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| Acts 29 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Classification | Protestant |
| Orientation | Evangelical |
| Theology | Evangelical |
| President | Brian Howard[1] |
| Executive director | Matt Chandler[1] |
| Founder |
|
| Origin | 1998 |
| