A whole different kind of church marketing

I'm no expert on marketing, but I'm not so sure this is the best way to get the word out that the church as we've all known it from the past may not be the church as it is now.

OKLAHOMA CITY - Drivers on NW Expressway near Wilshire were shocked and confused by this new roadside message.

An attention grabber it is, but we wanted to know what's behind the billboard. One Metro driver said, "I wouldn't put something like that up. I don't understand it." Another said, "It's appalling someone would put up a sign like that!".

They were also surprised to learn a church was behind a billboard that said "We hate church... as usual." The Cathedral Church in Oklahoma City says they're glad folks are taking notice as they try to challenge the mindset of a new generation of churchgoers. Bishop Tony Miller said, "I know there's a shock factor especially to religious people & some may think we were being offensive. Our desire isn't to offend anybody, but to do what it did - to say what it is about church that upset or offends you." Bishop Tony Miller says he said it in a sermon and the church marketing department devised a plan to get peoples' attention... And ultimately get them in church doors to change their minds.

Miller said, "We'll take the risk in order to awaken people to the toughts of something different is possible. It's not about a building, a Sunday morning. It's about people encountering the heart of God." Bishop Miller says they posted the billboard yesterday and that they plan on continuing their campaign with future messages. The Cathedral Church is a charismatic non-denominational church founded in 1982.

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