On Sunday tonight, John talks to Jesus. The virgin birth? True? The virgin birth? True? No, no, it didn't happen. Jesus reincarnate,... I've had a 2000-year life. ...back on earth with Mary Magdalene... Imagine what it would be like to have your husband killed before you. ...and the Kiwi disciples. Oh, I believe that he is Jesus. WOMAN: She's like a great, big teddy bear. And polar bears in your swimming pool? And it just went... (IMITATES GROWL) The dangerous... (GROWLS) ...and the deadly in your own backyard. Copyright TVNZ Access Services 2013 Kia ora. I'm Miriama Kamo. Allan John Miller claims he's Jesus, and he's managed to convince a lot of other people he is the Messiah. Some of his disciples are Kiwis who say Miller speaks the truth, and they don't seem to mind he's shacked up with a woman claiming to be Mary Magdalene, or that he says much of the Bible is wrong. John Hudson with Jesus. I've had a 2000-year life. I am the same Jesus that was born of Joseph and Mary in the first century. His 21st century name is Allan John Miller, and he claims he's not crazy. Well, I think anybody who speaks with me can see that I` I don't seem to be psychologically disturbed. Let's face it. A lot of people have said they're Jesus, and some of them are in psychiatric hospitals. and some of them are in psychiatric hospitals. I agree. Yeah. What makes you different? Anybody who knows me personally knows that I don't have a Messiah complex. Mary who lives with me knows that I'm pretty sane. AJ lives with Mary Luck, who says in the first century she was Mary Magdalene and witnessed the crucifixion of Jesus. MARY: Yep, I was there, and it was very, um... If you can imagine what it would be like to have your husband killed in front of you, that's` That's how traumatic it was for me. Back in the first century, says Mary, she and Jesus were married. And, um, I was pregnant, and I was losing the person I loved the most in all the world. There must be thousands of people watching this who've heard your beliefs now and think, 'You're in la-la land.' 'You're in la-la land.' BOTH: Yep. (LAUGH) 'You're in la-la land.' BOTH: Yep. (LAUGH) And what do you say to that? Uh, look, I've` we've gone through a lot around it, and I can tell you definitively I don't believe we're in la-la land. Maybe everyone in la-la land thinks that they're not in la-la land, but... (LAUGHS) You might think the kangaroos are loose in their top paddock, but AJ and Mary have a growing band of faithful followers who think they're for real. People like Kiwi doctor Karen Pronk. I very much believed in God, but I didn't believe in what the Church was saying was the truth. So Karen, a former palliative care specialist, went to listen to Jesus. Most of us have learned faith by the time we're 3 years of age, in fact. All right? Just not faith in God. He didn't have any sense of, you know, 'I'm Jesus, therefore I'm better than you, and you better listen carefully to what I have to say.' If he had said that he was God, I think I would have left immediately and never bothered to listen to him. It seems to be stretching a long bow to have Jesus and Mary Magdalene reincarnated in rural Queensland. If he's coming back, um, to teach us how to connect with God, to teach us about truth and love, then... maybe he would do it in exactly the same way that it happened the first time, that he would just be one of the people. Do you remember the very first time I said to you that I was Jesus? And she's not alone. This multitude has come from far and wide to hear Jesus talk about God's divine love. When the love comes, then faith will come along with it. INTRIGUING MUSIC If I was looking for Jesus in the first century, I'd probably be on a donkey in the Holy Land heading for Nazareth. But today, 2000 years on, I'm trying to find Jesus up this dusty rural road in Queensland. These days, Jesus and Mary live on a 40-acre block of what was wasteland. The ground here, John, was sort of like` it was hard as a rock when I first came here... He's not turning water into wine. Just clay into topsoil. And you can that what's happening now is that it's sort of all... Oh, it's soft as too, yeah. Oh, it's soft as too, yeah. It's` It's beautiful soil. The way Jesus and Mary see it, saving the planet tree by tree should be a priority. If you look at what we're doing to the planet, we are still continuing to rape it at extreme rates. And that's a message that attracted Kiwi carpenter Max Love, who now lives just down the road from Jesus. I'd been searching for truth, really, about life, and I thought there's gotta be something more to life than this. Max says life close to Jesus and Mary has never been better, but it wasn't always that way. I actually was in depression, and I actually had at one point tried to commit suicide. I stood on top of a mountain in one of the national parks, and cried out to God for help. When he went to listen to AJ, Max realised just how much anger and pain he had bottled up inside. What showed me was, is just take the cap off the bottle and start letting those emotions flow out. I just started crying, crying to God, and it was like God's gift to me. And` And I, um, yeah, I still get pretty emotional about it. Yeah. > Yeah. > (BREATHES DEEPLY) Can we stop for a minute? It was just the best thing in my life. Cos I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for that, you know? 