SOS Monthly Newsletter - October 2007

Berkeley Protest Generates Big Publicity

Dear Christian friends,

The three outreaches we did in Berkeley during the Summer of Love/SOS outreaches led to a tiny protest by 4 or 5 vendors on August 22. This protest generated tremendous publicity in the local media, including newspaper articles in the San Francisco Chronicle, the Oakland Tribune, the Berkeley Daily Planet, the Valley Times, and other papers and radio stations. The Chronicle article, which covered more than half a page of the Sunday paper, was the most vicious. I wrote the following letter to the editor in response:

“Editor-- Religious and racial stereotyping are not generally tolerated by responsible journalists. Apparently, however, anti-Christian bigotry is still permitted. Your article “Loud Enough to Raise the Dead” (Sept. 1) was a prime example.

“Mr. Reed makes sweeping generalizations about us based solely on an interview with one angry person: ‘These fire-and-brimstone-spewing clowns are force-feeding their version of redemption to whoever crosses their sidewalk-blocking paths....Crazies are a part of street life. But they’re usually unamplified....He and his colleague apostles are just annoying the hell out of everyone.’

“I graduated from Yale and was active in the 1960’s Berkeley scene. Our ministry seeks to present the gospel in a culturally relevant manner using contemporary music. One artist who sang with us last month has sold over a million albums and won a Dove award for best new artist. We provide intelligent reasons for faith in Jesus and welcome debate. We obtain permits for all our events and try to keep our volume as low as possible. Over the past 20 years, city officials frequently monitored our sound, finding no violations.

“We welcome constructive criticism, but this was an ignorant hit piece. Does Mr. Reed believe that everyone who seeks to obey Jesus’ command to preach the gospel is ‘crazy’ or a ‘clown’? Perhaps if he had actually observed one of our outreaches, he might have thought differently.”

As of today, the San Francisco Chronicle has not published my letter. After receiving a call from KGO-TV asking about our next Berkeley outreach, I decided to cancel the September 8 outreach there. I was concerned that the publicity would put too much pressure on the city to deny or restrict our future permits. Please pray that this will not happen.

On the Streets

Ten Christians from the Lord’s Ranch, a Christian discipleship ranch in Spokane, stayed at our house and witnessed with us during the SOS outreach. They brought Andy with them, a homeless man they had been ministering to. After the outreach, Tim brought Andy back with him to Morgan Hill. His home church, Church of the Valley, got him a trailer to live in and helped him find work as an auto mechanic.

We had also witnessed to Barry during the SOS outreach. He committed his life to Christ three days later and was staying with the Homeless Church, but their house was full. We met him at Powell and Market again on August 31 and helped him find a place to stay at River of Life Church’s discipleship house.

On September 1, the Bay Bridge was closed, making it difficult for us to get to San Francisco. Nonetheless, we held two outreaches that afternoon. The band “Factor 11” ministered at Union Square. The band is led by my long-time friend, attorney Spencer Scheer. Spencer’s wife Marti serves on the Jews for Jesus Board of Directors. I was blessed to see Jews for Jesus director David Brickner and his wife Patti at the outreach.

Later that afternoon, the band “New Management” ministered at Washington Square. The Park Department had several rangers measuring the sound level at these outreaches. Perhaps they were there because of a million-dollar wedding at the Catholic Church at Washington Square. Apparently, a top Vatican official had been flown in to officiate. They seemed to think our sound level was OK. As hundreds of guests left the wedding, I preached on Jesus’ parable about the guest at the wedding feast who didn’t have a wedding garment (Matt.22).

	Read The Actual Article from the San Francisco Chronicle Here Oakland Tribune Article Here
	“ Factor 11” plays at Union Square
	Eugene Oregon Shiloh house
	May witnesses to man at Union Square

The Jesus Movement - Child of the Sixties

In September, 1970, while traveling with a group of hippies, I met a Christian preacher who offered me a place to stay. I was tired of living outdoors, so I accepted his offer. He took me to a Shiloh ministry house outside Portland, Oregon. About 40 long-haired ex-hippies lived in this house. Two of them immediately began witnessing to me. They told me that Love Israel, leader of the cult I had been involved with, was a false prophet. They showed me 1 Tim. 2:5, which says that Jesus is the only mediator between God and men. They told me to pray and ask God to show me the truth about what they were saying. Over the next few days, God made it very clear to me that they were telling me the truth. I committed my life to Jesus Christ and joined the Shiloh ministry commune.

Shiloh was the largest of the Jesus people communes. The ministry existed from 1968 to 1978. At one time, perhaps 2000 Christians lived in a network of about 50 homes, most in large cities around the U.S. We worked together, mostly doing unskilled agricultural labor. All the money we earned was held in common, to pay ministry needs and personal needs. The house pastor would decide how our limited budget would be allocated. Later, all the funds in the various Shiloh houses was pooled, and the national ministry leaders decided how to spend the funds. We lived very simply. Much of our food came from “dumpster diving” in the back of grocery stores.

