What is a church building dedication?

In religion, a church building dedication is the first service held, where the church members dedicate the building to God. In doing so, the church becomes a place of worship and sanctuary and filled with the presence of God. When the building will no long be used as a church, the last service performed is a deconsecrate service to make the building available for general use.

There is no one specific service used to dedicate a church. Instead, religions have a general guideline that can be followed by the congregation. Dedication programs generally include readings and prayer outside the building, at the door and at various points within the church, such as the pulpit.