{"id":28316,"date":"2013-08-10T21:28:06","date_gmt":"2013-08-10T21:28:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/alternativejonestown.com\/?page_id=28316"},"modified":"2019-02-22T15:40:54","modified_gmt":"2019-02-22T23:40:54","slug":"919-2","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/?page_id=28316","title":{"rendered":"Q919 Summary"},"content":{"rendered":"

Summary prepared by Fielding M. McGehee III. If you use this material, please credit The Jonestown Institute. Thank you.<\/strong><\/i><\/p>\n

To read the Tape Transcript, click here<\/a>.\u00a0To read the Annotated\u00a0Transcript,\u00a0click here<\/a>.
\nTo return to the Tape Index, click here<\/a>.\u00a0To listen to MP3, click here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

FBI Catalogue: Jones<\/b> Speaking<\/p>\n

Date cues on tape: none<\/b><\/p>\n

People named:<\/b><\/p>\n

People in attendance at Peoples Temple service<\/i>
\nMary Bowen (speaks)<\/b>
\nRuth Dean (speaks)<\/b>
\nL. M. House (phonetic) (speaks)<\/b>
\nSadie Jacobs (phonetic) (speaks)<\/b>
\nCatherine Listen (phonetic) (speaks)<\/b>
\nIona Mann (phonetic) (speaks)<\/b>
\nEsther Purifoy (speaks)<\/b>
\nHester Smith (speaks)<\/b>
\nRachel (last name unknown) (speaks)<\/b><\/p>\n

Members of Peoples Temple<\/i>
\nJim McElvane (speaks)<\/b><\/p>\n

Other<\/i>
\nThelma Belcher (phonetic), connection to Sadie Jacobs
\nJames Chance, son of Mary Bowen
\nHenrietta Fleming, connection to Sadie Jacobs
\nFanny Green, connection to Sadie Jacobs
\nGeorge Listen, husband of Catherine Listen
\nIona Mann (phonetic), acquaintance of healed woman
\nRuth Morgan, friend of Sadie Jacobs
\nAnnie Rice, daughter of Sadie Jacobs
\nEtta Mae Robinson, connection to Sadie Jacobs
\nWesley Smith, son of Hester Smith
\nDorothy Taylor, daughter of healed woman<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Bible verses cited:<\/b><\/p>\n

(Click here<\/a> for a scriptural index to the sermons of Jim Jones.)<\/i><\/p>\n

    \u201cBecause he that keeps my sayings, Christ said, shall not die.\u201d (John 8:51, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep my saying, he shall never see death.” Also, generally, Revelation 22:5-14)<\/ol>\n

    Summary:<\/b><\/p>\n

    (Note: <\/strong>This tape was transcribed by the late Michael Bellefountaine.)<\/i><\/p>\n

    (Note:<\/strong> This tape was one of the 53 tapes initially withheld from public disclosure.)<\/em><\/p>\n

    In this undated faith-healing service, Jim Jones cures numerous people \u2013 all but one of them women \u2013 of various diseases, including cancer, sight problems, crippling paralysis and other ailments of the joints, and strokes. Some of the cures are quite dramatic: a woman who couldn\u2019t see is able to count the number of fingers on Jones\u2019s upheld hand, even though they are separated by the full length of the sanctuary; a woman who could barely walk on artificial knees runs laps around the congregation; more than one cancer patient returns from the bathroom holding vile-smelling growths to present to the crowd. One woman is raised from the dead, but the miracle takes place in the bathroom, beyond the hearing of the microphone. The tape includes only the celebration afterwards.<\/p>\n

    The service has a wider audience than the people in the sanctuary. A radio announcer describes the action going on when the audio from the church is insufficient to tell the story, and his excitement waxes and wanes with that of the congregants. Since other tapes include pointers on how to present testimonials for Jim Jones suitable for broadcast, it may be assumed this tape was used for a similar purpose.<\/p>\n

    The healings follow a process which is almost a ritual. Jim Jones calls out someone by name from the audience, and describes the illness or condition which the person is suffering. As proof of his knowledge of the illness, Jones then reveals facts about the person\u2019s life. Sometimes it\u2019s the name of a relative (including the date of death if the relative is no longer living), other times it\u2019s a mundane detail. He knows, for example, about the deterioration of the muscles in a woman\u2019s legs, \u201c[j]ust as I know that there\u2019s a white linen tablecloth in your third drawer of your chest in Phoenix.\u201d The purpose of these revelations, he says, is to \u201cbuild your faith just a little bit,\u201d although he\u2019s always careful to note that Jones and the supplicant have never met, thereby building the faith within the church community. In most cases, the person under Jones\u2019 care expresses gratitude even before the healing has begun. Jones then whispers some glossolalia \u2013 that is, he speaks in tongues \u2013 or presents a healing cloth, or, in one case during this service, offers a Christian prayer. Then, to the cheers and applause and singing from the congregation, the newly-healed person celebrates his or her good fortune with incredible displays of restored health.<\/p>\n

    Jones also dispenses healing cloths to be sent to persons not in attendance, and explains how they will work. Some will do the healing work on a specific condition that Jones usually cures himself during the service. Other uses are preventative or as insurance or protection from an event that might otherwise happen (\u201c[P]inning these in both boots and on your green coat\u2026 will save you a terrible fall that would have broken both of your hips\u201d).<\/p>\n

