A photo of members of the Truth or the Two by Twos (2x2) church, taken in Masterton in 1962.
A secretive religious sect. An FBI investigation. A sitting National MP.
The fringe, home-based Christian movement commonly known as the Two by Twos is being looked into by multiple agencies after allegations of child sexual abuse came to light.
A BBC investigation revealed the alleged abuse spanned decades within the organisation, which is believed to have up to 100,000 members worldwide.
One of those members is National Party MP Hamish Campbell, who at first downplayed his connection, saying it was “through family”. He’s since admitted to the Herald that he is a bona fide member.
“I am a member of a small Christian group who meet in people’s homes on Sundays rather than go to church. I have hosted a small number of meetings at my home,” Campbell said.
But what is this secretive, off-grid ministry?
The sect can be traced back to the late 1800s. It does not own property, publish a leadership structure, or keep public records. It is not a registered charity, and its ministers are volunteers who travel in pairs – a potential reason for its moniker.
While it’s commonly known as the Two by Twos, or 2x2, by outsiders, it’s also been referred to as The Truth, The Way, Jesus People, The Fold, and The Friends, among other names.
Herald senior crime reporter Anna Leask told The Front Page it was founded by a Scottish missionary, William Irvine, who’d become disillusioned with the church he was with.
“He wanted to return to an ancient rendition of the Bible teachings. That simple life of poverty, homelessness, itinerant preaching, and spreading the word [of God]. The church doesn’t have a name and doesn’t have buildings. He was very opposed to those because he believed that you don’t need a building to be saved, you don’t need a name.
“Effectively, they’re just fundamentalist Christians who believe that if you are not a member, you will not get into heaven. It will be decided when you die whether you go to heaven or hell based on service, what you’ve done during your life, and the work you’ve done for God.
“The preachers are itinerant, they move from house to house, they get looked after by the body of the church, who are known as ‘friends’, and they get everything paid for,” she said.
Leask said their main meeting is on a Sunday, called “house church”.
“That’s held at the home of an elder, one of the men in the group. On Wednesdays and Sunday nights, there is a gospel meeting, and that’s when the preachers run sort of a prayer meeting, and everyone goes along and listens to them,” she said.
In February last year, the FBI Omaha field office sought the public’s help in identifying victims or “individuals with knowledge of abuse and/or criminal behaviour” connected with the religious group.
The church was the focus of a BBC investigation that looked into allegations of child sexual abuse spanning decades. Current and former members who spoke to the BBC said the “highly secretive and insular nature of the church has helped abuse to thrive”.
The BBC reported the sect apparently coerced young mothers to give up their babies, with hundreds of adoptions potentially happening in the United States between the 1950s and 1990s.
In Australia, survivors are fighting for access to a national redress scheme, a compensation system for child sex abuse survivors.
In the US, an ABC News investigation into the church uncovered allegations of child sex abuse and subsequent coverups. The team spoke with dozens of alleged victims across more than 30 states.
A hotline, called Advocates for The Truth (AFTT), was set up in 2023 to provide international assistance and support for survivors of abuse in the Two by Twos (2x2) sect. Since October last year, 910 alleged perpetrators have been reported to the organisation.
The sect’s existence in New Zealand made headlines recently after the New Zealand Police were confirmed to be working with the FBI in its global investigation.
Additionally, National MP Hamish Campbell, who initially downplayed his involvement in the church, has admitted he is a member. Multiple sources have claimed that Campbell is an “elder” and has held meetings in his Christchurch home.
Leask has spoken to many former members of the church, some of whom say they have been abused.
“Police are looking into it and we’re hoping to hear very soon whether there will be charges or where that investigation goes.”
In terms of membership in NZ, Leask said there are thought to be a couple of thousand participants.
“There’s quite a presence in Christchurch. We’ve actually been sent some information about the number of workers, or ‘preachers’. We witnessed a meeting that had at least 50 or so people in attendance – and that’s just one part of Christchurch.
“It’s never going to be as big as the Catholic or Anglican churches, but it’s a significant number for being a small, insular sect,” she said.
This month, it was also revealed that a former assistant principal convicted of filming up girls’ skirts with a pen camera in 2013 is a former elder of the Two by Twos.
Douglas Haora Martin – previously a teacher at Lincoln High School – filmed up the skirts of 17 unsuspecting girls and women during six months in 2012.
One source said that while Martin was no longer an elder, he remained “embedded” in the group. Close family members are also associated.
Listen to the full episode to hear more about the religious sect and what happens next.
The Front Page is a daily news podcast from the NZ Herald, available to listen to every weekday from 5am. The podcast is presented by Chelsea Daniels, an Auckland-based journalist with a background in world news and crime/justice reporting who joined NZME in 2016.
You can follow the podcast at iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
