The current patchwork of services instead may feature contemporary music, meetings in movie theaters, congregations with related music clubs, gatherings of Eastern and Middle Eastern faiths, megachurches and a greater number of female pastors.

"A new generation of churchgoers are hungry for an active faith and growth but not in the typical trappings," said Mr. Love. "There's a need for new thinking and new types of churches to meet the need of others who are different."

"Churches unwilling to make changes will drift into the background," he said. "Those with purpose and passion will come to the forefront."

What is clear, he said, is that there is an increase in diversity among religious faiths, a rise in the number of people who don't feel compelled to join a congregation -- whether or not they're active in one -- and a decrease in cradle-to-grave loyalty to one denomination.

Mr. Love said the church chose to meet in a theater initially because people outside the faith "judge a book by its cover." A typical church building with a typical sign is bound to attract typical people whose worship experiences are tied to people in the same faith, he said. But Journey Chattanooga hoped to attract people who wanted something different, he said.

Although "some still view their (religious) perspective as the correct way," he said, "it's important that we accept all religions. We're such a diverse community, it's important to include everyone."

As religious faith has become more diversified in Chattanooga, it also has become more common for different denominations and faiths to work together. Mr. Cohn, who recently attended a program on domestic violence at Brainerd Baptist Church, said he has seen an increased emphasis on interfaith services and "getting together.I see common goals and groups working together to reach those goals," he said. "I like that. I think that's very good for the community."

"I want to know you. Why? Because you're seeking after God," Roberts said from the Northwood pulpit Sunday as he addressed the multi-faith audience, which included Rabbi Jeremy Schneider and Imam Zia Sheikh.

"If we're going to get along ... I need to understand your core convictions, how it impacts your worldview ... and I want you to understand Christianity," he told them. "I want us to be honest about our differences so that we can build a relationship."

Shifting from interfaith to multifaith is critical in the 21st century, Roberts said.

"The old conversation of interfaith basically said if we all agree on everything then we can get along. So what we need to do is minimize our differences ... and only talk about what we do agree upon," the Baptist pastor said Sunday. "But there's a problem with that. That's great if you're liberal, if you're a liberal Muslim or liberal Christian or liberal Jew, that's fine."

"Because truth is truth. Truth is not relative," Roberts said. "Multifaith says 'we have differences.'" The greatest conflict in the world today, he pointed out, is between fundamentalist Christians and fundamentalist Muslims. "There has to be a new platform," Roberts stressed.

Some pastors have criticized Roberts for the multifaith event and attending different places of worship with his congregation. But the Northwood pastor said he would respond to his critics by asking, "Why do you go to restaurants where people get drunk? Why do you go to movies where people undress and do things on the screen that break the heart of God ... Why do you want to get in a car built by an automobile industry driven by greed? But I don't want to have a relationship with someone who's trying to seek God? That makes sense, doesn't it?"