    Jones recognizes that some people are so scared, apprehensive, or concerned about their privacy that they\u2019re reluctant to talk about their illnesses or to acknowledge the personal details of their lives that he might reveal. He tries to reassure them. \u201cYou that are not familiar with this ministry, we endeavor very, very hard to see that nothing is spoken that would in any way cause embarrassment to you,\u201d he says. \u201cBut if there is something very private, we will speak it to one of the registered nurses that work without compensation, or one of the social workers, and they will speak to you, personally.\u201d<\/p>\n

    Along the way, Jones offers his philosophy behind faith healing: \u201c[A]s you believe in the spirit of God, in keeping with the spirit, you may be healed mentally and spiritually\u2026 If you apply [your faith] to the spirit of God, your spirit will be healed. And if you apply it to the mind of God, your mind can be healed. But if you apply it to the body of God, then your body will be healed.\u201d<\/p>\n

    He immediately follows with an assertion \u2013 repeated elsewhere as well \u2013 which both critics and supporters of Jones\u2019 ministry in Peoples Temple have wrestled with: \u201cThose that recognize the body of God shall reduplicate that process in them. If you see the temple of the Holy Ghost, then you\u2019ll be able to reproduce God in you.\u201d<\/p>\n

    He does expand upon this on several occasions, to show how God is in him and how \u2013 by extension \u2013 that makes him God. As he heals one woman, he tells her, \u201cYou\u2019re not going to die here, because God and not another is here.\u201d Towards the end of the service, he is even more emphatic. \u201cNobody can take you when you\u2019re crippled up with arthritis, cause you to walk, nobody can take the cancer from you but God,\u201d he says, immediately after he has taken the cancer from a woman.<\/p>\n

    Although much of this could be found in any of Jones\u2019 faith-healing services, there are a few conversations which differentiate this one from others. This is apparently the first time Jim Jones met Jim McElvane, the young black man who would eventually hold a position of leadership in Jonestown (although it is also possible that Jones knew McElvane from before, and that this \u201cintroduction\u201d was staged). Jones also meets Esther Purifoy, a relative of two young people who would later die in Jonestown.<\/p>\n

    Jones also breaks out of his ministerial style at one point when his revelation about one woman informs him<\/i> that she has extrasensory powers of her own. \u201cSometimes in your mind, you know what peoples\u2019 ages are,\u201d he says, then continues in a more conversational tone, \u201cFirst time I\u2019ve seen a legit for a while. I want to get to know you.\u201d<\/p>\n

    Jones also puts his own mark on a standard faith-healing session with two characteristics of his own. In one, he intimates the presence of sinister forces behind the car crash in which Jim McElvane\u2019s brother was killed. \u201cThere was no clues [in the cause of the accident],\u201d he says over McElvane\u2019s soft assents. \u201cSomeone\u2019s trying to do the same to you.\u201d Jones gives McElvane healing cloths for him and his surviving brother. \u201cYou know what I\u2019m talking about. I\u2019m talking about a conspiracy<\/i>. You got to keep this on you<\/i> and on him.\u201d The theme of conspiracy drove much of Jones\u2019 worldview and many of his decisions, including on the final day.<\/p>\n

    Secondly, Jones\u2019 high regard for animals surfaces again here. He tells one woman to treat her pets well, because she needs them for protection. Later, though, he is more general in his expression of love for the four-legged beasts around them, and explains why. \u201cI want you to be kind to little animals. They\u2019re far more loyal to you than people. You say that they don\u2019t have any souls, but I tell you another thing, I know better\u2026 The best friends I\u2019ve had in the healing work is some loyal animal that stands by beside you.\u201d<\/p>\n

    FBI Summary:<\/b><\/p>\n

    Date of transcription: 7\/9\/79<\/p>\n

    In connection with the Federal Bureau of Investigation\u2019s investigation into the assassination of U.S. Congressman LEO J. RYAN at Port Kaituma, Guyana, South America, on November 18, 1978, a tape recording was obtained. This tape recording was located in Jonestown, Guyana, South America, and was turned over to U.S. Officials in Guyana and subsequently transported to the United States.<\/p>\n

    On June 14, 1979, Special Agent (name deleted) reviewed the tape numbered 1B107-11 This tape was found to contain the following:<\/p>\n

    JIM JONES offering up prayers and curing physical ailments such as Cancer, stroke and heart disease at a \u201chealing service\u201d. Later, JONES raises a woman from the dead.<\/p>\n

    Differences with FBI Summary:<\/b><\/p>\n

    The summary is accurate \u2013 other than the fact that the raising of the dead occurs \u201coffstage\u201d from the sanctuary where the tape is being made \u2013 and meets the FBI\u2019s purposes.<\/p>\n

    Tape originally posted April 2004<\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Summary prepared by Fielding M. McGehee III. If you use this material, please credit The Jonestown Institute. Thank you. To read the Tape Transcript, click here.\u00a0To read the Annotated\u00a0Transcript,\u00a0click here. To return to the Tape Index, click here.\u00a0To listen to MP3, click here. FBI Catalogue: Jones Speaking Date cues on tape: none People named: People […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"parent":27996,"menu_order":604,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-28316","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/28316","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=28316"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/28316\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":86058,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/28316\/revisions\/86058"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/27996"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jonestown.sdsu.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=28316"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}