- guardian.co.uk, Thursday July 27 2000 01.55 BST
Bobby Kelly, 16, who ran away from his home in Romford, Essex, a month ago and has been made a ward of court, insisted that he was not being held against his will but admitted being homesick and missing his relatives.
The six-minute interview was broadcast on the Today programme, 10 days after it was recorded, after a high court judge lifted an injunction against it, taken out by Bobby's family.
Bobby said making him a ward of court to prevent the cult, the Jesus Christians, from taking him abroad was an overreaction. Sounding confused and admitting that a cult member had accompanied him to a public telephone box from which he called the BBC, Bobby said he had joined the Jesus Christians because "they got right down to the nitty-gritty of the Bible ... and they don't miss anything out".
He said: "If the [ward of court] decision gets scrapped then obviously I'm going to stay with these people, although obviously I will see my nan - like see her a few times throughout the year to reassure her ... That means I can't live my life for God then, doesn't it, if I live with my nan.
"They [the cult] are normal, exactly like everyone else, except that they believe in Jesus and try to commit their life to his teachings. They don't burn babies and eat them or anything nasty like that."
Asked if he missed his friends and relatives, he replied: "Yeah, I'm very homesick actually. I miss my mum and my nan and my sister and other friends quite a lot actually, but it basically says in the Bible that I have to give everything up to work for God."
The Jesus Christians cult, begun in Australia by a charismatic figure, David McKay, was originally an offshoot of the US Children of God sect, later known as the Family, which at one stage gained notoriety by enticing potential converts with offers of sex parties.
Jesus Christians have staged publicity stunts in Australia to illustrate their call for Christians to reject mainstream religion and return to the practices of the New Testament. It is understood that Bobby joined after hearing them preach in a shopping precinct.
Laurence Oates, the official solicitor, appointed to supervise Bobby's interests, said: "This is a sad story, and I would like to interview him when I can be quite sure that he is in a free environment with no pressure from any quarter."