'Max says he was beaten and bullied as a child. 'He sought professional help for the depression and anger that caused, 'but it was AJ who gave him the answers.' So, who is AJ Miller? > (LAUGHS) To me, in my mind, I believe that he is Jesus, but in my soul, I don't know. He says he's Jesus reincarnated in the 21st century. Do you believe that? Do you believe that? I do accept that. But not everyone does. There's another AJ ` this is the driven man, who will demand everything from you, and that one has the heart of a tyrant. After the break, the theologian who spent weeks with Jesus and Mary. WOMAN: Many are looking forward to the second coming of Jesus. And we go to church to get a Christian perspective on the man who thinks he's Jesus. CHOIR SINGING CHOIR SINGING Sunday morning in the tiny Queensland town of Murgon. WOMAN: Many are looking forward to the second coming of Jesus. Some believe that will happen at the end of the age. # Praise the Lord, praise the Lord. # 'A small group of Christians are celebrating the Ascension ` 'the day the Bible says Jesus went to heaven. 'But just a few hundred metres away, the man who says he's Jesus is back.' What's stopping you going and having a listen to him? Well, the way he has come doesn't line up with the scriptures, and that makes me dubious. 'And that's not all that's troubling the local Christians.' His living with Mary is also cutting across orthodox belief that Jesus didn't need a human wife. I have an advantage over many people when I read the Bible, and that is it` it quotes my life. Can we go through some of the events the Bible says occurred in the first century? Sure, you can. Sure, you can. Um, the virgin birth. True? Sure, you can. Um, the virgin birth. True? No, no, it didn't happen. The crucifixion ` why? I know the Christians claim that the purpose was a sacrifice to appease God of wrath, to take away the sin of the world. That's not the case at all. to take away the sin of the world. That's not the case at all. Were you celibate? No. No, not at all. Mary was pregnant with our daughter, um, when` when I died, so, um` But we didn't have any other children. What's the feeling about AJ Miller and Mary in the parish? I think people remember that there'd been many who have come saying they're Christ reincarnated, and, um, so it's` It was just a little bit of a surprise that it should happen in our local area. Two years ago, Australia's Channel Seven screened a programme accusing AJ Miller of running a dangerous cult. I think you are at the early stages of becoming a cult leader. Well... (LAUGHS) I don't see how I can be a cult leader when I ask everybody to actually engage their own desires. But AJ says they got it all wrong. I'm quite plainly not saying that I'm God, and the Australian media still keep repeating that because I'm claiming I'm Jesus, I must be saying that I'm God and so forth. However, cult investigator David Millikan, who spent 10 months researching AJ, is standing by his claim that there's a dark side to AJ's character. Look, I think there are two AJs. The one you first meet is a knockabout, friendly, open Aussie bloke. But then there's another AJ. This is the driven man who will demand everything from you, and that one has the heart of a tyrant. The further you walk with him, the closer he will draw you in. And if you falter, he will spit you out as if you never existed. It's not a cult. It's, you know, we` we have free will. With a cult, I think that you're controlled and told what to do. What about money? Do people give him money? Yeah, people give donations. He's never, never demanded, never expected, never wanted any money. I've always seen a cult as a group of people who were very controlled by a leader, who did what they were told on great fear of punishment. Jesus doesn't have that at all. He's just like, 'This is the truth as I see it. 