Peoples Temple And Jonestown Essay

Essential Question: How did the Peoples Temple and Jonestown settlement start? James Warren Jones, well known as Jim Jones was born on May 13th 1931. As a young child, Jim Jones was neglected by his parents; this neglect caused many evident problems in his upbringing that would affect his life and the lives of many others. To his own congregation Jim Jones once stated, “I didn’t have any love given to me, I didn’t know what the hell love was”(PBS). As a person without love given to him throughout childhood, many problems arose. Jones kept to himself as his mother worked her days away and his father has very small interest in raising a child (Biography). The young boy would stray away from disobedience for he was raised in a stricter Pentecostal church and was very active in its ministries(Pick-Jones). From a young age, Jones was involved with religious activities and organizations which influenced his actions throughout his life.
Once Jones graduated high school he was married to Marceline Baldwin. After his graduation, he attending Indiana University and earned his masters at Butler University. His
Jim Jones and his gaining supporters aimed to better society and move past segregated worship services. In their beliefs, the Peoples Temple founded many social services such as orphanages, homeless shelters, and soup kitchens (Groenveld). This vision of social responsibility and community attracted many people to join Jim Jones church. PBS documentary on the Jonestown massacre states that, “As the church grew however, the sermons on equality and tolerance were belied by his own increasing demands for personal loyalty”(PBS). Although slowly Jim Jones was growing into the man who caused the mass suicide of 900+ people, he still remained to gain more and more followers. The reason why is still a mystery