List of megachurches in the United States
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This is a list of the largest megachurches in the United States with a weekly attendance of more than 10,000, sometimes also termed a gigachurch.[1][2] According to The Hartford Institute's database, approximately 50 churches had attendance ranging from 10,000 to 47,000 in 2010.[3] The same source also lists more than 1,300 such Protestant and Evangelical churches in the United States with a weekly attendance of more than 2,000, meeting the definition of a megachurch.[4]
As the term megachurch in common parlance refers to Protestant congregations; although there are some Catholic parishes which would meet the criteria, they are not listed.[5] St Ann's in Coppell, Texas, would be near the top, with almost 30,000 registered parishioners in 2013.[6] St. Matthew Catholic Church in the Ballantyne neighborhood of Charlotte, North Carolina likewise has been described as a Catholic megachurch[7] with nearly 36,000 registered members in 2017 and 11 weekly masses.[8] Weekly attendance figures may be lower than the number of registered parishioners, and the differences in the way the churches operate and the way attendance is counted are given as reasons for not including Catholic churches in lists of megachurches.[3]
Membership numbers of the following churches give only a very rough indication of size. They vary from year to year. Also, some churches report typical Sunday attendance while others report the number who are listed in church records or make financial contributions, which may be higher. Some of the larger churches are multi-site churches. Many churches deliver their message through television or other media, sometimes reaching much higher numbers than those who physically attend the church.
List
Note that the attendance numbers are often provided by the church itself.
See also
Notes
- The "City" column indicates where each listed church has its main location.
- Numbers are rounded to the nearest hundred.
- Including 2 campus plants.
- Prestonwood also operates two Spanish congregations, one at its main campus in Plano and the other at its Prosper campus.
- Although Southeast Christian has a Louisville mailing address, its main worship complex is within the city limits of Middletown. The governments of Louisville and surrounding Jefferson County merged in 2003, but Middletown and the 82 other cities (apart from Louisville) in Jefferson County retained separate city limits and some governmental powers.
- Although Southland Christian is historically associated with Lexington, it moved to an unincorporated area of Jessamine County, about a half-mile (800 m) from the Lexington boundary, in 1981. The church long maintained a Lexington mailing address, but now has a Nicholasville mailing address. Southland opened a new satellite campus in Lexington in 2013.