We should maintain that if an interpretation of any word in any religion leads to disharmony and does not positively further the welfare of the many, then such an interpretation is to be regarded as wrong; that is, against the will of God, or as the working of Satan or Mara.

Buddhadasa Bikkhu, a Thai Buddhist Monk


Monday, June 27, 2011

Presbyterian Megachurches

The Hartford Institute for Religion Research website maintains a searchable database of over 1200 American Protestant "megachurches," defined as churches with an average worship attendance of 2000 or more a Sunday.  Just for fun, I did a little research on Presbyterian churches listed in the database and found the following bits of information:
  • The list includes 40 Presbyterian churches from four denominations:  15 Presbyterian Church (USA) churches; 12 Presbyterian Church in America churches; 5 Korean Presbyterian Church in America churches; 4 Evangelical Presbyterian Church congregations.  In addition, 3 Presbyterian churches were listed without any indication of denominational affiliation and one church is listed as a "Presbyterian" church affiliated with the Christian Reformed Church.
  • The largest Presbyterian church in the database is Hope PC in Cordova, Tennessee, which has an average attendance of 7,330.  It is an EPC congregation.
  • The distinction of being the largest PC(USA) church in the database is shared by two congregations: Menlo Park PC, Menlo Park, California, and University PC, Seattle, Washington.  They both number 3,200 worshippers per Sunday.
  • Only two New York Presbyterian churches made the list: Redeemer PC (EPC), New York City, with 4,000 worshippers per Sunday and  Korean PC (KPCA), Flushing, with 3,000 worshippers per Sunday.
  • In its webpage entitled, "Megachurch Definition," the Hartford Institute notes that over 60% of America's megachurches are located in the southern "Sunbelt" region of the nation stretching from California to the Atlantic coast.  Of the 40 Presbyterian churches in the database, 29 (72%) are located in that region.
If, by any chance, you are interested in more information on and insights into American megachurches, the Hartford Institute website contains a wealth of material to chew on.