Megachurches as Total Environments

We argue that megachurches create and optimise total environments, which answer the desires of the human heart and generate an emotional energy that is both powerful and satisfying. By total environment, we mean a context that provides megachurch attendees with sufficient ministries, resources, and social ties such that attendees generally do not need to seek secular sources to have their fundamental emotional needs met. The megachurch and its activities provide a structure for their life. Megachurches build stable, confident, and encompassing sacred canopies for their members – virtually all of the material and emotional needs that accompany each stage of