Beyond Megachurch Myths -- A Review


Scott Thumma and Dave Travis, Beyond Megachurch Myths: What We Can Learn from America’s Largest Churches. Foreword by Rick Warren. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2007. (HB) xxvii + 224 pp.

Is the mega-church a bane or a blessing for American Protestantism? This is a question that has received much attention in academic, clergy, and lay circles. Everyone seems to have an opinion – with some loving them and others hating them. There are, of course, others – like me – who are somewhat ambivalent. As a Mainline Protestant small church pastor, I have my questions, but I’m willing to learn transferable lessons.

Beyond Megachurch Myths seeks to correct the perception that megachurches are not only bad for the soul; they’re dinosaurs in danger of dying off. As one would expect from a book carrying the imprimatur of Rick Warren, this is at least in part an apologia for the megachurch movement. The authors, Scott Thumma and Dave Travis, believe in megachurches and they believe that they’re here to stay. In fact, they believe that we will likely see many more of them in the future. The purpose of the book then, is to debunk the myths and stereotypes that have emerged as megachurches have grown and spread their wings across the nation.

The book is based in large part on a set of surveys of megachurches that were conducted by Scott Thumma. Thumma, a researcher from Hartford Seminary had teamed with Travis, a church consultant with Leadership Network, to interpret the data and debunk nine myths about megachurches. First, a definition: A megachurch is “a Protestant church that averages at least two thousand total attendees in their weekend services” (p. xviii). More than 1250 congregations meet those criteria (with more than 4.5 million people worshiping together on any given weekend).

These are the nine myths: They’re all alike, they’re just too big, they’re based on personality cults, they’re concerned only about themselves and their attendees, they water down the faith, are bad for other churches, are homogeneous in race, class, and political affiliation, grow because they entertain, and finally, that they’re in the process of dying because young people don’t like them. As with any stereotype there is truth to the critiques, but the very fact that the movement is extraordinarily diverse means that the stereotypes easily fall apart. Megachurches may not be for everyone, but many people find them just right – and for many different reasons.

The reason for studying such a movement is that simply because of their size they have a significant footprint on American religious life. Whereas, once the media might have turned to a denominational or seminary official for comment, more often than not today it will be a Rick Warren or a Jeremiah Wright who is consulted. Even small churches, like mine, are influenced at least to a degree by what happens in the nation’s megachurches. So it is best that we approach this movement free of misconceptions – critiquing where necessary but learning whenever possible from them.

In answering the first of the myths – that they’re all alike – we’re introduced to four distinctive types – the “old-line/program-based” church, the “seeker church,” the Charismatic/pastor-focused church, and finally the New Wave/Re-Envisioned Church. The first type tends to be the oldest, the New Wave the newest, and the Seeker church may be the focus of many of our stereotypes. Megachurches come in all colors and styles, from liberal to conservative, from traditional to rock and roll. Some are homogeneous but others are quite diverse in ethnic and economic and even theological dimensions. Some are centered on the personality of the pastor, but others are not – some are even team led. Some have big TV ministries, but most don’t.

Most of these churches, especially the newer ones, are in touch with the culture around them. They are technologically savvy, professional in output, and they seek to be relevant not only in their preaching but in their worship style (though again there are those churches that are quite liturgical or traditional). Many are very informal and casual in dress, but others expect you to dress up. It would seem that there is a style of church for just about everyone.

In exploring the myths and the realities, we discover that these churches have grown in part because they are in tune with the culture but also because they have shown the ability to adapt and to evolve. They also offer people options that a small congregation cannot offer. That being said, there are difficulties in making the transitions – especially when that involves pastoral succession. Some have made that kind of transition easily, but others have foundered.

The authors understand that there is a flip side to all of this. Megachurches have to be more intentional about assimilation (though even small churches must be attuned to this issue). Megachurch pastors find themselves at a distance from their congregants. Pastoral care has to be delivered in other ways than through the senior pastor.

The book is quite useful in that it points the reader to lessons that can be learned from the megachurch. The key for smaller churches and their clergy is not to get caught up in envy, but to recognize that every church is different and that not everyone is interested in being part of something so large. But we can learn that worship should be joyous, that quality of presentation is important, and that evangelism must have intentionality to it. Because the megachurch is here to stay, at least for the foreseeable future, it does us no good to lament its presence – after all I shop at Costco myself.

It is the future that interests me the most. I noticed that the book skirted theological issues. And while not all megachurches are conservative, it’s likely that a majority of them are. So if the theological and the political climates change how will that effect the movement? In other words is this a style more suited to theologically conservative churches? Among the critics of this movement are participants in the Emergent movement (even though some of these churches are mega-churches themselves), but this critique requires more exploration, for the world might be changing in ways that could undermine the largeness and even the professionalism of the megachurch.

I wonder too about the effect of environmental issues and the increase in gas prices. Will going green effect how the church exists in the world – megachurches have an extraordinarily large footprint – with their parking lots and use of electricity and gas. That they tend to be regional churches rather than neighborhood churches, will people be less likely to drive 15 to 30 miles to go to church? One answer may be found in the move made by some megachurches to become multi-site congregations. In some ways that’s a return to an ancient practice, one that in essence created the monarchical episcopate in the second century. Might megachurch pastors become bishops overseeing multiple congregations while overseeing a cathedral church?

Some of these questions must wait for the future to be answered. I’m not an expert in this field, so I defer somewhat to the ones doing the studies. The reality is that for now at least we must learn to live with and hopefully learn from the megachurches in our midst. We needn’t be afraid of critiquing them when deserved, but as the authors demonstrate we should not fall victim to stereotype. For that reason, this book needs to be read – likely in tandem with something like Diana Butler Bass’s Christianity for the Rest of Us (HarperSanFrancisco, 2006).

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