{"page":"\u003clink rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https://lessonplanet.com/assets/packs/css/resources-572d6a42.css\" /\u003e\n\u003clink rel=\"stylesheet\" href=\"https://lessonplanet.com/assets/packs/css/lp_boclips_stylesheets-f4d0de30.css\" media=\"all\" /\u003e\n\u003cdiv data-title='An Atheist Megachurch in Southern California is filling up on Sunday Mornings. People who go there say the church gives them a sense of togetherness and community. (Nov. 11)' data-url='/boclips/videos/5c54c24ed8eafeecae158c09' data-video-url='/boclips/videos/5c54c24ed8eafeecae158c09' id='bo_player_modal'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='boclips-resource-page modal-dialog panel-container'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='react-notifications-root'\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-header'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-type'\u003e\n\u003ci aria-hidden='true' class='fai fa-regular fa-circle-play'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\nVideo\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ch1 class='rp-title' id='video-title'\u003e\nAn Atheist Megachurch in Southern California is filling up on Sunday Mornings. People who go there say the church gives them a sense of togetherness and community. (Nov. 11)\n\u003c/h1\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-actions'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='mr-1'\u003e\n\u003ca class=\"btn btn-success\" data-posthog-event=\"Signup: LP Signup Activity\" data-posthog-location=\"body_link_boclips\" data-remote=\"true\" href=\"/subscription/new\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cspan\u003eGet Free Access\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\"\u003e for 10 Days\u003c/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e!\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\u003c/a\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-body'\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-info'\u003e\n\u003cdiv aria-label='Hide resource details' class='rp-hide-info' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u0026times;\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ci aria-label='Expand resource details' class='rp-expand-info fai fa-solid fa-up-right-and-down-left-from-center' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003ci aria-label='Compress resource details' class='rp-compress-info fai fa-solid fa-down-left-and-up-right-to-center' role='button' tabindex='0'\u003e\u003c/i\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-rating'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='resource-pool'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='pool-label'\u003ePublisher:\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003cspan class='pool-name'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='text'\u003e\u003ca data-publisher-id=\"30356011\" href=\"/search?publisher_ids%5B%5D=30356011\"\u003eCurated Video\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class='rp-description'\u003e\n\u003cspan class='short-description'\u003eIt looked like a typical Sunday morning at any mega-church. Hundreds packed in for more than an hour of rousing music, an inspirational sermon, a reading and some quiet reflection. The only thing missing was God. Dozens of gatherings...\u003c/span\u003e\n\u003cspan class='full-description hide'\u003eIt looked like a typical Sunday morning at any mega-church. Hundreds packed in for more than an hour of rousing music, an inspirational sermon, a reading and some quiet reflection. The only thing missing was God. \u003cbr/\u003eDozens of gatherings dubbed \"atheist mega-churches\" by supporters and detractors are springing up around the U.S. after finding success in Great Britain earlier this year. The movement fueled by social media and spearheaded by two prominent British comedians is no joke. \u003cbr/\u003eOn Sunday, the inaugural Sunday Assembly in Los Angeles attracted more than 400 attendees, all bound by their belief in non-belief. Similar gatherings in San Diego, Nashville, New York and other U.S. cities have drawn hundreds of atheists seeking the camaraderie of a congregation without religion or ritual. \u003cbr/\u003eThe founders, British duo Sanderson Jones and Pippa Evans, are currently on a tongue-in-cheek \"40 Dates, 40 Nights\" tour around the U.S. and Australia to drum up donations and help launch dozens of Sunday Assemblies. They hope to raise more than $800,000 that will help atheists launch their pop-up congregations around the world. \u003cbr/\u003eThey don't bash believers but want to find a new way to meet likeminded people, engage in the community and make their presence more visible in a landscape dominated by faith. \u003cbr/\u003eJones got the first inkling for the idea while leaving a Christmas carol concert six years ago. \u003cbr/\u003e\"There was so much about it that I loved, but it's a shame because at the heart of it, it's something I don't believe in,\" Jones said. \"If you think about church, there's very little that's bad. It's singing awesome songs, hearing interesting talks, thinking about improving yourself and helping other people - and doing that in a community with wonderful relationships. What part of that is not to like?\" \u003cbr/\u003eThe movement dovetails with new studies showing an increasing number of Americans are drifting from any religious affiliation. \u003cbr/\u003eThe Pew Forum on Religion \u0026amp;amp; Public Life released a study last year that found 20 percent of Americans say they have no religious affiliation, an increase from 15 percent in the last five years. Pew researchers stressed, however, that the category also encompassed majorities of people who said they believed in God but had no ties with organized religion and people who consider themselves \"spiritual\" but not \"religious.