Jonathan Wace is the Universal Humanitarian Church’s founder and leader, known by church members as Papa J. We first hear of Wace in the exchanges between Sir Colin Edensor and Kevin Pirbright.  Jonathan’s first wife Jennifer drowned off Cromer beach, the same beach where his daughter Daiyu Wace also drowned a few years later. He and Jennifer had a daughter, Abigail, and he also has two sons, Taio and Jiang, with his second wife Mazu (Prologue).

Kevin said that lots of the women at the Universal Humanitarian Church were ‘crazy’ about Jonathan including the elderly Margaret Cathcart-Bryce, the Golden Prophet. Jonathan Wace travels the UK and abroad visiting other UHC centres, running seminars and self-realisation courses (Ch 7).

Robin first encounters Jonathan Wace when she attends a service at the Temple in Rupert Court. He is described as a handsome, tall and fit looking man in his mid-sixties who could have passed for a couple of decades younger. He had thick, dark, shoulder length hair threaded with silver, large dark blue eyes and a square jaw and a dimple on his chin (Ch 10). Speaking with Strike, Robin describes Wace as very charismatic (Ch 11).

Robin meets Jonathan Wave again in her first week at Chapman Farm where he lectures the potential recruits on the atrocities in the materialist world and leads them in chants. Wace has written a book called ‘The Answer’ which includes personal anecdotes and Church doctrine. The Answer is often quoted by members, and Church leaders read from it whilst members work (Ch 27).

Jonathan is also present at the end of Robin’s first week of service at the farm. He greets Robin, and a handful of others, in person as he walks through the room (Ch 35).

Later in the book, Jonathan leads a very well attended ‘SuperService’ at Kensington Olympia, after which he and Strike meet for the first time (Ch 112).