities of hippie life, but desirous to still positively change society.

The movement forever changed American evangelical culture, and quite possibly was partially responsible for both Carter and Reagan, as well as the 80s Moral Majority.

The Jesus Movement itself largely died off because of the rise of the "Me Generation" and the death of the hippies as a whole, but its impact was tremendous.

Definitely worth reading, and worth investigating in further depth.

[Chris Schutte · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent book chronicling the Jesus movement of the late-60s / early-70s

[Joel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Connected a lot of dots for me. This is a pretty thorough look at the movement.

[Brian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Did you know that your Christianity was heavily influenced by a bunch of couples in California in the 1960s doing LSD evangelism?

There is a huge chasm between the 1600s and 1900s, and right in the center of that transformation stand the Jesus People and how they reworked Evangelical Christianity for the hippie movement of the 1960s.

The author, Larry Eskridge, wrote this book over ten years ago, and so reading it today comes with multiple emotional layers for me, since the word "Evangelical Christian" brings a lot of positive and negative baggage with it.

Eskridge was the perfect man to write this book, since he had an affection for the Jesus People movement when it first came out, and so he writes as both an insider who understood the motivations of the people involved and as a professional historian.

For ordinary readers, the narrative focused chapters (mostly at the beginning but some interesting stuff on cults towards the end) will bear the most interest. The first chapter tracks a commune of four married couples who, as aforementioned, did LSD. That doesn't do them justice though. They had a clear doctrine of sin and they sincerely, oh so sincerely, tried to follow Acts 2 and spend day-in and day-out having long-haired hippies in their homes. Among others, they had Charles Manson in their midst (he didn't stay long).

They were naive. The book in many ways is a good case study for what can go wrong when young people get together in a commune with no worries about sacrificing family on the altar of outreach. To take one famous example, Lonnie Frisbee, a real preacher of the Gospel (I've seen the clips), had trouble with his marriage, and when his wife went to Chuck Smith, she claims he said that her concerns were insignificant in the light of the work that Lonnie was doing. Wut?

Similarly, the communalist living crashed in all the predictable ways. Further, while the Jesus People believed in the Bible, they seem to have had a very thin knowledge of the Bible, given how they often were vulnerable to cults. Obviously, that's to begin to evaluate the movement, but I can't help it; the Jesus People are family. My mom was saved in the wake of the Jesus People movement. My dad was discipled in its culture, and I experienced the vibe, largely through the music and pop culture that came out of it. Thought I didn't listen to Michael Smith or even Keith Green, I did experience Michael Card, VeggieTales, Steve Greene, and much of the conversion-centric vibe. As I listened to Eskridge, I found myself nodding my head, saying, "Yep, yep, I remember that."

The saddest thing about reading this book is that you can see the creation of all the social and mental habits that would create so-called Big Eva--the tendency to emotionalism, with a dash of Pentecostalism; the naive activism which then was improperly transferred to politics; and the need to accommodate the Gospel to American culture in such a way that it took out Evangelicalism's backbone.

But underneath that, despite all the naivete of the original Jesus People, there was a beating heart that recognized that whether someone had a personal relationship with Jesus was the most important part of a person's life and wanted to get that in front of as many people as possible as clearly and simply as possible. And then wanted to disciple men and women to just love each other. All of these impulses are so attractive.

It's clear in a negative world where Christianity is a minority religion that courage, hard-headedness, and common sense are absolute must-haves for Christians right now. They always have been. The Jesus People option is not enough. The only way a community can survive is if it can say "no" to wolves and to disobedient sheep. Many Evangelicals are aware of this, but not, I fear, the majority.

And yet, we cannot do Christianity outside of our times and context. Even as I look at the failure of Evangelical Christianity to create a cohesive culture, I still remember with fondness the fact that every church I attended has been a believing church, that the Gospel was proclaimed, that people did want to help, even if they didn't know how.

In the closing chapter, Eskridge points to how the Jesus People made young people more sexually and politically conservative than they were before. It's a moving testament, and I hope that the best of this movement can be taken forward.

[Jonathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This has all the marks of well-written history (I say this as a historian myself): carefully researched, logically organised, simply expressed; explaining, not just recounting. It is thought-provoking, not just with regard to what happened then but also to what’s happening now. It is grounded in memory and contemporary reports. Eskridge recognises the pitfalls of memory, but what better source is there at a distance of 40+ years, when the events have faded but the actors are (mostly) still alive?

The general plan is chronological, but there are also thematic chapters that focus on different phases of the movement’s evolution: coffeehouses, music, etc. The most fascinating accounts are the earliest manifestations in California: the weed-smoking beatniks preaching Jesus in Haight-Ashbury to the bemusement of street people and local churches; the first attempts at communal living; the early connections between San Francisco and Los Angeles; the sudden, surprising influx of hippies into straight little Calvary Chapel in Costa Mesa.

