The Dove World Outreach Center (DWOC) was a non-denominational Christian church founded in 1985 in Gainesville, Florida, by Donald O. Northrup and his wife, Delores. After Northrup’s death in 1996, leadership of the church eventually passed to Terry Jones, a former hotel manager and missionary. Jones, along with his wife Sylvia, gradually shifted the church’s direction toward more confrontational forms of religious expression.
By the early 2000s, Jones divided his time between the Gainesville church and a sister congregation in Cologne, Germany. His role in Germany ended in 2008 when the Cologne congregation asked him to step down, citing concerns about his leadership style. Following this, Jones returned to Gainesville and assumed full-time leadership of the DWOC.
Under his leadership, the church remained small, with membership reportedly not exceeding 50 regular participants. Despite its size, it attracted attention through public demonstrations and messaging that extended beyond the local community.
In 2009, the church drew local criticism after displaying signs reading “Islam is of the Devil,” a phrase later used by Jones as the title of a book. That same year, children associated with the church were sent home from public schools for wearing T-shirts bearing the slogan, which led to disputes over school dress code policies.
In 2010, Jones announced plans for “International Burn a Koran Day,” scheduled to coincide with the ninth anniversary of the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States. The proposal drew responses from U.S. officials, including President Obama, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and Gen. David Petraeus, who stated that such actions could pose risks to U.S. personnel abroad.
Amid public pressure, Jones announced that the event would not proceed as planned. However, in March 2011, the church held a mock trial in which the Quran was declared “guilty” of crimes against humanity. Following the proceeding, assistant pastor Wayne Sapp burned a copy using a barbecue grill. Reports later linked this act to protests in Afghanistan that resulted in the deaths of at least 12 people, including United Nations personnel.
During this period, former members and associates began to describe internal practices within the church. Emma Jones, the daughter of Terry Jones, and others alleged that the organization maintained strict control over members. The Dove World Outreach Academy, a religious school operated by the church, was described as having a highly structured environment in which students were restricted from contacting family members or attending personal events such as weddings and funerals. Additional claims indicated that students provided unpaid labor for “TS and Company,” a furniture business owned by Terry and Sylvia Jones and located on church property.
Financial and legal challenges later affected the church’s operations in Gainesville. Authorities raised concerns about the use of tax-exempt religious property for commercial purposes, resulting in property tax assessments and fines. In 2010, the Royal Bank of Canada called for repayment of a $140,000 mortgage loan, and the church also lost its property insurance.
In July 2013, the church’s 20-acre Gainesville property was sold following foreclosure. The congregation subsequently planned to relocate to the Tampa Bay area. The former property was later acquired by another ministry, a change that local leaders described as a positive development for the community.
In the years after the relocation, Jones’s public visibility declined, although he continued to make public statements. In 2017, reports indicated that he had been working as a driver for Uber but was removed from the platform after complaints that he shared anti-Islamic views with passengers.
Key Sources:
BBC News. (2011, April 1). Profile: Dove World Outreach Center.
CNN. (2010, September 10). Florida pastor calls off Quran burning.
Rautenkranz, L., & DuChanois, C. (2013, September 13). Gainesville Church location attempts to exorcise its Terry Jones demons. WUFT.
Voice of America. (2010, September 10). Church at Center of Quran burning controversy known for “Fringe” views.
Encyclopedia of Cults, Sects, and New Religious Movements 