I know some of the Christian churches used to offer tours of the Holy Land. Back then I would have loved to have gone on one of those tours. To have actually walked in some of the places Jesus walked, etc. would have been a dream come true to me.
We really never found a good "fit" for a church here. Have gone to a local large one, but now only go on Christmas Eve. They have a great Service for that. Thing is, the yearly budget for this church is extremely high. The Lead Pastor, who is in his mid 40's, has a yearly salary of around 1 million dollars! Yes, a lot of very Upper Class people go to this church. Anyway, my wife now watches John Hagee on Sunday morning on her laptop. He's definitely not a mellow Pastor, but we do like him. He can yell and his congregation loves it.
Have you tried the BRIDGE in Fresno Chrissy? I don't attend but my daughter is a full time employee with them. She and her husband, my three adult grandchildren and their little ones all attend and have for years. It's a big church with several full time pastors. It's a funny thing but here I am, the heathen, non conformist in the family that is happy to have all family members well adjusted and close to one another. Their church seems to be the cement that binds them so closely. My daughter was married at North West Baptist when ole Buff Karaker was the pastor. Daughter and friends all JUMPED SHIP WHEN he was dethroned. http://thebridgefresno.com/
There are pros and cons to big churches over small churches. In a large church, you are more likely to find a pastor who is a dynamic, trained speaker, one who might be able to deliver a message that catches your attention. That doesn't necessarily mean that they are biblical, but the more money coming into a church, the more likely the church is to be able to afford to have a dynamic speaker behind the pulpit. Large churches are also likely to have more programs and functions, and probably something for people of all ages and needs, because they have a larger staff and a much larger congregation to draw from. Of course, a large church is likely to have more stuff overall, including a grandiose building that is well maintained and aesthetically perfect. However, it is much easier for any one to lose themselves in a large church. Since the large church has a paid staff and a large number of volunteers to draw from, the large church is likely not to need you to volunteer to participate in any way. People attending a large church are probably more likely to become members of an audience rather than of a congregation. Given that a large church may have professional musicians and bands, they don't depend, and often don't even encourage members of the congregation to sing. Although there are most always opportunities for people to participate in the ministry of the church, there isn't a necessity so, unless someone is particularly outgoing or aggressive about doing so, it is all too easy for someone in a large church to attend services as a member of an audience rather than as an integral member of a congregation. While this might make some people comfortable, it can also deprive people of the opportunity to minister to others, and to truly be a part of a church. When you minister to others as a Christian, you are building yourself up as well. Some mega churches do this very well, however. I attended a large church in Texas for a while. Although the church had a large television and radio ministry, had several pastors, and a very large congregation, they had divided responsibilities up quite well, so that we were greeted by the same person each Sunday, attended Sunday school services in a small room with the same people each week, and generally sat in the same section of the church. Of course, there was the ability to move to another group if you wanted to, but they were able to negate many of the disadvantages of a mega church by dividing up like several small churches who came together in one large building. The message was usually given by the senior pastor, who was a dynamic speaker but, unless you wanted to stand in a long line after the service, you never actually spoke to him, but to another of the church's pastors, who functioned much like a pastor of a smaller church would, including home visits, special activities, etc. Otherwise, while there are certainly some dynamic speakers pastoring smaller churches, you are more likely to find someone behind the pulpit of a small church who is more of a teacher and a minister than a speaker. He may not be as dynamic, as polished, or as skilled as the man behind the pulpit of a mega church, but he might still have a more genuine message. More importantly, the pastor of a small church is more likely to become a friend who you might actually have lunch with from time to time or who you might be free to visit, as you would any other friend. We are good friends with a man who pastored the church that we were members of in Millinocket, although he left to pastor a church in Pennsylvania more than a decade ago. I helped him move, and we visit him in Pennsylvania once in a while, and we talk to him by phone pretty much every day. He is no longer our pastor, but he remains a friend. Although I attended a mega church for about two years, I never once spoke to the senior pastor and he couldn't pick me out of a lineup. In a small church, it can be difficult for you not to participate in the ministry of the church in some way. There are those who don't of course, but the opportunities are clear. Although I am not one to volunteer to fill positions that might be open, I have served as an interim pastor of a couple of churches, as a church secretary, treasurer, deacon, Sunday school teacher, and was responsible for the church's Wednesday evening services for years. I did this not because I wanted to put myself out there but because I knew the job had to be done by someone, and I gained something from it. I would have never put my name in for a position at the mega church. In a small church, there are no professional musicians, although most churches will have at least a couple of people whose abilities really shine. Although the congregational singing probably would not do very well on iTunes, pretty much everyone participates, and that's an important part of the worship experience. In a large church, everyone might be invited to sing but the professionals and choir are the ones with the microphones, and the congregational voices are rarely heard. If you want to be entertained, the mega church is the place to be. If you want to minister and be ministered to, the opportunities are there in a small local church. Of course, there are mega churches that do make a point of trying to get people involved in the ministry of the church, and there are also small churches that are horrible. I should say, to the OP, I am assuming that this holds true for Catholic churches as well as Protestant, but I don't know if it does. I believe that priests are assigned to a Catholic church, while many Protestant churches hire their pastors. Not all; some Protestant churches assign pastors too.
