Dictionary

fringe church en · NOUN

Etymology

From fringe + church. First use appears c. the 1940s.

Meanings

1. (colloquial, derogatory) A Christian denomination espousing doctrines or worship customs rejected by the majority of Christians.
   • Millions of people attend fringe church affiliated worship services each day.
   • More important, Westrom argues, the fringe church should turn its reins of leadership over to the newcomers, who would bring "fresh ideas" and "add to the vitality of the program of the church." 2003, Etan Diamond, Souls of the City: Religion and the Search for Community in Postwar America, Indiana University Press, page 83:
   • Experts estimate there are 2 million South Koreans who are followers of fringe churches, but the exact figures are unknown. 2021, VICE Asia, “Why It's So Hard to Leave a South Korean Fringe Church”, in Vice News:
   • Never before in the history of Christianity has there been such a complete move to orthodox Christianity by an unorthodox fringe church. 2003, J. Michael Feazell, The Liberation of the Worldwide Church of God: The Remarkable Story of a Cult's Journey from Deception to Truth, Zondervan, page 2:
2. (colloquial, derogatory) A place of worship affiliated with this type of religious denomination.
   • Congregants drove to attend services at a fringe church on Sunday morning.
   • Ponsonby Baptist is a small-city fringe church, with sixty to seventy people in attendance each Sunday. 2017, John Tucker, Text Messages: Preaching God's Word in a Smartphone World, Wipf & Stock Publishers, page 149:
   • The man was pastor of some lunatic-fringe church. 2004, Jack W. Payne, Six Hours Past Thursday, Impact Books, page 312:
   • Although one might have thought that the prospect of new suburbanites offered "nothing but pure and golden opportunity," the typical rural-fringe church "simply fails to notice what is happening." 2003, Etan Diamond, Souls of the City: Religion and the Search for Community in Postwar America, Indiana University Press, page 81:

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