The Mega Church Bubble Is Bursting

The Tennessean (with pretty good religious coverage) had a big article in the Sunday, November 20, paper on the mega church bubble -- wondering if it might be bursting.  You can read it all for yourself.  It is not earth shattering news but the solid reporting of what happens when churches and the pastors who lead them become so intertwined that the church cannot exist without the pastor.  We have see it often enough.  The Crystal Cathedral is but one current example but it does not take much to see how applicable are the lessons of Schuller and the deterioration of his once thriving evangelical empire.

I remember hearing of Rex Humbard and his Cathedral of Tomorrow from Akron, Ohio.  A one-time itinerant preacher, he became one of the best-known television evangelists in America.  At the height of his popularity his Cathedral Of Tomorrow program was seen on more than 600 stations. In the 1950s he dedicated his $4 million domed Cathedral of Tomorrow  -- a huge, plush 5,000-seat circular sanctuary complete with velvet drapes, hydraulic stage and a 100ft-long Cross suspended horizontally overhead, studded with thousands of light bulbs in red, white and blue.

Humbard's weekly broadcast (Cathedral Of Tomorrow) mixed preaching and music, the principal performers being his wife (an accomplished gospel singer), their children, a 48-strong choir and the immaculately-groomed Cathedral Quartet. Humbard himself, in a sharp business suit, would contribute folksy songs on his guitar, preach a sermon, offer prayers and utter blessings along the lines of "God bless you real good".  By 1994 it was all gone and the Cathedral sold.  

He was but one of many who saw the rise and fall of fortune upon their evangelical empires.  The Bakkers, Jimmy Swaggert, Oral Roberts, and so many others found failure either through the moral weakness or the inability to pass on what was a personal appeal to children or other successors.  Whether local, regional, or national, the problem is the same -- church and preacher have become one and the same.  How does a mega church transition to other leadership?  It is not something I worry about but I can guess it is on the minds of the Rick Warrens, Bill Hybels, Joel Osteens, and J. D. Jakes of this world.

Yet while the media is readily pointing out the failures of those once invincible churches and preachers, some church bodies are thinking that their model is still worth following.  Not a few in Missouri are building mission starts with the same grand vision of satellite campuses and a dynamic leader whose charisma and personality are copied from place to place in an attempt to start out big (instead of beginning small and working your way up).  It makes me wonder if we will not be left with the same kinds of empty shells of the visions and plans of these energetic leaders whose legacy may be more personal than churchly and their shoes pretty hard for anyone to fill.

In the Twin Cities, one of the largest Lutheran congregations in America will be working on translating what has largely been the fruit of one man's leadership on to those who now take his place.  With his father, Paul Youngdahl built what became the nation's largest ELCA congregation, but his ministry remained very personal. It is this personal nature that makes it hardest for a successor to build upon the legacy of Youngdahl and continue the Mount Olivet miracle.  At 6-foot-7, Youngdahl not only was a towering figure on the basketball court but his skill as a leader made him a towering figure in the church.  He leaves some mighty big shoes to fill after personally serving this parish since 1968, as senior Pastor since 1974.  Many will be watching to see if the transition will be successful.

Although the parish I serve is fairly small (250-300 in worship attendance), I wonder how difficult the transition will be when I am no longer here.  I have already begun my 19th year here and, unless a surprise from God comes, will probably finish my full-time service here.  That could mean that this parish would have the same Pastor for nearly 30 years.  This is not a problem for me but it might become a problem for those who cannot imagine another Pastor serving them.  But the issues faced here are minor in comparison to the problem of sustaining multi-million dollar budgets, maintaining hundred million dollar campuses, and keeping thousands of seats filled each Sunday...

How easy it is for us to displace Jesus and put ourselves center stage.... And how hard it is for us to separate ourselves from our egos...  Lord, keep us from becoming our own worst enemies and working against what is Your Church and Your work!