Hundreds leave pioneering Fla. megachurch

By MATT SEDENSKY
The Associated Press
Thursday, October 1, 2009

MIAMI — Hundreds of congregants have left a pioneering megachurch in Florida to form their own congregation because they were unhappy with leadership at the church that's seen as a bedrock of the religious right.

The new congregation met for its first service last Sunday, and organizers said more than 450 people attended. The people who formed the new congregation had lost a Sept. 20 vote to fire Tchividjian. Organizers of the still unnamed church said nearly all of their attendees had been among Coral Ridge's roughly 2,000 members.

Coral Ridge said it's not worried about maintaining its membership after the departures. About 200 people enrolled in a class for new members after Tchividjian took over in March. the rest