A former priest and “cult” leader who sexually abused women while leader of an evangelical “rave-style” Christian movement has been found guilty of rape and four indecent assaults.
Christopher Brain, 69, used his power as the head of the Nine O’Clock Service (NOS) to exploit his female followers in the 1980s and 1990s.
He had been tipped for a great future in the Church of England after his revolutionary worship inspired by 80s rave culture and evangelical preaching attracted hundreds of young people to his 9pm services in Sheffield.
However the charismatic leader, who was a former member of Christian rock group Present Tense, was also a serial sex offender who surrounded himself with young women dressed in lycra and lingerie who were required to cook and clean for him.
Last August, Brain was convicted by a jury at Inner London Crown Court of 17 counts of indecent assault against nine women.
On Friday, a second jury found Brain guilty of one count of rape and four charges of sexual assault after 14 hours and two minutes deliberating. The verdicts mean Brain has now been convicted of a total of 22 sexual offences against 13 women.
He shook his head slightly and exhaled when the guilty verdict on the rape charge was delivered. He was remanded in custody to be sentenced at a later date.
Judge Freya Newbury said victims would be given the chance to deliver impact statements at a sentencing hearing which is likely to take two days.
At its height, NOS attracted up to 600 congregants to light and music-filled services at St Thomas’ in Crookes, Sheffield, later moving to a larger venue at Ponds Forge leisure centre. At one stage there was a mass confirmation service of 93 members, said to be the largest group they had ever confirmed in one church.
It took its name from the routine of evangelical services at 9pm on Sunday, complete with live music and nightclub-style light shows.
The court heard that when Brain was ordained as a priest in 1991, he was noted to have a “grandiose self-regard” as he insisted on large sums of money being spent so that he could wear robes for the ceremony that had been worn by actor Robert De Niro in the movie The Mission.
Prosecutor Tim Clark KC said NOS “presented itself to the outside world as a progressive force for good”.
He told the court: “In truth NOS became a closed and controlled group which the defendant dominated.
“He abused his position first as a leader and then as an ordained priest to sexually assault a staggering number of women from his congregation.”
Prosecutors said Brain created a “cult” and brainwashed his victims into believing that he was a “mouthpiece of God”. Victims felt, if they failed to meet his demands, they would be failing as Christians.
Brain exerted control over the lives of the women, ostracising them from friends and family, taking away control of their finances, and convincing them to compete for his affections, the trial heard.
A “homebase team” was set up to care for Brain – referred to as “the Lycra Lovelies” or “the Lycra Nuns” – and witnesses reported seeing the defendant surrounded by attractive women in lingerie at his home, looking after his needs.
The court heard how Brain groomed the women, touched them during massages, and persuaded them into sexual acts when putting him to bed.
Brain, who quit as a priest when allegations about his conduct were first raised in 1995, admitted to sexual activity with his followers, but claimed it was all consensual.
TV programmes were made and books written about NOS after some allegations were made in 1995 about Brain’s alleged abuse of position, the court heard previously.
Brain appeared in one of the documentaries and made admissions to the filmmaker of sexual contact with a number of the female members of NOS, jurors were told.
In an Everyman Special broadcast by BBC One in November 1995, Brain admitted sexual activity with women members of NOS but denied that it was abuse and said it was for “closeness and affection”, the court heard.
In the retrial, the court heard how Brain had lured one of the women to his home, plied her with whisky, then raped her in an attic bedroom.
A second woman, who was part of the “homebase” team, said she was chided if her clothing was not provocative enough, she recalls frequent incidents of standing naked in front of a fully-clothed Brain, and described him as a “Jekyll and Hyde character”.
Detective Superintendent Eleanor Welsh, of South Yorkshire Police, paid tribute to the “courageous women” who exposed Brain as a “serial sex offender”.
“These women have waited three or four decades for these verdicts and bravely relived their ordeals in a bid to secure justice,” she said.
“Due to Brain’s continued denial of the offences, the victims – who have already been through so much - had to ensure a second trial. Furthermore, victims from the first trial bravely returned as witnesses to support the prosecution.
“Brain is a devious and arrogant sexual predator who caused lasting harm to these women.”
Julie Moss, senior crown prosecutor for CPS Yorkshire and Humberside, said Brain embarked on a “disturbing campaign of manipulation and abuse”, intimidating those who attended his service and isolating them from friends and family.
“He presented himself as a spiritual leader and a ‘man of God’ who existed to guide and mentor his followers,” she added.
“However, behind the mask was a man who was repeatedly abusing several young members of his service.
“Victims were isolated from their loved ones, made financially and emotionally dependent on the group, and made to believe that resistance to Brain’s sexual advances reflected their own personal or spiritual failings.
“This was not consent. It was forced submission, caused by the culture of fear and dependency Brain had deliberately created.”
