This article highlights the rise of the multi-site church (one pastor, multiple locations) and a Jacksonville church was highlighted for their innovation.
The article is very in depth on the movement so I have excerpted just the section on Shiloh Metropolitan.
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2015/june/wiser-multisite-church-movement-after-mars-hill.html Becoming the campus of a bigger, more successful church is like “having a wedding and a funeral on the same day,” said H. B. Charles Jr., pastor of Shiloh Metropolitan Church.
The 8,000-member African American megachurch was looking to expand from its downtown campus in Jacksonville. They’d hoped to plant a church in Orange Park, about 35 minutes away, where a number of members already lived.
At the same time, Ridgewood Baptist Church, a mostly white congregation of about 500, had lost momentum and members after their pastor died in 2008. His death came on the heels of a major building project. Members were left with about $5 million in debt and no clear path forward.
In a rush to expand their brand, larger churches can easily discard small churches’ unique history. And small churches are tempted to give hero status to the bigger church.
After learning about Ridgewood from the Jacksonville Baptist Association, Shiloh thought about renting space from them. Eventually the conversation switched from planting a new church in Orange Park to creating a second campus.
The site will be intentionally multiethnic, drawing from the former members of Ridgewood as well as Shiloh members who already live in the neighborhood and can forgo driving into downtown. The staff will draw from both churches.
“God is forcing us as a church to put our money where our mouth is,” said Charles. “This is a step of faith for us.
“At this point, we need to stop planning the wedding and start creating a family.”
