Hartford Seminary presents
Movie and Commentary
The Alpha and the Mega
with Professor Scott Thumma and
Liberty Churches Pastor Jim Pourteau
Date: Thursday, October 8, 2009
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Place: Hartford Seminary, 77 Sherman Street, Hartford
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What began as a simple question, "What is a megachurch?" quickly became an obsession for filmmaker Morgan Mead. What he found would change his way of thinking about religion, church, and preconceived notions of the largest churches in America. The first stop was to get some real facts from Scott Thumma, Hartford Seminary Professor, megachurch expert and author of books and articles on the subject of megachurches. Armed with the facts, Mead then headed to numerous megachurches, small churches, and to the general public to get their points of view. "The Alpha and the Mega" explores the megachurch phenomenon with a look at the different types of megachurches, their origins, and of course their opposition. Are these megachurches taking over America and running the small church out of town? Are they preaching "religion lite?" Are they money-making machines? Is their message watered down or too empowering? Should pop culture really be used in church? Why does church need to be so BIG?
Join us for an exclusive viewing of the documentary giving a visual look inside America's largest churches. Engage with Scott, Liberty Churches Executive Assistant Pastor Jim Pourteau and two mainline clergy, The Revs. Katherine A. Heichler and Paul D. Krampitz as they wrestle over these questions as well as assess what can be learned from the megachurch model. Scott will offer a commentary followed by a panel discussion.
Professor Scott Thumma is Professor of Sociology of Religion at Hartford Seminary's Hartford Institute for Religion Research & Director of Distance Education and specializes in research on Megachurches. He is the co-author of the book "Beyond Megachurch Myths: What We Can Learn from America's Largest Churches."
Jim Pourteau serves as the Executive Assistant Pastor of Liberty Churches in Shrewsbury and Worcester, MA, a multi-campus fellowship and home of the New England Dream Center. In addition to team development and his administrative duties, Jim shares preaching responsibilities with Liberty's lead pastor, Will Bard. Jim's contribution to the Liberty team comes from over 20 years of pastoral ministry experience and formal education in Evangelism from J.S.B.C. (Jimmy Swaggart Bible College) and Christian Counseling from Louisiana Baptist University.
Kate Heichler is priest-in-charge of the Church of Christ the Healer in Stamford. Paul Krampitz is pastor of St. Andrew Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bristol.
Free
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For more information, contact Yvette Law at (860) 509-9555 or events@hartsem.edu.
