Jonestown
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The Peoples Temple
Doctrine & Religious Beliefs
The Peoples Temple Church was formed on the basis of Christianity. They attached themselves to the Disciples of Christ denomination in Indianapolis, Indiana. They followed a version of the teachings of Jesus that was modified by their founder and leader, Jim Jones. They were people who had very high hopes for the world and Jim Jones promised to bring about social justice. Jim Jones and about 70 followers moved to California in 1965 to a safe place from nuclear war. They had 2 belief systems that were very close to one another:
Agnostic Humanism – love and care for human beings as a whole
Traditional Christianity – radical sharing and mutual support
Founders & Significant People
Rev. Jim Jones – Jim Jones was born on May 13, 1931 in Crete, Indiana and died on the 18th of November in 1978 in Jonestown, Guyana. He was the charismatic leader that brought people together and controlled the minds of over 1000 people for over 20 years.
Symbols & Rituals
Kool-aid – This is a main symbol that remains from this cult as it was the vehicle of death for everyone who committed the mass-murder suicide.
White-Nights – Practice for the ultimate mass-suicide where Jim Jones tested the faith of his followers.
Rites of Passage
Marriage – Their marriage ceremonies are very similar to the common day marriage with communal love and support.
The rest of the rites are all very low key and are supported by the entire community. All things that went on were handled by Jim Jones and he had the final say in everything to do with his followers and his utopian society.
Holy Days and Ceremonies
Since the Peoples Temple was affiliated with the Christian church they practiced the following Holy Days:
Christmas
Easter
As everything did in The Peoples Temple, each sacrament had a spin that would allow Jim Jones to gain a deeper hold onto the souls of his followers.
They held ceremonial “practice white-nights” in practice for the final white-night. The final white-night ended in 913 people dead. They committed suicide by drinking Flavor-Aid laced with potassium-cyanide and tranquilizers. Though most drank blindly after the person