A PLACE WHERE GOD IS UNWELCOME? SIGNS OF THE END TIME?

Attendees sing a song at the Sunday Assembly, a godless congregation founded by British comedians Sanderson Jones and Pippa Evans, on Sunday, Nov. 10, 2013, in Los Angeles. A new mega-church movement is generating buzz from London to Los Angeles, but this time it's a belief in non-belief that's drawing crowds on Sunday mornings. Sunday Assembly began in London in January and soared in popularity among atheists looking for a place to air their views with other likeminded people and now the concept has taken hold across the pond. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

It looked like a typical Sunday morning at any mega-church. Several hundred people attended more than an hour of rousing music, an inspirational sermon, a reading and some quiet reflection. The only thing missing was God.

Nearly three dozen gatherings nicknamed “atheist mega-churches” by supporters and detractors have sprung up around the U.S. and Australia — with more to come — after finding success in Great Britain earlier this year.

The movement fueled by social media and led by two prominent British comedians is no joke.

On Sunday, the inaugural Sunday Assembly in Los Angeles attracted several hundred people bound by their belief in non-belief. Similar gatherings in San Diego, Nashville, New York and other U.S. cities have drawn hundreds of atheists seeking the camaraderie of a congregation without religion or ritual.

The founders, British duo Sanderson Jones and Pippa Evans, are currently on a tongue-in-cheek “40 Dates, 40 Nights” tour around the U.S. and Australia to collect donations and help launch new Sunday Assemblies. They hope to raise more than $800,000 that will help atheists launch their congregations around the world. So far, they have raised about $50,000.

They want to find a new way to meet likeminded people and make their presence more visible in a landscape dominated by faith.

Jones got the idea while leaving a Christmas carol concert six years ago.

“There was so much about it that I loved, but it’s a shame because at the heart of it, it’s something I don’t believe in,” Jones said. “If you think about church, there’s very little that’s bad. It’s singing awesome songs, hearing interesting talks, thinking about improving yourself and helping other people – and doing that in a community with wonderful relationships. What part of that is not to like?”

New studies show an increasing number of Americans are drifting from any religious affiliation.

The Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life released a study last year that found 20 per cent of Americans say they have no religious affiliation, an increase from 15 per cent in the last five years. Pew researchers stressed, however, that the category also encompassed majorities of people who said they believed in God but had no ties with organized religion and people who consider themselves “spiritual” but not “religious.”

Sunday Assembly – whose motto is Live Better, Help Often, Wonder More – taps into that universe of people who left their faith but now miss the community that church provided, said Phil Zuckerman, a professor of secular studies at Pitzer College in Claremont.

“In the U.S., there’s a little bit of a feeling that if you’re not religious, you’re not patriotic. I think a lot of secular people say, ‘Hey, wait a minute. We are charitable, we are good people, we’re good parents and we are just as good citizens as you, and we’re going to start a church to prove it,” said Zuckerman.

But some who have spent years pushing back against the idea that atheism itself is a religion don’t approve.

“There’s something not OK with appropriating all of this religious language, imagery and ritual for atheism,” said Michael Luciano, a self-described atheist.

That sentiment didn’t seem to detract from the excitement Sunday at the inaugural meeting in Los Angeles.

During the service, attendees stomped their feet, clapped their hands and cheered as Jones and Evans led the group through rousing renditions of “Lean on Me,” “Here Comes the Sun” and other hits that took the place of gospel songs.

At the end, volunteers passed cardboard boxes for donations as attendees mingled over coffee and pastries and children played on the floor.

For atheist Elijah Senn, the morning was perfect.

“I think the image that we have put forward in a lot of ways has been a scary, mean, ‘We want to tear down the walls, we want to do destructive things’ kind of image, is what a lot of people have of us,” he said. “I’m really excited to be able to come together and show that it’s not about destruction. It’s about making things and making things better.”

 End time Indeed