{"id":3488,"date":"2014-10-05T16:47:33","date_gmt":"2014-10-05T16:47:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/crcc\/california-megachurches\/"},"modified":"2025-09-04T21:17:30","modified_gmt":"2025-09-04T21:17:30","slug":"california-megachurches","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/crcc\/california-megachurches\/","title":{"rendered":"California Megachurches"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n\n \n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
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California Megachurches<\/h1>\n\n\n<\/div>\n \n \n \n October 5, 2014<\/span>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n <\/div><\/div>\n\n \n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
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Megachurches<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Adapted from the description provided by the Hartford Institute for Religion Research<\/a>. Visit Hartford’s website for an updated list of megachurches by state<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

When researchers talk about \u201cmegachurches,\u201d they are generally referring to any Protestant congregation with a sustained average weekly attendance of 2,000 persons or more in its worship services. There are nearly 1,600 megachurches in the United States, in addition to many more located throughout the world. Attendance at U.S. megachurches averages almost 4,000 people, with the largest, Joel Osteen\u2019s Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, averaging approximately 45,000 people attending services each week. The largest megachurches<\/a> however are located abroad, with the Yoido Full Gospel Church in Seoul, Korea averaging 240,000 in weekly attendance (480,000 including satellite campuses.) In California, there are 191 megachurches, comprising a total attendance of about 765,000 each week. The largest megachurch in the state is Saddleback Community Church in Lake Forest, with over 22,000 regularly attending weekly worship services.<\/p>\n

Interactive Map of California Megachurches:<\/strong><\/p>\n