A multi-site church is a specific
church congregation which holds services at multiple geographical locations, either within a specific metropolitan area or, increasingly, several such areas.
Characteristic
Within the multi-site approach, both the primary location (usually the one with the largest physical attendance) and the offsite locations will commonly have their own music worship and announcements pertaining to that congregation. Commonly, though, the sermon will be broadcast via satellite from the primary location, though some churches use on-site ministers to deliver the sermon, but generally it is the same sermon presented to all congregants at all locations.
History
The first church to become multi-site was Highland Park the Baptist Church in
Chattanooga, Tennessee
Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, ...
in 1942. In 1990, there were 10 multisite churches the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
. In 2014, there were 8,000 multisite churches. Some multi-site churches have also established campuses in prisons. A study by the Hartford Institute for Religion Research,
Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability
The Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA) is an American financial standards association representing Evangelical Christian organizations and churches, which qualify for tax-exempt, nonprofit status and receive tax-deductible co ...
, and Leadership Network published in 2020 found that 70% of American
megachurches
A megachurch is a church with an unusually large membership that also offers a variety of educational and social activities, usually Protestant or Evangelical. The Hartford Institute for Religion Research defines a megachurch as any Protestant C ...
had a multi-site network.
Controversies
American Professor Eddie Gibbs on Church Growth at
Fuller Theological Seminary
Fuller Theological Seminary is an interdenominational Evangelical Christian seminary in Pasadena, California, with regional campuses in the western United States. It is egalitarian in nature.
Fuller consistently has a student body that compri ...
, criticized the model of the video sermon broadcast in these churches for the lack of relationship between the pastor teacher and the faithful at each site, which would lead to messages less adapted to the reality of each campus.
[Bob Smietana, Rebecca Barnes]
High-Tech Circuit Riders
christianitytoday.com, USA, August 31, 2005
See also
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Bishopric
In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop.
History
In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...
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Megachurch
A megachurch is a church with an unusually large membership that also offers a variety of educational and social activities, usually Protestant or Evangelical. The Hartford Institute for Religion Research defines a megachurch as any Protestant C ...
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Satellite campus
A satellite campus or branch campus or regional campus is a campus of a university or college that is physically at a distance from the original university or college area. This branch campus may be located in a different city, state, or countr ...
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List of megachurches in the United States
This is a list of the largest megachurches in the United States with an attendance of more than 10,000 weekly, sometimes also termed a ''gigachurch''. According to that The Hartford Institute's database, approximately 50 churches had attendan ...
References
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