The theme that comes through most forcefully is that this was a true revival, along the lines of the 18th century Great Awakening in New England, with the highs and lows of any such revival. The lows were the naivety of its apocalypticism and communal living; the ease with which enthusiasm led to accepting unorthodox beliefs (they can’t be wrong because they’re so committed!), the wholesale relegation of women to the kitchen and childcare. The high was that many lives were changed for the better, even rescued from self-destruction.

Eskridge emphasises both how strong the movement was, and how short its heyday was: about five years, 1968-1973. The question that hangs in the air at the end of the book is: Where did the movement go? Eskridge touches on several possible answers: it was absorbed into the larger church; it shifted its energies into right wing politics; its music became Contemporary Christian; its format became Seeker-friendly mega-churches; it simply grew up and had kids of its own. Each of these is a partial answer.

I suspect that the answer to why it did not have a more lasting impact lies in its end-times eschatology and charismatic-pietist emphasis on inner spiritual life. This gave it no culture-changing focus of its own, and allowed its energies to be coopted by the Religious Right at the end of the 70s; by men like Jerry Falwell who never sympathised with the hippies anyway, and who offered a respectable anti-establishment alternative —conservative activism centred on opposition to abortion— to former counter-culture people now approaching middle age. This suspicion is based on my own experiences with the incipient Religious Right in the late 70s, and makes me interested in reading a book that Eskridge mentions (p 282): Preston Sturges’s Hippies of the Religious Right (Baylor U. Press, 2007).

[Anthony VENN-BROWN OAM · Rating 5 out of 5]

As I read God's Forever Family: The Jesus People Movement in America, memory cells ignited like fireworks on New Year’s Eve. Being born in 1951, born again in 1969 and moving into Pentecostalism pretty well immediately, God’s Forever Family, was a delightful trip down memory lane.

The hippie movement was not as big in Australia as the USA but happened none the less. You can find a picture of me with beads, a tie dye shirt and ostrich feather out of my second-hand army hat on Facebook to prove it. It was soon after that picture was taken in 1968 that I became a Christian.

Reading Eskridge’s work brought back memories of all the things we copied here in Australia from the Jesus Revolution. The movement was an inspiration to young enthusiastic Christians such as myself. The news reports (front cover of Time magazine no less), the Jesus People paraphernalia, the music, publications, key speakers and influencers had all crossed the Pacific. The evangelistic zeal and activities, fuelled by the urgency of the imminent second coming of Jesus, remained for years. Like many of that era, I too followed a call into a full-time ministry, living by faith.

God’s Forever Family is much more than an historical record, as excellent as that is, it gives us insights and observations that can only be made from thorough research. The author takes us through all the significant events and introduces us to the groups and individuals that made the Jesus movement such an important and influential phenomenon.

In my research for my current book on gay conversion therapy, I’ve read several books about this era but Eskridge’s work stands out. It is superior in many ways. Not only for the quality content but also for the fact that it is very readable. Something not always found in works such as this.

If you weren’t there, you’ll have a good understanding of how that era influenced your now in the Christian world. If, like me, you were there, you’ll not only realise how much of your past has been buried in the inner recesses of your memory but be warmed by the flow of the pleasant memories God’s Forever Family awakens.

Anthony Venn-Brown
Author of A Life of Unlearning

[Ruben Cervantes Jr · Rating 5 out of 5]

I tried to skim through this. I mean the font is so small and it's nearly 400 pages. But, I just had to read it the way an author wishes all readers would. Being that I have only recently began to study about the Jesus People Movement, I simply couldn't put this down. It was meticulously well written and surprisingly easy to read even though it was reformatted from a ph.d dissertation. It was fascinating to see details into the birth of the JPM. This book offers a comprehensive look into the inception, growth, messiness, and fading away of this remarkable time in history.

I was particularly fixated on how it all started in the San Francisco Bay Area with Ted & Elizabeth Wise and John Macdonald. Wow, it was a messy beginning. It really gave me a new lens to appreciate how God is not thrown off by the package we all come in. Sure we learn ways to try to appropriate scriptural values and turn them into virtues to embrace. But, this book shows God's patience and grace in giving people who were dead in their sins the time to be washed by word. All throughout this remarkable story that Eskridge carefully tells using abundant credible sources, you cannot help but begin to wonder how God will do it again. He seems to be among the marginalized.

Though gross and discouraging, it was also helpful to see how even a good thing can be corrupted by pride, lust, greed, etc. The "Children of God" are spoken of in detail along with the happenings of the Shiloh communes. Even the helpful understanding on how the shepherding movement, though birthed with good intentions, also afflicted converts.

The Jesus movement influenced the music scene in a remarkable way and this book goes into detail describing how. Of course, he references the 800+ surveys that were gathered to communicate his findings. If you like that kind of data, you will find it here. I was more impressed with his sheer understanding of all the details. This is a great resource.

