Christian Megachurches in Singapore

Did you, like me, think Christian megachurches were an American phenomenon? Joel Ostein’s Lakewood Church in Texas has over 40,000 members, Andy Stanley’s North Point Community Church in Georgia has just over 20,000 and Charles Blake’s West Angeles Cathedral in California also has over 20,000 members.

Asia now rivals North America with Christian megachurches. According to author Philip Jenkins, in an article for The Christian Century, Christianity has soared in Singapore, doubling since 1980 and represents “about 20 percent of the state’s 5.5 million people.”

New Creation Church, pictured above, has over 30,000 members and “fits every stereotype of the expanding mega­church,” notes Jenkins.

Like their American cousins, Singapores’ megachurches offer

a wide range of media activities and is deeply involved in commercial and entrepreneurial investments. Immensely strengthened by the practice of tithing, these churches have become a huge economic force. New Creation’s main sanctuary, with its spaceship architecture, proclaims success and glitzy modernity.

Jenkins argues that the expansion of Christianity in Singapore matters because “Singapore is an influential center of wealth and media power for the Pacific Rim and the Chinese diaspora.”

Here are a couple of additional interesting stories about megachurches in Singapore.

• Reuters has an interesting story called Singapore’s megachurches move to export lucrative religion
• Bloomberg has another story called Singapore Mega-Church Christian Faithful Invest in Malls