Jesus movement
The Jesus Movement was comprised of the Jesus People or Jesus Freaks. It arose spontaneously on the American West Coast and spread throughout North America, Europe, and Afghanistan. It was a portion of one of the periodic Awakenings that occur in American history, in which the values of American society are radically altered.
The Jesus Movement was the Christian component of the Hippie Movement, and as such was a counter-counter cultural movement. Some became disenchanged with American life and became Hippies; some Hippies became disenchanted with Hippie values and became Jesus Freaks. The term "Jesus Freak" was originally a perjorative label, but then taken on as a name by the Jesus People. They kept many of the mannerisms and style of the Hippies, but changed the content. Hence, free love became free love of God and people (agape); phrases like "One Way" and "Just Drop Jesus" abounded- as opposed to the focus on the individual or dropping acid.
Jesus People were known for great openness and honesty. They were primitivist in theology, seeking to return to the original life of the early Christians. As such, they often viewed the American church as apostate and took a decidedly anti-American stance in general. They called for a return to simplicity and Holy Poverty, and were against materialism. They tended to be strongly evangelistic and millenialistic. What they lacked in theological depth, they made up for in zeal for Christ and love of others. Some of the most read books included Ron Sider's Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger and The Late Great Planet Earth.
Perhaps the most glaring aspect of the Jesus Movement was it's communal aspect. Most Jesus Freaks lived in communes. Although there were some like the Calvary Chapel movement who did not, these remained more on the fringe of the movement. Within the commune the group became more important than the individual, and communal sharing of possessions was the norm. Some of these communes became highly authoritarian.
Unlike most Christian movements, there was no one coherent leader of the Jesus Movement. Some of the larger names included Lonnie Frisbee, who along with Chuck Smith started the Calvary Church movement. Most churches in America rejected the Jesus Freaks. Lonnie was the primary evangelist and responsible for the growth of the Calvary churches; Chuck Smith was one of the few pastors who welcomed the Jesus Freaks in, and thus allowed for the dramatic future growth of his denomination.
Another early leader was Linda Meissner, who formed the Jesus People Army in Seattle. She later joined her group with the Children of God, before realizing too late their aberrent practices. One of her disciples was Jim Palosaari, who started a number of Christian communes and rock groups. One group toured through Europe, developing Christian music and drama; another eventually became JePUSA, Jesus People USA, the largest and most enduring of the Jesus People communes; another included the rock band Servant, the first Christian band with an extensive light show. Out of JePUSA came Cornerstone, America's largest Christian rock festival; Jim Palosaari was one of the originators of Greenbelt in England, the largest Christian rock festival in the world.
Christian music, or Jesus Freak music began as an industry within the Jesus Movement, as Jesus People seemed to enjoy singing whenever possible. Many music groups developed out of this, and some became leaders within the Jesus Movement, especially Keith Green. The music of the Jesus Movement eventually became the full-fledged industry of contemporary Christian music.
As the society changed, the Jesus Movement did not. It was primarily a reaction to a counter-cultural movement (the Hippie Movement) and as such, as the Hippie Movement died out, the Jesus Movement lost what it was reacting against. Jonestown, though not at all related to the Jesus Movement, also succeeded in scaring many away from the idea of communal living. By the early 80's most of the Jesus Movement had died out, survived mostly by the music, Calvary Chapels, and JePUSA.