Elevation Church is a

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul c ...

Evangelical Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...

multi-site

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 ...

pastored by Steven Furtick, based in

Charlotte Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

, North Carolina, affiliated with the

Southern Baptist Convention The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination, and the largest Protestant and second-largest Christian denomination in the United States. The wor ...

.Southern Baptist Convention
Elevation
sbc.net, USA, Retrieved January 14, 2018 Weekly

church attendance Church attendance is a central religious practice for many Christians; some Christian denominations, such as the Catholic Church require church attendance on the Lord's Day (Sunday); the Westminster Confession of Faith is held by the Reformed ...

was 27,408 people in 2021. Elevation has 23 locations.

History

The church began as a

church plant Church planting is a term referring to the process (mostly in Protestant frameworks) that results in a new local Christian congregation being established. It should be distinguished from church development, where a new service, worship center or ...

of the

Baptist State Convention of North Carolina The Baptist State Convention of North Carolina (BSCNC) is an autonomous association of Baptist churches in the state of North Carolina. It is one of the state conventions associated with the Southern Baptist Convention. Headquartered in Cary, North ...

, with Steven Furtick and seven other families from Christ Covenant Church in Shelby, North Carolina, relocated to

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most popu ...

, meeting in Providence High School. On February 5, 2006, the first Sunday worship service, 121 people attended.Funk, Tim
"A Cool Pastor, and a Hot Church"
''Charlotte Observer'', September 14, 2008. Accessed October 15, 2015. By 2013, the church's regular attendance had grown to nearly 15,000 people weekly. According to a 2018 church census, it claimed a weekly attendance of 25,317 people and 16

campuses A campus is traditionally the land on which a college or university and related institutional buildings are situated. Usually a college campus includes libraries, lecture halls, residence halls, student centers or dining halls, and park-like se ...

in different cities.Lifeway research
2018 Largest Churches in America
outreachmagazine.com, USA, retrieved January 16, 2021 As of 2022, Elevation averages 26,000 attendees, with an additional 65,000 attending on their online platform called eFam.

Beliefs

The Church has a

confession of faith A creed, also known as a confession of faith, a symbol, or a statement of faith, is a statement of the shared beliefs of a community (often a religious community) in a form which is structured by subjects which summarize its core tenets. The ea ...

and is a member of the

Outreach

Since 2006, Elevation Church has given more than $10 million.Watson, Stuart
"I-Team: How a pastor built a multi-million dollar home"
. Retrieved October 27, 2013. In 2011, a partnership with Charlotte Mayor

Anthony Foxx Anthony Renard Foxx (born April 30, 1971) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the United States Secretary of Transportation from 2013 to 2017. President Barack Obama nominated him in April 2013, and he was confirmed by a 100–0 v ...

was established to give 100,000 hours and $750,000 to serve Charlotte people in "The Orange Initiative." In 2012, the church completed The Orange Initiative with over 102,000 hours served.Baxter, Jennifer
"Elevation church keeps growing."
Charlotte Observer 04 Sept. 2011. Retrieved 2011-10-20. In 2008, Elevation Church gave out $40,000 to members, in envelopes filled with $5, $20, even $1,000, and told them to spend it kindly on others. In 2012, Elevation Church launched an initiative calling for members to mentor children for the 2012–2013 school year, with over 1,600 responding."Over 1,600 Elevation Church Volunteers Answer Call to Mentor Students"
''Christian Post'', September 25, 2012. Accessed October 27, 2012. The school outreach program was criticized in local LGBT media. In 2020, Elevation Church partnered with

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and ...

driver

Joey Logano Joseph Thomas Logano (born May 24, 1990), is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 22 Ford Mustang for Team Penske, and part-time in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Serie ...

through his foundation to establish a $1 million

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quick ...

Response and Recovery Fund. Elevation also teamed up with the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina, giving away 17,000 meals to people in need during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Love week

Since 2010, Elevation Church has hosted a week-long outreach called "Love Week."Smith, Brittany
"Elevation, 50 NC Churches to Serve Homeless, Elders for LOVE Week"
''Christian Post.'' February 10, 2012. During the church's 2010 "Love Week," Elevation members packed more than 10,000 sandwiches for the homeless, helped single mothers get their cars serviced, donated blood, cleaned up parks and streets, built a soccer field for local ministries and renovated buildings. In 2011, Elevation and over 25 other local churches served more than 34,000 hours in a single week. In 2012, Elevation partnered with 31 other churches to serve 62 outreach organizations for a total of 50,340 hours around the city of

Charlotte, N.C. Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most popu ...

Elevation also partnered with Presbyterian Hospital-Matthews to help fund enhancements and expansion at a local free clinic. During Elevation's 2021 Love Week, the church had 22,651 volunteers help for a total of 47,465 hours, serving 314 organizations with 1,588 total events. Elevation Church donated 1.6 million to outreach partners, while the volunteers made 2,200 baby care kits, 5,600 dignity kits for women and teens, 21,000 backpacks for students, and distributed 30,900 snack packs.

Public image

In 2014, Elevation Church has been criticized over its practice of selecting volunteers who wish to be baptized to do so during so-called "spontaneous

baptism Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost ...

" services. In response to the initial coverage, Elevation released a statement, which reads in part: "We are confident that those who attend Elevation Church know and understand our mission and vision for reaching people for Jesus Christ. As attendees, they are provided, through weekly teachings, biblical context for everything we do and practice, such as baptism, giving, serving and inviting friends to church."

References

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External links

Official websiteElevation Network website
Evangelical megachurches in the United States Megachurches in North Carolina Christian organizations established in 2006 Southern Baptist Convention churches Evangelical churches in Charlotte, North Carolina Baptist churches in North Carolina 21st-century Baptist churches in the United States Baptist multisite churches