Multisite Churches Expanding Rapidly Across US, Attracting Nearly 10% of Protestant Churchgoers

Multisite Churches Expanding Rapidly Across US, Attracting Nearly 10% of Protestant Churchgoers

Multisite churches are expanding rapidly across the United States, attracting nearly one in 10 Protestant churchgoers, but their growth is increasingly outpacing the development of qualified leaders, according to a new national study. The report identified more than 1,800 multisite churches operating over 6,000 campuses nationwide, highlighting the growing influence of congregations that maintain multiple worship locations under a unified organizational structure.
  • Episcopal Church Membership Falls Below 1.5 Million Amid Decades-Long Decline
    The Episcopal Church continued to experience declining membership in 2025, with its total number of members falling by nearly half a million over the past decade, according to newly released denominational statistics. An analysis of the denomination’s 2025 Parochial Report showed that membership stood at approximately 1.425 million in 2025, compared with 1.917 million in 2015.
  • Highland Park UMC Moves Toward Leaving Denomination With Vote Set for Oct. 25
    Highland Park United Methodist Church (HPUMC), one of the United Methodist Church’s largest congregations, is preparing for a membership vote later this month that could end its longstanding affiliation with the denomination. The Dallas-area megachurch’s Church Council voted Tuesday unanimously to approve a resolution calling for a congregation-wide vote on whether to sever ties with the United Methodist Church (UMC).

2819 Church Draws 80,000 to AT&T Stadium for Prayer and Worship

Nearly 80,000 people gathered with Pastor Philip Anthony Mitchell and 2819 Church at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on Saturday for a large-scale evening of prayer and worship. Ed Newton, senior pastor of Community Bible Church in San Antonio, attended the event, known as “ACCESS — That Powerful Hour of Prayer.” Free tickets for the gathering were claimed within eight hours.
  • U.S. Protestant Sermons Grow Longer as More Churchgoers Favor Extended Messages
    U.S. Protestant pastors are delivering somewhat longer sermons than they did several years ago, while most churchgoers remain generally satisfied with the amount of time their pastors spend preaching, according to Lifeway Research. Four in five pastors, or 80%, said their typical sermon lasts less than 40 minutes. About half, or 52%, said they usually preach for under 30 minutes, while 28% reported messages lasting between 30 and 40 minutes.
  • Josh Howerton Says He’d Use Ladder Illustration Again to Reach People Despite Online Mockery
    Pastor Josh Howerton of Lakepointe Church in Rockwall, Texas, faced online criticism after using two large ladders during a sermon to depict the tension between following Christ and seeking the approval of the world. The illustration came during a Sept. 20 message in his “Fight the Good Fight” series, where Howerton used the ladders to represent the growing divide between biblical authority and cultural pressure.
  • Louisiana UMC Launches $15M Initiative to Pay Church Debt, Fund New Ministries
    The Louisiana Conference of The United Methodist Church has introduced a $15 million program aimed at strengthening its remaining congregations, setting aside $5 million for debt relief and $10 million for ministry development. Known as the Jubilee Initiative, the plan comes after 162 Louisiana churches left the denomination in 2022 and 2023 amid conflicts over same-sex marriage and the ordination of noncelibate gay clergy.
More News

  • Court Dismisses JAFC Lawsuit Seeking Separation From Anglican Church in North America

    A federal judge has rejected a lawsuit brought by a chaplains organization seeking to separate from the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA). U.S. District Judge Bruce Hendricks of the District of South Carolina’s Charleston Division issued the dismissal Monday in a case filed by leaders of the Jurisdiction of the Armed Forces and Chaplaincy (JAFC).

  • CCP Detains Pastors at Beijing Church as House Church Crackdown Expands

    Chinese authorities have detained multiple pastors and church workers from Beijing Jiaquan Church, an independent house church that has operated in the capital for more than two decades. ChinaAid founder and President Bob Fu said his organization is “urgently concerned for the safety, health and legal rights of every Jiaquan pastor and church co-worker who has been taken away.”

  • SBC President Seeks New Baptist Faith & Message Article on Gender and Human Sexuality

    Southern Baptist Convention President Willy Rice has proposed amending the Baptist Faith & Message in response to what he considers cultural confusion over gender and marriage. Speaking before the SBC Executive Committee on Monday, Rice said that marriage has been “redefined in ways unprecedented in human history.”

  • Biltmore Church Baptizes Record 458 People at Annual Outdoor Service

    A North Carolina multisite church baptized 458 people in one day, marking the largest baptism event in the congregation’s 137-year history. Biltmore Church held its annual Outdoor Baptism event Sept. 13 at a private property in Fletcher, North Carolina, where a lake provided the setting for the baptisms.

  • Lambeth Palace Revokes Award to Muslim Cleric After Bin Laden Comments Resurface

    The Church of England has withdrawn an interfaith award from a Pakistani Muslim cleric after past comments praising Osama bin Laden resurfaced. Lambeth Palace announced Thursday that it had rescinded the Hubert Walter Award for Reconciliation and Interfaith Cooperation presented to Maulana Hafiz Muhammad Tahir Mehmood Ashrafi on Sept. 11.

  • Episcopal Diocese of Florida Chooses New Bishop After Years of Election, LGBT Disputes

    The Episcopal Diocese of Florida has elected a new bishop after operating without a permanent diocesan leader for nearly three years amid disputes over a previous election process and LGBT-related concerns. The diocese chose the Rev. J. Randolph Alexander Jr., rector of Immanuel Church-on-the-Hill in Alexandria, Virginia, to become its ninth bishop. He secured the election on the third ballot with 86 clergy votes and 78 lay votes.

  • UMC Launches Solar and Battery Pilot Program for U.S. Churches

    The United Methodist Church has introduced a pilot initiative aimed at helping congregations across the United States install solar panels and strengthen their sustainability efforts through specialized training. The UMC Solar and Battery Pilot Program was launched jointly by the General Board of Global Ministries Environmental Sustainability and the United Methodist Committee on Relief U.S. Disaster Response.

  • Sydney Pastors Say “LGBTQ Left-Wing Activists” Attacked Home, Threatened to Kill Family

    A married pastoral couple in Sydney, Australia, say four men described as “LGBTQ left-wing activists” targeted their family home and threatened to kill them only days after their address was reportedly shared online. Echo Church, the Pentecostal congregation led by Andrew Sedra and his wife, Noleen, said in a Facebook post that the men confronted the couple at their home along with relatives Martin and Millicent Sedra and the relatives’ newborn baby.
Most Read
Other Headlines