Disciples of the Risen Christ Church
A Megachurch located in a converted highschool building on the outskirts of Dallas. It has roughly 8000 members. The average Sunday attendance is around 5000, though this number fluctuates depending on the season. Although its official name, "Disciples of the Risen Christ Church", is printed on all of its official paperwork, on the letterhead, and so forth, nobody calls it by the full name. Instead, most people call it "Disciples Church."
It was founded in 1965 by the (now deceased) Reverend Guy Prescott, as a backlash against the segmented and segregated Christian population. Although they had a message of unity and acceptance that needed to be heard at that time, they had neither the money nor a sufficiently charismatic spokesperson to spread and make the sort of community impact they wanted to make. It just about survived with a fluctuating membership of 20 to 150 members, meeting in the basement of a local bookstore, until the charismatic and wealthy Reverend Schuler stumbled upon it while wandering Dallas one day in the early 1980s and decided to help it spread its wings.
Services
The church has five services on Sunday. The services taking place in the Grand Hall are usually youthful, lively, upbeat multimedia extravaganzas. The services taking place in the Chapel are quieter, more traditional, and tend to have an older following. The Head Minister usually takes the 12:00 service, while the other Ministers take the other services in rota.
| Time | Location | Attendance |
| 8:00 | Grand Hall | 300 |
| 10:30 | Grand Hall | 3000 |
| 10:30 | Chapel | 200 |
| 1:30 | Grand Hall | 1500 |
| 5:30 | Chapel | 75 |
Additionally, on Wednesday evenings there is a traditional catholic-style spoken Mass in the Chapel.
The Campus
The Disciples of the Risen Christ Church is based in a converted High School building. The main building contains a gym, a swimming pool that is also used for baptisms, a cafeteria that also functions as a charity soup kitchen, a Christian Bookstore, a library, the church's offices, and three main worship areas.
The Grand Hall is a large, light modern space with blonde wood, brushed steel and stained glass and plasterwork in abstract patterns based on the image of a cross. It has seating for 5000, a large stage with enough room for a full choir of 250, plus an orchestra, a raised pulpit, and surprisingly comfortable pews. The front wall of the church is one large white expanse onto which song lyrics, bible passages, and inspiring images and video can be projected - when 'inactive' a large, abstract image of a cross is projected. At the rear of the Hall is a large, ornate organ that is hardly ever played.
The Chapel is a mid-sized, more traditional-looking worship space with dark wood, a formal altar with an ornate brass cross and candle-holders, and a small organ. There is seating for about 300. Although the Chapel is located inside the main building and has no access to an outside lightsource, the walls are lined with traditional-looking stained glass windows which are backlit to provide the proper atmosphere. Most weddings at the Disciples Church are held in The Chapel.
The Worship Room is a modern, modular space which can be used as a large meeting-room or reception hall for a wedding. Although no formal services are held in the Worship Room, it is the location of the church's weekly prayer meetings.
Additionally, located on the campus are the Disciples School, a Courtyard which is often used for summer weddings, a fishing pond, a bus station, a large parking complex, and the houses of the Head Minister, and the two Senior Ministers.
Beliefs
The church is an amalgam of Christianity. It teaches the divinity of Christ and the doctrine of the trinity, and puts more emphasis on the New Testament than the old. Mary is revered as the most holy woman of her generation, but no particular divinity is ascribed to her. Saints are seen as holy people who followed the call of God, and may be revered so long as no inherent divinity is ascribed to them. Angels are seen as holy messengers who tend not to interfere much in mortal affairs. The church believes in a doctrine of Heaven for the Saved, and Oblivion for those unsaved. There is no Hell, and humanity is good enough at hurting itself without demonic intervetion. Miracles can happen, but God usually works through ordinary people.
On the whole, the Disciples church is apolitical. It isn't the way of this church to support or condemn political leaders or their policies. They do not feel that America is a Christian Nation. In the view of the Disciples Church no nation can be called "Christian" until the coming of the Kingdom of God. Worldly politicians, politics and nations cannot be relied upon to always do the right thing. If good is to be done in the world, it needs to be done from the ground up - starting on a local level, then moving outward to the regional level, then the state, then national, then international. Because of this, the Disciples Church is actively involved in the Dallas community, and is a sponsor of many programs dealing with social problems like unemployment, racial tensions, teenage pregnancy, illiteracy, and so forth. There is a strong outreach movement within the church - Judaism and Islam are viewed as having pieces of the truth, as worshipping the same God, but being misguided in some of the details.
Unlike its more fundamentalist brethren, the Disciples Church is all but silent on most "hot button" issues within the religious community. Women have been preaching there since the church was founded. Homosexuality is, while not encouraged, seen as no reason to bar someone from a church - the official line is that while homosexuality is probably a sin, all are sinners, and it is hypocrisy to give another's sin more weight while ignoring your own. Individual members, of course, tend to different ends of the spectrum. The one issue that the church as an entity is vocal about is abortion. They believe in restricting abortion to cases of medical necessity. Because of this they have clinics around the Dallas community that provide those who may be or are pregnant with support, and information on alternatives to abortion. A fairly substantial branch of this works with women who have had an abortion - helping them heal the physical and mental scars that often accompany, and showing them that Christ still loves them.
Membership
The Disciples Church has a congregation of roughly 8000 members from Dallas and the areas surrounding. It is a diverse group, with a breakdown of roughly 50% caucasian, 30% african american, 15% hispanic, and 5% other. The average age is 30, with the largest concentrations being from 15-20 and from 35-45. New members are born every year, and there is at least one centenarian among the congregation. Members come from all different financial backgrounds, ranging from welfare mothers and the homeless, to the CEO of a major local technology company and his family.
Staff
Reverend Jedediah Schuler, Head minister
Doctor Sandy Evans, Senior Children's Minister
Reverend Greg Hirschbaum, Senior Youth Minister
Members of Note
Dr. Keiko Hirschbaum
Rose Schuler
Sue-Anne Grace Schuler
Performance Groups
The Disciples Church has a strong Arts tradition, with many different performance groups who help with the weekly worship services and also put on seasonal performances. These include musical groups who perform styles ranging from plainchant to Christian Rock, to a Liturgical Dance group, to several Theater Groups.
Although the schedule of concerts and performances changes, there are several performances that occur annualy. Perhaps best known to the local community is the week-long Music Fest, in which each musical group performs their best pieces from the preceding year, and which culminates with a concert from a moderate to big-name Christian musician. Around Easter time, the Sanctus Singers perform Handel's Messiah. Also traditional is a performance of Jesus Christ Superstar.
Music Groups
| Name | Number of Members | Style |
| The Sanctus Singers | 25 | Classical, Chamber |
| Hallelujah! | 18 | Christian Rock |
| Youth Ensemble | 40 | Assorted, Modern |
| Cherub Choir | 45 | Unison, Children's |
| The Grand Choir | 250 | General, Modern |
| Glory, Glory, Glory | 90 | Gospel |
| Jericho Fallen | 55 | Brass Band |
| The Disciples Orchestra | 80 | Orchestral, Accompaniment |
Other
(coming)
Social Programs
Disciples Christian School
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