At This Church, People Stay in Their Cars and Worship in the Parking Lot - Find Out Why
Daytona Beach Drive In Christian Church is exactly what it sounds like. It's a Christian church in Daytona Beach, Fla. that meets at an old drive-in theater. And just like the moviegoers did when the place was a theater, worshippers today don't leave their cars for the service.
They simply park in rows and tune their radios to a set frequency to hear the service by Rev. Robert Kemp-Baird, who stands at the altar where the big movie screen once stood. Communion is delivered to each car.
There actually is face-to-face fellowship for congregants, though. Indoor and outdoor seating areas are available to those who want to leave the comfort of their bucket seats.
Rev. Kemp-Baird was skeptical about the in-car services at first, but he warmed to the idea.
"Is there a feeling that Christ's presence is made known?" he says in the NPR podcast below. "I do know it lives here."
Hear more from Rev. Kemp-Baird and worshippers at the drive in church in this podcast.
