Church of Jesus Christ–Christian

For other organizations that use the name "Church of Jesus Christ", see Church of Jesus Christ (disambiguation).

The Church of Jesus Christ–Christian is an American Christian Identity, white supremacist church, which was founded in 1946 by Ku Klux Klan organizer ^{[citation needed]} Wesley A. Swift in Lancaster, California. Swift was the son of a Methodist Episcopal Church, South minister and is considered a significant figure in the early years of the Christian Identity movement in the United States.^[1] Swift's work and copyrights are carried on by Kingdom Identity Ministries.

History

The church was originally known as the Anglo-Saxon Christian Congregation in Lancaster, California, assuming its present name in 1957.^[2] The hyphenated name was used to express the fact that Jesus was not a Jew.^[3]

After Wesley Swift's death in 1970, the ministry was continued by his wife Lorraine Swift. Roy Gillaspie and Arnold Murray were in leadership positions between 1950 and the 1970s.^[4]

In February 2001, the names Church of Jesus Christ–Christian and Aryan Nations were transferred to Victoria and Jason Keenan when the Keenans won a US $6.3 million lawsuit against the organizations after being attacked by Aryan Nations paramilitary soldiers; the Aryan Nations compound was also transferred to the Keenans.^[5] In March 2001, the Keenans sold the compound to the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Carr Foundation, a human rights organization which plans to build a human rights center on the property.^[6]

The church resurfaced in August 2009, five years after the death of Richard Butler, who resumed the ministry after the death of Swift.^{[citation needed]} The church is now headed by a council of three men, including Senior Pastor Paul R. Mullet.^[7]

References

1. "Christian Identity". Anti-Defamation League. 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-08-10. Retrieved 2007-08-25.
2. Bochicchio, Ana (5 October 2021). "Justification by Race: Wesley Swift's White Supremacy and Anti-Semitic Theological Views in His Christian Identity Sermons". Journal of Hate Studies. 17 (1): 38. doi:10.33972/jhs.183. hdl:11336/145441. Retrieved 11 May 2024.
3. Barkun, Michael (1997). Religion and the Racist Right: The Origins of the Christian Identity Movement. UNC Press Books. p. 38. ISBN 978-0-8078-4638-4.
4. "A popular Arkansas televangelist says his theology about the 'Kenites' is not anti-Semitic. The evidence suggests otherwise". Southern Poverty Law Center. May 8, 2008. Retrieved 2022-04-26.
5. "Attorney Morris Dees pioneer in using 'damage litigation' to fight hate groups". CNN. 2000-09-08. Archived from the original on June 18, 2006. Retrieved 2007-08-30.
6. Wakin, Daniel J. (2004-09-09). "Richard G. Butler, 86, Dies; Founder of the Aryan Nations". The New York Times. Retrieved 2007-08-30.
7. Warren, Alecia (February 25, 2010). "Human rights by example". Coeur d'Alene Press.

Further reading

• On the Edge: Political Cults Right and Left by Dennis Tourish, and Tim Wohlforth, 2000.