Location International Founded Easter 1980 | Website c3churchglobal.com | |
Denomination C3 Church
Pentecostalism, Evangelical, Charismatic Founder(s) Phil Pringle and Christine Pringle | ||
C3 Church Global, formerly known as Christian City Church International (C3i), is a Charismatic movement founded by Phil Pringle and Christine Pringle. The first church was started 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 February 2017, there are over 450 churches in 64 countries in the group.
Contents
History
Phil and Christine Pringle arrived in Sydney from New Zealand in 1980 to begin a church on the Northern Beaches of Sydney, Australia. Growing to 400 people within four years, the church began expanding and planting in other cities. The vision of 10 churches in 10 major cities was developed and the movement of Christian City Church began.
In 2008, at the "Here We Go" global conference held in Hawaii, Christian City Church announced the name change to "C3 Church".
Structure
C3 Church Global is directed by a team who themselves pastor C3 churches in the movement. Each member of the team oversees the pastors of various churches and/or other overseers. Local churches are overseen by a local board. Directors and overseers meet regularly at local, national, and international conferences and meetings. C3 Church Global annually ordains senior pastors of the churches in the movement. The local leadership of C3 churches individually ordain their team.
In the media
Reference was made to C3 Church in the Business Review Weekly (BRW), Australian edition article "God's Millionaires". This article noted that "Prosperity theology is practised by the bigger Pentecostal churches, including Hillsong, Christian City Church and Paradise. This promotes the idea that wealth and worldly success are signs of God’s favour."
Scandals
The Cult Information and Family Support organization (CIFS) notes that C3 Church is being actively monitored.
Phil Pringle used to refer to himself as "Dr Phil Pringle" despite having acquired an illegitimate degree from a known diploma mill.
The senior pastor at C3 Asheville in North Carolina, Nicholas Dimitris, has received a federal prison sentence for his part in a real estate fraud.