That's further then I want to go...I'm very far north...north of Shepard. Also, I want to stick to Catholic...it's the only religion I feel comfortable in. I think that's why all the other Churches I checked out a few years ago...never went back.
I've never been in a Catholic Church where the priest is dynamic or loud...I don't like that, it reminds me of the TV Evangelists. I also don't like too much singing like I've seen in some churches...it would be okay if it was a real song but it's always some words put to music..it's like your singing sentences. My daughter's Catholic Church..St Joseph's is perfect but of course that's too far for me. I've been there a few times and liked it. I would only volunteer in programs that benefit the community like feeding the homeless, etc.
My volunteer services were always with the babies and young children. I'd help tend them so their mothers and fathers could go and be blessed with some spiritual nourishment after a week of parenting and other responsibilites. There are always speakers in the tending rooms so we could hear the worship service too while loving and caring for those precious little ones. Some mega churches also have small "home groups" geared to the different ages, single or married, etc. and they often hold Bible studies and get to know each other outside of the mega church. They also have "meetings" on a weekly basis for those struggling with addiction, going through divorce, etc. and single gatherings and socializing. I agree with Ken that mega churches are often more entertainment places than a place to gather and worship the Lord and hear His Word. Unfortunately entertainment is what many people are looking for now days...even in the church they attend.
I've watched babies in a home group meeting of the religion my youngest grandsons nanny is...she's very religious and does all those things and when I was visiting she had a meeting in someone's home. All the young kids were watched by someone while the adults talked. I told her I'd take my grandson over there and watch all the other kids for her so she could go while she was on the job at my son's ...of course I asked permission from my DIl and she said yes. That was a long morning, lol I don't think I could watch very small children anymore if it required bending and lifting them...my back would kill me.
My daughter is in Rome right now, that's where their cruise departs from. I just got a text from her saying she got me a rosary from St. Peter's Basilica and dipped it in the holy water blessed by the Pope. I think this is a sign that I should definetly choose a Catholic Church. She sent me a pic.
She said They're having a great time...food is good and cheap she said....she said they would definitely go back and next time take me with them. Bad news is they had to wait 3 hrs to board their cruise on The Celebrity Constellation because there was a GI outbreak and they had to decontaminate the ship.
There's a church similar to this in Savannah, Georgia. We visited it for a few minutes, but a service was going on so couldn't stay long. I remember a Bahamas cruise we went on with Carnival out of Port Canaveral. We had already done all of the security stuff online, but due to a computer glitch, had to do it all over again in a Orlando International Airport room. Not only that, but instead of boarding the ship at 1PM, for a "Champagne Send Off/Good-Bye" from the deck of the ship at 3PM, due to Tropical Storm that had hit part of the Bahamas, we had to sit and wait at the airport until 10:30PM at which time we all got into a bus and was taken to the ship. We ended up eating supper at 1AM (burgers and fries). Even our itinerary for the cruise was changed.
That happens a lot on Caribbean Cruises because of TS and hurricanes. They're cruising on the Mediterranean.
We may take one more cruise, but when we took our last one, only one I've ever done, we didn't own a boat. Now we have boat expenses, so something can't happen.......like another cruise.