church growth in the USA

[ufamtobie]

The CC has been around longer yes. JS was not a cowboy and as to the CC being founded by Christ we should save that for another thread.

Would you mind saving you unrelated attack crud for another thread?

Teancum, It is very related how could you say not, I am correcting your thread regarding how could you compare the Catholic Church History and Mormonism history what i am doing is correcting you with facts.

Teancum, i see your true colors coming through with your profanity.

Ufamtobie

 

[ralphinal]

To say that only two will be left is an overstatement. To say that those denominaitons that have abandoned legetimate teachings will decrease until they either fix the problem or go away is not.

There are megachurches that are growing and there are some that are in trouble. There are small churches that are growing and some are dying off. It is the nature of the beast.

It does not mean anything that a large percentage of any denomination is former Catholic other than a couple of points. First, Catholics make up the largest single form of Christianity in AMerica and the world. More Catholics means more former Catholics. Second, it may show aggressive work at attracting former and current Catholics. It cannot show that these denominations have more truth than the Catholic Church. It cannot mean that these groups are closer to God or have more Holy Spirit in them. It cannot mean that they are the true faith.

 

[abucs]

The church you describe Cat sounds like a very positive situation. I wish them well.

 

[RC_Matt]

I’m not sure if I understand your question.

We have a megachurch in our city, planted by the Willow Creek Association. Approximately 10,000 people attend every weekend (Sat and Sun worship “experiences”). That’s 10,000 people IN ATTENDANCE, not just listed on a membership roster. A few months ago, the church bought another piece of property (an old restaurant) to use for the overflow Sunday crowds. (The sermons and music are all broadcast to the congregation in attendance via video.)

This megachurch has taken thousands of people, including several pastors, from various churches in our community, but it also attracts people who have never been church-goers. That’s a good thing, IMO.

The Bible says that we’ll know they are Christians by whether they obey Christ. This megachurch has put many of the other churches to shame with their active involvement in the community and by leading the community relief for Katrina victims. Many people visit that church because they are curious to know why these people are so GOOD!

In answer to your question, it is definitely a Christian church, teaching Jesus Christ crucified, risen, and coming again. There is no heresy taught, except for the Protestant errors (heresies, if you prefer). But they don’t deny the Virgin Birth, or the literal resurrection of Jesus, or the non-existence of hell, like some of the liberal denominations teach.

It is what I and others call “Christian Lite.” A very simplistic version of the Gospel, basically stating “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved.” There is no fallacy in this verse of Scripture, is there? Yes, it leaves a lot out. But it’s the True Gospel of Jesus.

I believe, as do others, that the nondenominational megachurches are a “starting place” for someone to meet Jesus and learn basic Christian theology. Once they grow up a little (in the Lord), I believe that many of them will make the switch to deeper churches, including the Catholic Church. We have already had several “refugees” from the megachurch come to our parish, claiming that “they want a deeper theology, more “meat” of the Bible, not just the milk.”

Another function of megachurches and non-denoms is that they are a good place for people who have been hurt in their church or by so-called “Christians” to “hide” for a while and just sit back and rest and recover from the hurt. Once their wounds are healed, they can venture forth and re-join a deeper church that demands more of them. It’s certainly better that these hurt ones attend a megachurch rather than abandon church entirely or worse, curse all churches.

So it’s my opinion that we shouldn’t knock non-denominational churches and megachurches, but accept them as Christian fellowships and remember the words of Our Lord: “If they’re not against us, they’re for us.”

I used to attend a moderate non-denom with an ex-girlfriend who was very active in that church (this was after I had already gone to the early Mass). The Pastor was a good guy, I never heard him say anything that he couldn’t have said in the Catholic Church across the street. In fact, I did enjoy his sermons and learned from them. They had some good ideas, like an equipped play room for small children, a nursery for babies and a coffee bar to encourage fellowship after the service. Of course there was only one service, so it was heavily attended. They also had a teen club, with dances and activities, and there was lots of participation. They also had social groups for adults and, similarly, there was very good participation in those.

The problem was that, other than a 30 or 40 minute sermon and the Lord’s Prayer, it did not seem like a church. It seemed the focus was more on keeping people entertained than on community worship of God. They had a quasi rock band (and a pretty bad one in my opinion), that did lots of contemporary Christian music and I found that more annoying than anything else. I guess Christianity-Lite would be a good way to put it.

The other issue that occurs to me is that children raised in that church don’t have a church “home” and can easily drift away once they leave the neighborhood. When I went off to college, there was no excuse for me not to attend Mass (and that’s not to say I didn’t miss my share of them regardless). I did, however, note that my Catholic contemporaries almost universally kept the faith and did, albeit irregularly in many cases, attend Mass. This was much less the case with others. As a aside, my nominally Baptist roommate tagged along with me to Mass a few times and before long was waking ME up on Sun mornings so we could make it to Mass. He ended up becoming a very good Catholic himself. I thought his mother would freak, but the change in him was so discernable (he even got off academic probation and graduated) that she was cool with it and now has Catholic grandchildren.

 

[Cathdefender]

Bottom line from all this? The Catholic church will ALWAYS exist no matter what because Jesus told us so.

 

[teancum79]

Teancum, It is very related how could you say not, I am correcting your thread regarding how could you compare the Catholic Church History and Mormonism history what i am doing is correcting you with facts.

Teancum, i see your true colors coming through with your profanity.

Ufamtobie

Profanity??? please define.

The LDS church has a long history of standing up for its values. How does your false accusations directed towards a church leader help in this discussion?

It like people saying all priest are child molesters. It is incorrect and has nothing to do with the topic at hand. It is nothing more than a pitiful attempt to attack other beliefs.

Is it asking to much for you to discuss this topic?