We were very evangelistic. We opened our homes to anyone who was traveling and needed a meal or place to stay. Up to 50 hippies would stay at our house each night. We would witness quite strongly to each one of them. We talked about sin, repentance, Hell and God’s judgment as well as God’s love and grace. At one time, it seemed that at least one person was getting radically saved each day. We would invite and strongly encourage new believers to move in with us. Many did. We had Bible studies every night, and sometimes in the morning as well. Often, a person whose mind had been destroyed by drugs would be totally healed within a few weeks or months. I do not think anyone who lived with us for long had any serious mental problems.

Shiloh ministry was an outgrowth of Calvary Chapel in Costa Mesa, CA. Thousands of ex-hippies attended this church. Much of our teaching was based upon Pastor Chuck Smith’s expository teachings through the entire Bible. Calvary Chapel was more charismatic in those days, as were we. We believed in and exercised the gifts of the Spirit, but were careful to avoid what we considered to be Pentecostal excesses. Like Calvary Chapel, we were pre-millennial and believed in a pre-tribulation rapture. We viewed the rebirth of Israel in 1948 and the retaking of Jerusalem in 1967 as signs of the soon return of Jesus Christ. We did not set dates, but expected Jesus to return within the next few years. For this reason, we thought there was little reason to pursue higher education or careers. We did not want to get entangled in worldly affairs.

Looking back, I would say we tended to emphasize the need to “work out your own salvation” while putting less emphasis on the next verse “for it is God who works in you” (Phil 2:12-13). Also, we tended to have elitist ideas that the only place one could really serve God was Shiloh. The people in Shiloh were extremely young. Most were between 16 and 25. Shiloh had pastors as young as 16! When I was saved in 1970, the leaders had been saved at most three years. God’s grace was upon the leaders, who showed much more maturity than one would expect from their natural or spiritual age.

We witnessed on the streets regularly. But most of the converts we saw were people who came to our house needing a meal or place to stay. Many hippies were truly seeking Truth. Our radical lifestyle--more than our words--was a powerful testimony to them that Jesus is the Truth.

I lived in several Shiloh houses for 4 ½ years. In 1975, I felt God’s clear call to move to San Francisco to do evangelism. After moving to San Francisco, I no longer lived in the commune but attended Bible studies at the Shiloh house and witnessed with Shiloh members until 1978. After allegations of financial mismanagement, the ministry fell apart that year. By this time, however, almost every Jesus people commune had closed down. The Highway Missionaries continued for a short time in the 1980s. Jesus People USA continues to operate in Chicago to the present day, though it has changed somewhat from its early days. I do not know of any other Jesus People commune that exists today in the US. There are a few Jesus People communes in Great Britain and Scandinavia. They are quite wealthy and are not as evangelistic as we were.

I believe that communal ministries like Shiloh are a great tool for evangelism and discipleship, and I wish such ministries existed today. My experience there was possibly the most remarkable one of my life. I have not experienced the same depth of Christian fellowship anywhere else. The “Jesus Movement” was unique in human history. God raised it up to save a remnant of the hippies who were truly searching for Truth -- though in the wrong places. The Jesus Movement brought life to a largely dead church.

Perhaps only a few hundred thousand people were involved in the Jesus Movement, but they directly or indirectly influenced hundreds of millions of people around the world to get saved. The worldwide Charismatic Movement of the 1970s and 1980s was strongly influenced by the Jesus Movement. Ministries such as Campus Crusade, Youth with a Mission, Jews for Jesus and Operation Mobilization were influenced by the Jesus Movement. (concluded from July Newsletter)

Coming Events

Note: Outreaches are subject to change. Call (510) 531-5325 or (510) 213-3502 (cell phone) to confirm outreaches or for more information.

Friday Oct. 5, 12, 19 7:30 - 10 PM Witnessing in San Francisco neighborhoods.

Sat. Oct. 6, 13, 20 San Francisco Evangelism Outreach. 12-5 PM U N Plaza (7th St. and Market)

Ministry News and Needs

Thank you again for your prayers and financial support for this ministry. We have used up our supply of children’s tracts and need to print 30,000 of them. It will cost about $600.

We still have openings in our evangelism house in Oakland for Christians with a serious interest in evangelism. We are particularly looking for Christians in their 20’s or 30’s as all of us are 40 and over. We need to reach the younger generation for Jesus.

Our Tape of the Month is The Soul-Winning Church by Pastor Tommy Barnett, First Assembly of God, Phoenix.

Yours in His love,

Larry Rosenbaum