\" \u003cbr/\u003eSunday Assembly - whose motto is Live Better, Help Often, Wonder More - taps into that universe of people who left their faith but now miss the community church provided, said Phil Zuckerman, a professor of secular studies at Pitzer College in Claremont. \u003cbr/\u003eIt also plays into a feeling among some atheists that they should make themselves more visible. For example, last December, an atheist in Santa Monica created an uproar - and triggered a lawsuit - when he set up a godless display amid Christian nativity scenes that were part of a beloved, decades-old tradition. \u003cbr/\u003e\"In the U.S., there's a little bit of a feeling that if you're not religious, you're not patriotic. I think a lot of secular people say, 'Hey, wait a minute. We are charitable, we are good people, we're good parents and we are just as good citizens as you and we're going to start a church to prove it,\" said Zuckerman. \"It's still a minority, but there's enough of them now.\" \u003cbr/\u003eThat impulse, however, has raised the ire of those who have spent years pushing back against the idea that atheism itself is a religion. \u003cbr/\u003e\"The idea that you're building an entire organization based on what you don't believe, to me, sounds like an offense against sensibility,\" said Michael Luciano, a self-described atheist who was raised Roman Catholic but left when he became disillusioned. \u003cbr/\u003e\"There's something not OK with appropriating all of this religious language, imagery and ritual for atheism.\" \u003cbr/\u003eThat sentiment didn't seem to detract from the excitement Sunday at the inaugural meeting in Los Angeles. \u003cbr/\u003eHundreds of atheists and atheist-curious packed into a Hollywood auditorium for a boisterous service filled with live music, moments of reflection and an \"inspirational talk, \" and some stand-up comedy by Jones, the movement's co-founder. \u003cbr/\u003eDuring the service, attendees stomped their feet, clapped their hands and cheered as Jones and Evans led the group through rousing renditions of \"Lean on Me,\" ''Here Comes the Sun\" and other hits that took the place of gospel songs. Congregants dissolved into laughter at a get-to-know-you game that involved clapping and slapping the hands of the person next to them and applauded as members of the audience spoke about community service projects they had started in LA. \u003cbr/\u003eAt the end, volunteers passed cardboard boxes for donations as attendees mingled over coffee and pastries and children played on the floor. \u003cbr/\u003eFor atheist Elijah Senn, the morning was perfect. \u003cbr/\u003e\"I think the image that we have put forward in a lot of ways has been a scary, mean, we want to tear down the walls, we want to do destructive things kind of image is what a lot of people have of us,\" he said. \"I'm really excited to be able to come together and show that it's not about destruction. It's about making things and making things better.\"\u003cbr/\u003eLos Angeles - 10 November, 2013\u003cbr/\u003e1. Mid, Sunday Assembly co-founder Sanderson Jones (beard, red hair) on stage with woman, singing\u003cbr/\u003e2. Mid, congregation singing, clapping\u003cbr/\u003e3. Close, clapping hands\u003cbr/\u003e4. Wide, people applauding\u003cbr/\u003e5. Close, Sunday Assembly on piece of paper\u003cbr/\u003e6, Mid, Sanderson Jones on stage, speaking\u003cbr/\u003e7. Wide, Sanderson leading singing\u003cbr/\u003e8. Close, piano player singing\u003cbr/\u003e9. Close, woman in audience singing 'I don't need it'\u003cbr/\u003e10. Close, woman clapping\u003cbr/\u003e11. Wide, singing\u003cbr/\u003e12. Mid, Jones and woman on stage doing clapping routine\u003cbr/\u003e13. Wide. Audience doing clapping routine\u003cbr/\u003e14. Close, woman doing clapping routine\u003cbr/\u003e15. Mid, man writing welcome sign\u003cbr/\u003e16. Close, welcome sign\u003cbr/\u003e17. Wide, people waiting outside\u003cbr/\u003e18. Wide, people waiting outside\u003cbr/\u003e19. SOUNDBITE (English) Michael King, Attends Sunday Assembly:\u003cbr/\u003e\"I tried really hard for a long time to be religious and I didn't ever make sense to me. I grew up in a very secular home but for some reason have always associated with a lot of Catholic people. I was married to one for a very long time, my children are Catholic, but it's never done a thing for me and I've always wanted to find something, a community something, that atheists could do together and I'm hoping this is it.\"\u003cbr/\u003e20. Close. Atheist bumper stickers\u003cbr/\u003e21. Close, Sunday program\u003cbr/\u003e22. Wide, people going in\u003cbr/\u003e23. Mid, Phil Zuckerman, Pitzer College Secular Studies professor, sitting at desk\u003cbr/\u003e24. SOUNDBITE (ENGLIGH) Phil Zuckerman, Pitzer College Secular Studies professor\u003cbr/\u003e\"I mean, when we think about religion in America, we talk about oh, belief in God, belief in Jesus. But for a lot of people, it's the community. It's the Sunday school, it's the seeing people afterwards in the foyer or in the courtyard, it's the having coffee.\"\u003cbr/\u003e25. Mid, Zuckerman's bookshelf\u003cbr/\u003e26. SOUNDBITE (ENGLIGH) Phil Zuckerman, Pitzer College Secular Studies professor\u003cbr/\u003e\"So, those kind of people, I think, things like the Sunday Assembly are meeting a real need. There is a need, there is a lacuna in a lot of people's lives who are no longer religious. They want that kind of moral community that is about connecting with others and is about celebrating life, celebrating morals and ethics in a non-supernatural context.\"\u003cbr/\u003e27. Close. 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