Kentucky church plans $26.5 million expansion

Louisville, Ky. – With membership and attendance booming since a move to new quarters four years ago, Kentucky’s largest church is planning a $26.5 million project to add buildings.

Southeast Christian Church, a conservative, evangelical and independent congregation, is the nation’s seventh largest, according to the Hartford (Conn.) Institute of Religious Research. Its 22,170 members and 16,796 average weekly attendance are up from 14,568 members and 10,865 attendance since the move to a new $90 million campus off Interstate 64.

Members will vote on the expansion plan Nov. 23-24. The proposal includes a 70,000-square-foot office building and 115,000-square-foot family recreation center. Construction would begin next summer and take 18 months.

Farrakhan speaks at Mississippi church

Tchula, Miss. – Nation of Islam Leader Louis Farrakhan told about 1,000 people at a Sunday church dedication that American blacks should unite, regardless of religion.

“I’m trying to wake you up to what religion is all about,” he said. “The church is about healing.”

Pastor Eddie Carthan of Good Samaritan Ecumenical Church, who was Tchula’s first black mayor, said he invited Farrakhan to emphasize unity among faiths and inspire youths in the impoverished Mississippi Delta.

Carthan said some area Christians criticized his invitation to Farrakhan, who is also a controversial figure among Muslims.