Pastor vs. Cult Leader: A Story About the Jonesboro Church War

Joe Jeffers

When people hear about Jonesboro, Arkansas some know it because of an event called the Jonesboro church wars. This story’s information is mainly sourced through an interview I had with Melinda Emerson, who knew former members of Joe Jeffers’ church. It all started in the 1930s when evangelist Joe Jeffers, came and preached the gospel in a Bible College where Jonesboro High School now sits. Ten thousand people would gather because he would publicly reveal people’s sins to lead them to salvation. First Baptist Church was impressed with Jeffers, and gave him a position as Pastor. However, Joe Jeffers temporarily left after immediate criticism by members. Later he asked First Baptist if he could come back to Jonesboro and they refused. So he returned anyways and hosted a sermon near the Bible College. 171 members left First Baptist. According to Melinda Emerson, her friends were drawn to him because they “never heard the gospel spoken so eloquently.”

Joe Jeffers gained a large following, so he decided to build a tabernacle that was located near St. Bernard’s hospital. He named it Jonesboro Baptist Church and gained 3,000 members after a year. Then, Joe Jeffers decided to explore Europe and was replaced with Dale Crowley. Everything was fine with Crowley as the pastor, until Jeffers returned and wanted to “Take back the Church.”

Dale Crowley

Emerson explained, that while Jeffers traveled through Europe, he learned false doctrines that contradicted the gospel. So, on his first Sunday back, he started teaching that “there is no hell, all roads lead to heaven.”

Crowley tried to stop this, only for next Sunday to come. While Dale tried to preach, Joe Jeffers stood up and started to teach as well. Seeing that Jeffers was trying to divide the church, Crowley calls the police and they close the church. This case went to court, while Jeffers and his followers called the “Jeffersites” somehow accessed the church. That was until the Judge ruled in Crowley’s favor, so Jeffers was gone once again. According to Emerson, the Jeffersites furiously claimed they would “die before he takes over.”

Soon Crowley received death threats. Some attempted arson or an ambush with knives. They even tried to perform a drive by shooting on his sons. That was until the night Dale and two of his friends tried to secure the church. A nightwatchman was hiding inside. He tried to shoot Crowley, but was blocked by a friend’s cane. Dale shot the Nightwatchman’s leg with his gun to defend himself. It is believed that an accomplice was right behind Crowley. He aimed for the pastor but instead killed the Nightwatchman. This framed Crowley for murder. In jail, he was almost shot, so the trial moved to Pickett, Arkansas. The court learned that the bullet did not come from Dale’s gun. Once Dale Crowley was freed, he decided later to relocate the church and rename it Central Baptist Church, which is still around today. As for Joe Jeffers, he escaped to California where he started a commune and later a nudist colony, further descending into madness. Links to more of the story are below, and special thanks to Melinda Emerson for letting me interview her.