'Try it out for yourself if you want to, but it doesn't matter to me whether you do or not.' AJ and Mary spread their message of God's divine love on DVDs and the internet. They are said to have thousands of followers worldwide. AJ is not a conman. He believes every word that he's saying. How do you get to that stage that you believe that you're Jesus? I have my theories why it happened to AJ when it did, because he walked out of a fairly prominent position in a very authoritarian religious group, the Jehovah's Witnesses. He was forced to leave his family and his kids and all that sort of stuff, and he began to get these visions. He began to get flashes that he had been crucified. Oh, I started having feelings and memories of all sorts of events. Some` Some torture-based events and so forth. Vivid memories of life in the first century. Quite frequently, I went into denial about the process. But the memories kept on coming. AJ says he remembers not just that he was Jesus, but also that in the first century he was married to his soulmate, Mary Magdalene. But it took him a while to find her again in this era. I did believe at one point in time that a previous partner was probably Mary Magdalene. And then as I worked through more and more of my emotional issues and had more memories, I realised that she wasn't a part of those memories. And fortunately for AJ, the Mary he now lives with is young and good-looking. So Jesus, you've lucked out with a young, attractive Australian. It could have been an 85-year-old living out in Kazakhstan. And I was fully expecting that that was possible. (LAUGHS) But for Mary Luck, remembering she was the soulmate and wife of Jesus nearly 2000 years ago didn't come easily. I'm a very pragmatic kind of person, and being confronted with these memories in a way` and confronting my brain with them, I couldn't` I couldn't explain them. And it was very scary for me. Is there anything that would convince you that you're not Mary Magdalene, and that he's just a nice guy from the bush? He's just a very naughty boy. (LAUGHS) He's just a very naughty boy. (LAUGHS) He's just a naughty boy. (LAUGHS) I used to shop for these reasons. I would think of them all` Mary was on the lookout constantly. > Mary was on the lookout constantly. > I've been through a checklist of things where I thought, 'This is what's happening,' and I'd go down that route, and I'd think, 'No.' What are soulmates? I mean, it really sounds quite new age. The reality is God's made a complete soul, which has masculine and feminine qualities, which splits in half at the time of the first incarnation. And so those two halves belong to each other. It takes a massive leap of faith to believe AJ and Mary are reincarnated soulmates from the first century, but it's a leap many of these kind, sane people seem to have taken. The people around AJ are lovely people. But they have attached themselves to something that you and I know is nonsense, and that's what's fascinating. AJ is no one without his followers, so he needs them, but they need him. They need him to be the person that they sense he might be. If he's not Jesus Christ, they're not gonna follow him. He's just a` a knockabout bloke. John Hudson with Jesus, aka AJ Miller. Next ` weird pets. Why would you? In actual fact, this is the only species of snake in Australia that` Well, maybe they do bite. Do you think the late Steve Irwin has a lot to answer for? Nearly killed both of us. Son of a gun. So, how about this? A polar bear in your swimming pool; a pride of lions in your backyard; a grizzly bear who likes a cuddle. Thousands of people are doing it, excited by something dangerous or deadly in the backyard. Obviously, though, there are the downsides. GENTLE RURAL MUSIC Let's go meet Agee. Agee is like Mark's other wife or mistress. Agee is no ordinary pet. She's 17 now, and, you know, we adore her. She's a member of the family. Stand up. Agee, on both, OK? Good girl. When she's in a playful mood, it's a lot of fun. But you really have to be aware of her moods and her feelings. She's like a great, big teddy bear. 'As you might expect, Agee enjoys swimming. What you might not expect... < Down she goes. < Down she goes. Down she goes. > '...is that her owner, Mark Dumas, often joins her.' What's it like to swim with a polar bear? It's cold. It's cold. < (LAUGHS) It's cold. < (LAUGHS) (CHUCKLES) She was 8 weeks old when Mark and his wife Dawn got her from a Swedish zoo. So I started with Agee when she was a baby, and I would` I got her to swim to me in the water because she was afraid of the water at first. (COOS) You don't ever worry that she might turn on you one day? No, I don't worry that she's going to turn on me. If she's mad or if she's having a bad day, I respect that and` and, uh, don't push on her. And a salmon burp, huh? (GROWLS) OPERATOR: 911. OPERATOR: 911. MAN: Yeah, there's a lion... OPERATOR: 911. MAN: Yeah, there's a lion... WOMAN: I just saw a wolf. MAN: I think I've just seen one. Looks like a jaguar or a wolf or something. Across America, dangerous animals are the new status symbol ` legal to buy in nine states, a thriving black market in many others. (ROARS) It's really out of control right now. They're easy to get, they're cheap, everybody wants one. It's just` they're out there, and you could go to a flea market and