Christian City Churches
Encyclopedia
C3 Church Global, formerly known as Christian City Church International (C3i), is a Charismatic
church movement founded by Pastors Phil Pringle
and Christine Pringle
. The first church was established at Dee Why on the Northern Beaches of Sydney
, Australia
, and is now located in Oxford Falls. The movement changed its name to "C3 Church" in September 2008.
As of 2011 there are over 280 churches situated throughout Australia, New Zealand, North America, South America, Africa, Asia and the European community. Phil Pringle is the founder and President of C3 Church Global, and the Senior Minister of the movement's largest congregation, C3 Church Oxford Falls, Sydney, Australia.
C3 Church Global holds an international conference every few years, gathering pastors from C3 Churches worldwide. Other events include conferences for the European, Asian, North American, African and Australasian arms of the movement.
. Members are expected to give a tithe
to the church of a minimum of 10% of their pre-tax (gross) income.
(NCLS) - the nationwide 'census' of Australian church attendance, for the year 2004 found Christian City Churches contradicting an overall downward trend (to the effect of 7%) in church attendance across Australia, finding the C3 Churches grew on average by 42% to a total membership of 11,400 (within Australia).
In 2002 in the tri-annual Worldwide Conference held that year in Singapore
, C3 Church revealed its plans to have over 1000 churches worldwide with an average attendance of 500 people throughout the movement, setting this goal to be attained by the year 2020, this goal being given the title the "2020 Vision". The average attendance is 270 people per week, this is in stark comparison to the worldwide average church attendance of all churches which at last report was 35.
and similar online vendors.
Since 2006, C3 Church (Whitehorse) has co-organised "Unite" - a Creative Arts Conference, featuring Australian musicians such as Roma Waterman and Michael Paynter
. The Conference is organised together with Crossway Baptist Church
, Gateway Church and Careforce Church.
On 2 April 2007, C3 Church (Oxford Falls) scored a hit single on the ARIA Australian Top 100 Singles Chart. The song "Here We Go" entered at #37 on the ARIA Report (and #20 on the ARIA Physical Singles Chart plus #6 on the ARIA New South Wales single sales list) making it the highest-selling religious pop song since 1970. The single dropped out of the chart the following week though as it was only available at the church.
(BRW), Australian Edition article "God's Millionaires".
The recent World Council of Churches
caused a significant number of reports on the 'Mega-Church' phenomenon, with many newspapers and news reports specifically noting churches with other large congregations like Hillsong Church
.
Charismatic Christianity
Charismatic Christianity is a Christian doctrine that maintains that modern-day believers experience miracles, prophecy, speaking in tongues, and other spiritual gifts as described in of the Bible...
church movement founded by Pastors Phil Pringle
Phil Pringle
Phil Pringle OAM arrived in Sydney, Australia, in 1980 with his wife Christine with the intention of establishing a church. He has now planted more than 200 churches around the world...
and Christine Pringle
Christine Pringle
Christine Pringle, with her husband Phil Pringle, was one of the founders of the Christian City Church Oxford Falls in the northern suburbs of Sydney, Australia, and the evangelical Protestant church movement called Christian City Church International...
. The first church was established at Dee Why on the Northern Beaches of Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, and is now located in Oxford Falls. The movement changed its name to "C3 Church" in September 2008.
As of 2011 there are over 280 churches situated throughout Australia, New Zealand, North America, South America, Africa, Asia and the European community. Phil Pringle is the founder and President of C3 Church Global, and the Senior Minister of the movement's largest congregation, C3 Church Oxford Falls, Sydney, Australia.
C3 Church Global holds an international conference every few years, gathering pastors from C3 Churches worldwide. Other events include conferences for the European, Asian, North American, African and Australasian arms of the movement.
History of the C3 Church Movement
Phil and Christine Pringle arrived in Sydney, from New Zealand, in 1980 to begin a pentecostal church. Christian Centre, Northside, as it was originally known, began with 12 people on the Northern beaches of Sydney.Structure
C3 Church Global is governed by an International Executive whose members are pastors of local churches. Each member oversees the leaders of various churches, and/or other overseers. However, C3 Church Global does not have a centralized structure. Local churches are governed by a local board (or executive). Reflecting C3 Church Global's leadership philosophy, churches are "led by call and vision rather than democratic principles", and decisions are not made by congregational voting but by the ministry team. C3 Church philosophy is based heavily on Prosperity TheologyProsperity theology
Prosperity theology or gospel is a Christian religious belief whose proponents claim the Bible teaches that financial blessing is the will of God for Christians. Most teachers of prosperity theology maintain that a combination of faith, positive speech, and donations to Christian ministries will...