[Радостин Марчев · Rating 5 out of 5]

Чудесно документирана и увлекателно написана история, която с пълно право печели награда на Cristianity today book awards.
От една страна книгата ми напомни времето от 90-те години когато на някои места в България преживяхме нещо, поне в някои отношения, наподобяващо Jesus movement - множество млади хора, които се обръщат към християнството, войните за музикален стил на поклонение в църквите, създаване на един неофициален, но съвсем искрен и реален младежки екуменизъм и идеализъм и т.н. Спомням си как изведнъж открихме, че съществува такова нещо като "християнски рок" и как копирахме на ксерокс обложките на касети (от двете страни опитвайки се да ги напаснем доколкото можем). Спомням си също за първите си срещи с т. нар. "Деца на Бога" в морската градина във Варна ентусизирано раздаващи цветни листовки - една от тъмните страни на Jesus movement, които за щастие не успяха да постигнат в България почти никакъв успех.
От друга мисля, че авторът е напълно прав, че движението, считано понякога за кратък феномен в американската история, всъщност е оказало много значимо въздействие върху евангелската субкултура в световен (или поне в западен) мащаб. Коренната промяна на хвалебния стил в църквите е едно от най-очевидното доказателство, но нещата отиват по-дълбоко. Ескридж проследява връзката на Jesus movement с движения като Calvary Chapel и Vinyard от една страна, а от друга с появата на "служби за търсещи" и феномени като Willow Creek Saddleback, които оказват огромно влияние върху целия евангелски свят.
Влиянието на всички тези фактори в момента оказват силно влияние върху евангелския пейзаж в България и то в повече от едно направления. В този смисъл Jesus movement съвсем не е чисто американска християнска форма на хипи движение - то е съвсем реално свързано и с България.
Силно препоръчително четиво.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

I knew enough about the Jesus People movement (having grown up in the tail end of it in evangelical churches in Southern California) to know that a "based on a true story" movie about it ("Jesus Revolution") would be glossing over some of the rough edges... so, on the recommendation of John Fea (evangelical historian at Messiah University), I sought out God's Forever Family.

It's a well-written and detailed work about the origin(s) and life of the Jesus People movement - and I appreciate the emphasis on the various hotbeds of activity separate from SoCal. At the same time, it's a cautionary tale about the way those of us who are devoted to Jesus can whipsaw from one extreme "theological" or praxis position to another: premillenial dispensationalism, bandwagon relevancy, the Shepherding movement, etc.

Recommended for those who are interested in the topic.

[Zak Schmoll · Rating 4 out of 5]

A while back I had been looking into the origins of CCM, so the next logical step was to consider the influences on CCM which brings you back into the Jesus People movement. The author does a good job trying to incorporate the big picture. A great deal of good came out of this movement, and tons of people came to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. At the same time, the author does not romanticize this movement as some kind of Christian utopia. Just like every Christian movement, it had problems, largely due to personality, disorganization, and naivety. The author did a pretty good job reserving judgment and just trying to paint a picture of the past. If you are interested in this part of Christian history, this is a good, accessible read.

[Elizabeth Ziegenfus · Rating 5 out of 5]

A deep dive into the Jesus People Movement. This academic work is rich in details drawn from interviews, surveys, and primary sources from the period. Eskridge demonstrates that the Jesus People were not a passing fad, instead, the movement significantly impacted evangelical Protestantism in ways that are still felt today.

[John Benzing · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s definitely comprehensive and it tends to rely on anecdotes, but it ties in a lot of disparate actors and actions. It’s a bit longer than it needs to be as it repeats items that should be handled by better organization (it appears to be cobbled together in parts). It serves its purpose in exploring the beginnings right to the end of Jesus People (if it did end).

[Madison Lessard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another school book! This was a detailed exploration of a movement that supposedly had a heavy impact on modern evangelicalism. The author makes a convincing case for the lasting influence of the Jesus People.

[Nate · Rating 5 out of 5]

Academic and sympathetic exploration of the Jesus movement. Argues persuasively that they changed American evangelicalism profoundly and hindered the impact of the sexual revolution which was otherwise devastating American youths.

[Micah · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good history

It seems that many Christian youth workers are unaware of the role that the “Jesus People” movements plays in our shared history. This is an excellent history of the highs, lows and impact of the movement.

[Austin Fry · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is what it is—a history of the Jesus People movement, it’s branches, and influence on evangelicalism. The most fascinating products are noticing evidences of their influence in what many local churches still do today.

[Matt Moran · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful treatment of a fascinating subject.

This is not only as deep a dive as you will find into the Jesus People movement, it is also provides numerous insights into modern American evangelical culture.

This book was obviously extensively researched and feels like a true labor of love.

[Patrick Schlabs · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a helpful overview of the history and impact of the Jesus Movement. My parents came to faith in the later years of the movement and it was enlightening to learn a bit more about something that’s had a major influence on me and the broader church.