The Ninth Coming: 160,000 Expected at Harvest Crusade

The Harvest Crusade, the evangelical festival that revolutionized the old-fashioned revival meetings with its mix of scriptures and pop culture, returns to Anaheim this evening for its ninth year with a renewed mission of bringing Christianity to young people.

The crusade, which got its start in Orange County and now tours the nation, is expected to attract more than 160,000 over its four-day run at Edison International Field, making it one of the biggest forums for mass evangelism in the country.

This year’s festival is focusing special attention on Generations X and Y--those teenagers and twentysomethings who represent the future of the faith.

Organizers have booked the Christian versions of alternative rock bands, expanding the number of concerts and updating their sound system and video screens to better compete with other live shows catering to the youth market.

“They go to secular concerts, so they’re aware of the standards of technology,” said John Collins, director of the Harvest Crusade. “We have to meet those [standards] to gain their respect.”

“Most people who make a decision to become a Christian do so at a young age,” he added. “It’s a very high priority for us to reach those teenagers.”

The event, organized by the Riverside-based Harvest Christian Fellowship and featuring sermons by co-founder Greg Laurie, has turned into one of the most anticipated events of the summer for Christians. It’s especially popular with teens and young adults who struggle to balance their religion with day-to-day peer pressure.

“Most teens still just think the church is for old people,” said Crystal Hill, 16, of Cypress, who has attended the crusade for several years. “It’s fun standing up for God. I love it to death. But it’s hard. I go to a public school, and you hear everywhere about sex and how many drugs they did last night.”

Aprille Cleland, a 16-year-old who lives in Buena Park, said the festival give her a chance to express religious zeal without having to restrain herself.

She said the latest fad is to wear bracelets with “WWJD” printed on them, for “What Would Jesus Do?” Teenage celebrities, like Robert Ri’chard of the Nickelodeon television show “Cousin Skeeter,” have been spotted wearing the bands.

Cleland said that although many teenagers may be wearing them, not as many are acting out the message.

“To say you’re a Christian right now is cool, but if you live it, it’s not as cool,” Cleland said.

The four-day event will include a “harvest jam” on Friday and Saturday night featuring some of the top Christian rock music acts. After an overflow crowd last year, including 15,000 youths, organizers decided to extend the jam from one night to two.

Music is the entry point for many teenagers to embrace a Christian message, Collins said. Bringing in groups like the Super Tones, an Orange County band that plays “spiritual ska,” is a deliberate marketing effort to snag youth.

Daniel Spencer, 24, who plays trombone in the Super Tones, said he hopes to appeal to teens with a mix of religion and rhythm.

“Our purpose is to glorify God with our music and have a blast playing the music,” he said.

For Cleland, the only way she could convince her non-Christian friends to go to the crusade was to list the names of the bands participating.

“People my age will go because there’s really cool music,” she said.

Religion experts say the success of the Harvest Crusade points up how religion can be made relevant to young people if presented in a contemporary way.

“The crusades are appealing to the idealism of youth,” said Benjamin Hubbard, professor and chair of the department of comparative religion at Cal State Fullerton.

He said that the sex scandal involving President Clinton could also draw people into the Harvest Crusade this year. “There is a sense that we need to morally rearm this country,” he said.

Dwight Gibson, North American director of the World Evangelical Fellowship, said that the Harvest Crusade has become a national model in how to use music and attitude to proselytize to young people.

Organizers said they are simply fulfilling their mission. “There seems to be a hunger among Gen-Xers and younger kids for spiritual answers,” Collins said. “We go fishing where the fish are biting. The kids are hungry.”