. Members are expected to give a tithe
Tithe
A tithe is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Today, tithes are normally voluntary and paid in cash, cheques, or stocks, whereas historically tithes were required and paid in kind, such as agricultural products...
to the church of a minimum of 10% of their pre-tax (gross) income.
Growth of the C3 Church Movement
The National Church Life SurveyNational Church Life Survey
Australian National Church Life Surveys have been performed every 5 years from 1991 to 2001, to study Church Life in Australia. The NCLS Research partnership administers these surveys...
(NCLS) - the nationwide 'census' of Australian church attendance, for the year 2004 found Christian City Churches contradicting an overall downward trend (to the effect of 7%) in church attendance across Australia, finding the C3 Churches grew on average by 42% to a total membership of 11,400 (within Australia).
In 2002 in the tri-annual Worldwide Conference held that year in Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, C3 Church revealed its plans to have over 1000 churches worldwide with an average attendance of 500 people throughout the movement, setting this goal to be attained by the year 2020, this goal being given the title the "2020 Vision". The average attendance is 270 people per week, this is in stark comparison to the worldwide average church attendance of all churches which at last report was 35.
Music
Music from C3 Church Oxford Falls is published under C3 Worship. Music from various C3 Churches in the USA is published under C3worship. As the central church of the movement, C3 Church Oxford Falls generally produces one album a year, under the leadership of music director Ryan Smith. C3 Church Oxford Falls digitally release their songs via their websites. Most C3 Churches release their music online using the iTunes StoreITunes Store
The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...
and similar online vendors.
Since 2006, C3 Church (Whitehorse) has co-organised "Unite" - a Creative Arts Conference, featuring Australian musicians such as Roma Waterman and Michael Paynter
Michael Paynter
Michael Paynter , is an Australian singer-songwriter. Paynter has released four singles, "Closer", "A Victim Song", "Love the Fall" and "How Sweet It Is", from his upcoming debut studio album, This Welcome Diversion is set for a release in 2011.-Early life:Paynter began playing instruments from a...
. The Conference is organised together with Crossway Baptist Church
Crossway Baptist Church
Crossway Baptist Church is Australia’s largest Baptist church and is located in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs. Regular attendance at Sunday services is over 3,500 people.-History:...
, Gateway Church and Careforce Church.
On 2 April 2007, C3 Church (Oxford Falls) scored a hit single on the ARIA Australian Top 100 Singles Chart. The song "Here We Go" entered at #37 on the ARIA Report (and #20 on the ARIA Physical Singles Chart plus #6 on the ARIA New South Wales single sales list) making it the highest-selling religious pop song since 1970. The single dropped out of the chart the following week though as it was only available at the church.
C3 Church in the Media
C3 Church, as with any large or rapidly growing religious movement, has often found itself under media scrutiny, both in a positive and a more critical light. Recent examples include mention in the Business Review WeeklyBusiness Review Weekly
BRW is an Australian weekly business magazine published by the Fairfax Media group. It regularly compiles lists which rank corporations and individuals according to various criteria, similar to Fortune magazine in the United States.BRW provides news and commentary on the economy, business and...
(BRW), Australian Edition article "God's Millionaires".
The recent World Council of Churches
World Council of Churches
The World Council of Churches is a worldwide fellowship of 349 global, regional and sub-regional, national and local churches seeking unity, a common witness and Christian service. It is a Christian ecumenical organization that is based in the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva, Switzerland...
caused a significant number of reports on the 'Mega-Church' phenomenon, with many newspapers and news reports specifically noting churches with other large congregations like Hillsong Church
Hillsong Church
Hillsong Church is a Pentecostal megachurch affiliated with Australian Christian Churches and located in Sydney, Australia. The church's senior pastors, Brian and Bobbie Houston, began the church in 1983 as the Hills Christian Life Centre in Baulkham Hills...
.
External links
- C3 Church Global - Home page
- C3 Worship - C3 Worship Music for free download