The concept of the megachurch is so bizarre to me. I am sitting here reading about these massive churches with McDonalds, Starbucks, health clubs, oil lubes, amphitheatres that hold 5,000 people, professionally lit studio-esque auditoriums which are filmed every week and enough parking spaces cover the state of Delware. I mean seriously… check this one out! It’s an amazing room!
But not every community is all excited as one would think. “Sprouting up in the countryside, suburbs and cities, many of these giant houses of worship are antagonizing neighbors and local officials who say the churches cause noise, traffic jams and environmental damage. Churches also are exempt from property taxes, and some communities bemoan the loss of revenue that they could otherwise collect for roads, police and other services.
“Especially controversial are the non-traditional services that megachurches are offering, from hotels and day-care centers to bookstores and health clubs — activities that often would not be permitted in residential neighborhoods if they weren’t on church grounds. These quasi-business ventures bring in people and generate traffic throughout the week, not just on Sundays.”
“Usually founded or headed by charismatic pastors, the market-savvy churches target busy baby boomers and their kids, promoting one-stop shopping under their roofs. Take in a sermon, work out marital problems, then work out at the health club. Sip a latte at the coffee shop, browse in the bookstore and make a deposit at the credit union.”
Some interesting comments on this article from Plastic.com.
“Who the f— would actually want to belong to a church like this? I’m no theologian, but how could anyone possibly think that building an arena and installing a McDonald’s in it is something Jesus would appreciate, much less endorse?”
“Of course, churches traditionally ignore Scripture that doesn’t fit their game plans. If they didn’t, all those f—ing annoying religious shirts, bumper stickers and plastic Jesus fish would fall under “sackcloth and ashes.”
“Belief means more than putting a cute ornament on your trunk lid, and if your view of faith is encapsulated by something so secular and transitory as a bumper-sticker quote then it’s time for some serious re-examination. ”
“megachurch = ‘god talk’ + performance art + consumerism …what could be more american than that?
I’ve been to one or two of these in my time, and i fail to see much difference between most of these services and a pop concert combined with an overly emotional, watered-down ‘message’…not that the basis for this evolution of ‘performance christianity’ hasn’t already seeped into the rest of the churches in the US…by the way, can anyone tell me where in the bible it says the measure of the ‘success’ of the church is based on the number of heads you can get in the door on sunday?…. ….since this seems to be the prevailing notion…. “
My thought is this: The church is the body of Christ. We are there to invest ourselves in other’s lives and allow God to use us to bring them to Him. But Jesus is not about a big show. He never has been. Jesus is about humility and servanthood. He was born in a barn and the early church met in houses. I think that says something about the level of importance he placed on image.
Article Source � Megachurches clash with critics next door
Mon Sep 23, 7:09 AM ET � Haya El Nasser USA TODAY