Wilson: Religious Commune Keeping the Faith
Jesus People USA, located in Uptown, has many critics of
its counter-cultural lifestyle. (Photo by Lauren Camplin)
By Lauren Camplin
The Red Line Project
@chitownstories
Posted: Monday, March 7, 2011
Throughout his 30 years as a resident at Jesus People USA, Tom Cameron has trouble picking just one favorite memory.
"That's a tough one because you see, we're bound together by the rhythms of life," said Cameron. "I've always said this is a great place to live if trouble touches you."
Cameron connected with the community when he was a junior at the University of Florida in 1972. At the time, the lifestyle of Jesus People USA wasn’t something he had considered.
“I grew up in one of those families where my future was pretty much mapped out,” Cameron said. “I thought, ‘No, I think I’ll take a different road’ and it’s proved to be a pretty exciting road, that’s for sure.”
Since Tom Cameron joined, Jesus People USA has moved three times before buying the property at 920 W. WIlson Ave. in 1990.
After acquiring the building in bankruptcy court, the commune was left with many repairs and over 70 low-income senior citizens who were already living in the rough conditions. Rather than kicking them out, Jesus People took on the added burden.
“Something that makes financial sense but inflicts trials on human beings just doesn’t appeal to us much,” said Cameron. “It’s a wonderful story, we still have about 80 seniors here renting now.”
Jesus People USA began as an independent ministry in 1972 and spent most of their time traveling across the country. In 1989, they joined the Chicago-based Evangelical Covenant Church. Though their numbers fluctuate, the community typically houses around 500 residents, including senior citizens who rent floors of their building.
Carolyn Abide, a JPUSA member since 2004, had followed her boyfriend to the organization even though she wasn't Christian. After staying there for six months, Abide felt "extremely connected" to the families. Shortly after, she became a Christian, got married and extended her stay at JPUSA.
"I really love it," said Abide. "It feels like home. I don't know if I'll stay forever but I think for right now I'm still learning and growing at a pretty exponential rate."
Click play below to hear Abide's favorite memories and how her family came around to her decision to live in the JPUSA community.
JPUSA Carolyn Abide Interview by Lauren Camplin
During the 1990s, the commune lost residents due to controversey in the media. In 1994, Dr. Ronald Enroth included Jesus People USA in the sequel to his book "Churches That Abuse."
Enroth claimed to find abusive conditions after conducting interviews with various past members. In 2001, the Chicago Tribune published its own two-part article accusing JPUSA of the same authoritarian practices Enroth found. JPUSA published their own response citing the Tribune for “anti-religious bias and cultural intolerance”.
“I’ve spent my entire adult life here and it’s really a matter of perception,” Cameron said. “You know, people who aren’t willing to take a long look at this usually get it very wrong. It’s too complicated to understand with a cursory look.”
Cameron also believes some people don’t put things in the context of their time.
“We came out of the 70’s and there were a lot of really funny things going on in the 70’s. Often times I’m sitting here talking to someone and they’re literally bringing up something that happened 30 years ago. I’m going ‘Geez, I don’t remember that very well. I was in my twenties and that was the 1970’s.’”
JPUSA finds various outlets to make profits, including a skate
and coffee shop that Cameron says is "packed" all summer. (Photo by Lauren Camplin)
A practice of JPUSA that has also raised eyebrows from outsiders is their management of finances. It is an expectation of the commune that every member contributes through non-paying ministry jobs or through the JPUSA-owned businesses, such as Lakefront Supply, a siding and roofing supply shop. All the money earned goes back to a pool and is distributed to the commune as the leaders see fit. More recently, members have taken less traditional approaches to work.
“It happened historically with people who didn’t think they were going to stay here,” Cameron said. “They were just gaining a skill or career to move out and then once they had graduated or gotten their degree, they came to the conclusion that they didn’t want to move out. They still live out of a common fund and contribute like everyone else, of course.”
One of the longer-standing ministry jobs residents can hold is the program for Chicago-area homeless women and children, Cornerstone Community Outreach. Cornerstone also houses other programs, but Uptown’s poor economic situation has made the shelter a high priority.
“For reasons beyond me, there has always been a significant population of homeless people in Uptown,” Cameron said. “I don’t see it as progress to heard poor people around and lump them together where people don’t have to look at them. I don’t consider that progress so I don’t do that. We’re all just trying to reach out a helping hand.”
Along with offering helping hands to serious problems, JPUSA finds time for community celebrations and masses.
“We’re good at celebrating,” Cameron said. “We like to have fun, we’re not so much the austere type.”
JPUSA houses many artists and musicians whose work
can be found throughout the building (Photo by Lauren Camplin).
With residents from all walks of life, Jesus People USA has seen its share of ups and downs. Despite it all, Cameron believes the commune’s goals have always been clear.
“Really, our story is simple,” he said. “We’re just a bunch of people who came out of the counter-culture. We became Christians because we heard a call from God to be together and to be a witness for God in this world. We’re really not half as weird as people sometimes make us to be.”
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