Christianity On The Rise In Los Angeles One Of The Least Religious Cities

By Alison Lesley --
05 Mar 2016 --

Los Angeles churches are reviving faith even as Christianity declines across America.

Los Angeles is one of the least religious cities in the United States. Yet, it has recently witnessed an expanding movement of ”new churches” that reach for young people and various minorities with pop-culture references, trendy musical performances and tech-savvy approach to social media.

Christianity On The Rise In Los Angeles One Of The Least Religious Cities[/tweetthis]

Hollywood-based Mosaic is one of these churches. It has thousands of young people as congregants. The church holds as many as four services on Sundays where worshipers sing and dance. Mosaic uses Instagram, for example, to advertise its events and to encourage church donations.

Erwin McManus, the church’s founder and lead pastor told the New York Times that Mosaic has ”a hundred people every week who come to faith in Jesus.”

Other ”new churches” in Los Angeles include such places as Reality LA, Oasis and Hillsong.

As the movement has acquired somewhat of a hip status, many of the churches and their services are frequented even by A-list celebrities. Pop star Justin Bieber is said to support Hillsong, singer and actor Joe Jonas has been to Reality LA and actress Viola Davis regularly visits Oasis.

One of the ”new churches,” Zoe Church, recently had its christening at 1 OAK, a nightclub on Los Angeles’ infamous Sunset Strip. According to Relevant Magazine, Zoe was started by pastor Chad Veach and it’s almost entirely staffed by and seeking to serve those born in the ’90s.

Research by the Pew Research Center and others show that people under the age of 30 are less likely to identify as Christian than any time since the´30s. This doesn’t seem to be the case in Los Angeles, where the ”new chuch” movement continues to expand and more and more young people are joining it. The churches are also reaching for and attracting a number of minorities. Last year, Latinos became the largest ethnic group in California.