The Dream Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit Christian Pentecostal network of community centers based in Los Angeles, California , established in 1994. The president of Dream Center is Matthew Barnett .
16-586: The organization was founded in 1994 by Pastor Matthew Barnett and Tommy Barnett of Dream City Church as a home missions project of the Southern California District of the Assemblies of God . In 1996, after purchasing the old Queen of Angels Hospital in Echo Park , it transformed it into a social center for the homeless, prostitutes and members of street gangs. In 2001, Pastor Matthew Barnett and
32-570: A 2015 Leadership Network study, 37% of multi-site church campuses were autonomous churches that merged with another church. Some multi-site churches have also established campuses in prisons. A study by the Hartford Institute for Religion Research, Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability , and Leadership Network published in 2020 found that 70% of American megachurches had a multi-site network. American Professor Eddie Gibbs on Church Growth at Fuller Theological Seminary , criticized
48-457: A Los Angeles creative arts training firm funded by principals of the private equity firm Colbeck Capital Management. 34°4′27.9″N 118°16′8.83″W / 34.074417°N 118.2691194°W / 34.074417; -118.2691194 Dream City Church 33°36′36″N 112°01′55″W / 33.609928°N 112.031969°W / 33.609928; -112.031969 Dream City Church (formerly Phoenix First Assembly of God)
64-490: A message saying the system does not eliminate COVID-19 but can eliminate other types of viruses. On June 26, 2020, Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich sent cease-and-desist letters to the church and the air-purification firm (CleanAir EXP), demanding that they stop making fraudulent statements about preventing COVID-19. Campus (church) A multi-site church is a specific church congregation which holds services at multiple geographical locations, either within
80-442: A specific metropolitan area or, increasingly, several such areas. A multisite church is a local church that has other campuses in various locations within the same city or in different cities. Within the multi-site approach, both the primary location (usually the one with the largest physical attendance) and the offsite locations will commonly have their own music worship and announcements pertaining to that congregation. The sermon
96-465: Is a multi-site Pentecostal megachurch based in Phoenix , Arizona . It is affiliated with the Assemblies of God USA . The weekly attendance was around 22,500 in 2013. The senior pastor is Luke Barnett. The church was founded in 1923 under the name of Phoenix First Assembly. In 1979, Tommy Barnett became the senior pastor. In 2011, his son Luke Barnett became the senior pastor. Weekly attendance at
112-520: Is mostly given by an on-site pastor, while in some churches it is broadcast via video from the main location. The different campuses share physical and financial resources. The first church to become multi-site was Highland Park Baptist Church in Chattanooga, Tennessee in 1942. In 1990, there were 10 multisite churches the United States . In 2014, there were 8,000 multisite churches. According to
128-808: The International Church of the Foursquare Gospel merged the Dream Center with the Angelus Temple , making Barnett the senior pastor over Angelus Temple as well as the Dream Center. Associated Dream Centers have been established in other cities. As of 2022, the organization has established 84 centers in other cities and countries around the world. Dream Center offers a food bank , clothing and assistance programs for victims of disaster, domestic violence, drug addiction, human trafficking and prisoners. In 2005, some Hurricane Katrina evacuees staying at
144-405: The Dream Center said they had difficulty receiving donations. In response to the complaints several social activists, led by Ted Hayes, an advocate for the homeless, called a news conference demanding an investigation of the Dream Center. After visiting the Dream Center, however, and being given a tour of the facility, the activists concluded that the accusations were groundless. "There is no basis to
160-548: The acquired schools, and criticism that the transaction was designed to allow the schools to avoid increased regulation of for-profit colleges. The transaction was never approved by the Department of Education and in 2019, at least 30 of the art institutes and related colleges were closed, with some closures announced abruptly in the middle of the academic year. Some of the Art Institute programs were transferred to Studio Enterprise,
176-684: The church hosted a stop on the QAnon movement's ReAwaken America Tour . The sanctuary has second- and third-level balconies on most of the circumference of the auditorium. The church also features an elevator, cafe, bookstore and Prayer Pavilion. In 1994, the church founded the Dream Center in Los Angeles , an organization that offers a food bank , clothing and other assistance programs for prisoners and for victims of natural disasters, domestic violence , drug addiction and human trafficking . In 2020,
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#1732855223065192-557: The church increased from 10,000 in 2011 to 22,500 in 2013. In 2015, Phoenix First Assembly took the name of Dream City Church, becoming a multi-site church in November of that year with the opening of its Scottsdale, Arizona , campus. In February 2016, Community Church of Joy, a former Lutheran congregation in Glendale, Arizona , merged with Dream City Church. By 2021, Dream City had opened eight campuses in different cities. In 2022
208-497: The complaints we've heard," Hayes said, "The horror stories reported to us do not exist." In 2017, a subsidiary of the Dream Center, in partnership with a private equity fund, purchased the Art Institutes , South University , and Argosy University systems of for-profit colleges from Education Management Corporation . The transaction received significant scrutiny, due to concerns about Dream Center's ability to successfully manage
224-450: The organization established 84 centers in other cities and countries around the world. On June 12, 2020, Dream City Church announced it would rent to Turning Point Action for an event in Phoenix. Turning Point Action subsequently revealed that then-incumbent U.S. president Donald Trump would be an event speaker. The church's press release said the facility rental did not imply endorsement of
240-557: The renters' opinions. In preparation for the Trump campaign rally , the church installed CleanAir EXP air-purification units that it said would destroy "99.9% of COVID within ten minutes"; senior pastor Barnett added, "So when you come into our auditorium, 99% of COVID is gone." The efficacy of this system had not been tested against COVID-19. Philip Tierno, a clinical professor of pathology at New York University , said that no system can protect someone against an infected person sneezing in
256-470: The seat next to them: "When you are dealing with hundreds or thousands of people in an AUDITORIUM, some of whom will carry the virus you WILL NOT BE absolutely PROTECTED." According to Jeffrey Siegal, professor of civil engineering at the University of Toronto , "This thing is not going to do anything in terms of protecting people in that space." On June 23, 2020, the church deleted the video, and it posted
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