pick one up. You can go to an auction and pick one up. You can get on the internet and order a venomous snake, something from Australia ` taipan. It'll be in your home within 24 hours. Rattlesnakes. We've got all different kinds. Here's a boom viper, a baby one. That's how quickly you can get something dangerous just because you saw it on TV. In Dayton, Ohio, Tim Harrison's job is risky enough as it is. There's only a few places like it in the world where police officers, firefighters and paramedics are wrapped into one. We do all three jobs. We're heavily trained. And at least twice a week, he and his fellow officers are called on to capture and remove dangerous animals. In these parts, the blame for this dangerous trend is being heaped on a legendary Australian. So you think the late Steve Irwin has a lot to answer for. Nearly killed both of us. Nearly killed both of us. SNAP! Nearly killed both of us. SNAP! Son of a gun. You know, God rest his soul, but you've got to remember one thing: if you teach people that it's OK to pick up a snake, then tell them not to do it, that's the wrong message. In actual fact, this is the only species of snake in Australia that get` CRUNCH! CRUNCH! Well, maybe they do bite. Then after reality TV started, all of a sudden, exploded. Oh! Little snapper! Why did you get this? 'Oh, I watched Steve Irwin on Crocodile Hunter. I wanted to imitate.' Monkey see, monkey do other TV hosts and their heroes on TV. Everybody wants a tiger cub, but then nobody wants a tiger. (GROWLS) (GROWLS) OK, won't take it away. For Denise Flores, the bug to have pets that bite began when she and her husband visited a wildlife park 15 years ago. We went back into the gift shop area, and I hear this noise, and it's like a little animal crying like... (IMITATES ANIMAL WHINING) It was a real` And I'm like, 'What is that?' to the lady, and she goes, 'Oh, it's a baby tiger.' And then she put a little tiger in my hands, and I just... melted. 'When the wildlife park was later sold, Denise found a good home ` her own home ` for three of the tigers. 'Every spare cent went into transforming the backyard into a big cat compound.' How many animals did you end up with? How many animals did you end up with? Seven tigers and a cougar. And that's when... things started changing here in Ohio. It was a year ago, what's become known as the Zanesville massacre ` a private owner with a mental problem released 56 wild animals into Zanesville County. Lions, tigers, bears, cougars... and they had no choice but to shoot them all. Ohio's politicians were forced to act, passing new laws making it harder to get and keep the deadly and the dangerous. Now with these new laws and all the expenses, you just cannot afford` > Now with these new laws and all the expenses, you just cannot afford` > We can't afford it any more. We're moving the last of the two tigers from Denise's property. Moving him up now. Watch your hands and feet, guys. But moving tigers is no easy matter. (GROWLS) I've sat out there with them for hours,... and I won't see them ever again. Then, a few hours later, their new home ` Black Pine Animal Sanctuary in neighbouring Indiana. Taz didn't arrive in the best of moods. (ROARS, GROWLS) I removed, in the last two-month period, 47 lions and tigers, 10 cougars, four alligators and a whole bunch of bears ` I'm gonna say close to 12. In this war, greed seems to be winning. And most surprisingly, it's the reclusive Amish who are profiting in a big way by breeding and selling big cats. Well, we're going to take you to a place here in Indiana, a little Amish community, and I want you and your producer to pretend you're a married couple, go in and tell them you want a tiger cub. The trade is well known, but those involved prefer to keep it secret from those who try to stop them. I've had guns pointed at me numerous times by Amish and by other people. On this farm, the farmer and his wife first showed us this exotic African deer for sale, then they told us what else was available. There's black market with pandas and everything. You can get anything you want if the price is right. Hey, how did it go? Hey, how did it go? Hey. Well, it was interesting. They've got cougars, tigers. They said pretty much anything you want. (CHUCKLES) You can get anything you want? (CHUCKLES) You can get anything you want? Anything you want. Not every life in captivity is sad. Agee seems happy, and now she has company too ` 6-year-old Billy, a grizzly who just loves a bear hug and any other display of affection. MARK: Give her a kiss. Kiss! Good kiss! Good boy! What a good bear! > < It must be more than a passion. < It must be more than a passion. It's a devotion. < It must be more than a passion. It's a devotion. It's a sickness. Oh, what a good boy! What a good bear! What a good boy. Yes, that could be it. That is our show for tonight.