Archive
The New York Times: The Creation of a Modern Megachurch
In a few years, Zerephath Christian Church in New Jersey has transformed from the dwindling base of a little-known denomination to a large megachurch. The New York Times reported on this transition, turning to CRCC’s …
CRCC’s Project on Religious Competition Finds Cooperation in Innovation
This article was published by the John Templeton Foundation about CRCC’s Religious Competition & Creative Innovation project, which the Foundation funded. In a Huntington Beach, California laundromat, volunteers wash clothes for homeless and …
OC Register: Orange County Church Finds Higher Purpose with Affordable Housing
The Wesley Village affordable housing project in Garden Grove was recently opened on Garden Grove United Methodist Church’s land. The concept of using church land to host affordable housing has been used …
Bedrosian Book Club Podcast: Tears We Cannot Stop
The latest episode of the Bedrosian Book Club Podcast addresses the history of racism in America and how Michael Eric Dyson addresses these problems in his newest book, Tears We Cannot Stop. …
Right Wing Watch: Trump’s Dominionist Prayer Warriors and the ‘Prophetic Order of the United States’
POTUS Shield is a group of Pentecostal leaders devoted to helping President Donald Trump bring about the reign of God across the country and world. Many of the “prophets” and “apostles” taking …
Christianity Today: The ‘Prophets’ and ‘Apostles’ Leading the Quiet Revolution in American Religion
A Christian movement has become one of the fastest-growing faith groups in the country recently, attracting millions of followers with promises of direct access to God. Christianity Today interviewed CRCC Senior Director …
BBC News: INC Christianity Is Growing and Influencing America
The fastest growing Christian movement in the United States aims to bring the rule of God to earth, CRCC fellow Brad Christerson told BBC World Service in a radio documentary on “INC …
Revisiting the legacy of Jerry Falwell Sr. in Trump’s America
This article was originally published on The Conversation. Recently, President Donald Trump appointed evangelical Christian leader Jerry Falwell Jr. to head the White House education reform task force. Not much is known …
Christianity Today: Greg Laurie Joining Southern Baptist Convention
Christianity Today quoted Richard Flory, senior director of research and evaluation, in a news story about Greg Laurie joining the Southern Baptist Convention. Here’s an excerpt from the article: “I am really curious …
How a Christian Movement Is Growing Rapidly in the Midst of Religious Decline
This article was originally published on The Conversation. In August of 2011, more than 30,000 people cheered wildly as the then U.S. presidential candidate and Texas Governor Rick Perry – now secretary …
The Rise of Network Christianity: How Independent Leaders are Changing the Religious Landscape
The Rise of Network Christianity: How Independent Leaders Are Changing the Religious Landscape Brad Christerson and Richard Flory (Oxford University Press 2017) The writing of this book was supported by the Pentecostal Charismatic Research …
The Changing Nature of America’s Irreligious Explained
This article was originally published on The Conversation. A recent survey of the religious profile of the 115th Congress revealed that despite the increase in the number of Americans who claim no …
Deseret News: Why Teens Leave the Faith
Within the growing portion of religious “nones,” many who leave their childhood religion behind do so as a teenager. The Deseret News quoted CRCC’s Richard Flory about this phenomenon, as well as …
The Orange County Register: Irvine pastor Rev. Mark Whitlock exhorts church to ‘set a moral tone’ during Trump Presidency
In response to the surprising Trump victory of this year’s Presidential election, the Rev. Mark Whitlock is encouraging for faith organizations to be prominent moral voices against any future policies that could …
Surprised American Evangelicals Voted for Trump? They Have a History of Racism
This post originally appeared on International Business Times. As a scholar of religion, one story that has intrigued me since the beginning of the 2016 presidential campaign is how Trump’s candidacy—now his …
How a New Generation Is Changing Evangelical Christianity
Since the late 1970s, American evangelicalism has been largely identified with right-wing politics. Conservative religious values entered the political sphere through movements such as Moral Majority and Focus on the Family that …
Christian Science Monitor: Why Kasich’s atheist criticisms seem out of touch
Upon seeing a Harry Potter novel at a bookstore, Former Republican presidential candidate and Ohio governor John Kasich criticized its movie series star Daniel Radcliffe’s atheism. “What the [expletive] is wrong with …
L.A. Times: ‘A delivery boy’ for God: Greg Laurie and his Harvest Crusade
The Los Angeles Times interviewed CRCC’s Richard Flory for an article about the 27th annual Harvest Crusade and its founder Greg Laurie. Nearly 100,000 people are expected to attend the event (now named …
Buzzfeed: Silicon Valley’s Hippest Church Is Going Public
CRCC’s senior research director Richard Flory was quoted by Buzzfeed about religious revival in Silicon Valley. An excerpt from the article: C3SV’s [an independent offshoot of a Pentecostal megachurch] parent, C3 Global, …
St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Why a Church Gave Away Cars for Mother’s Day
A Mother’s Day car give-away reflects a St. Louis church’s prosperity gospel, Richard Flory told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Here’s an excerpt of the article: “I honestly have never heard of anything …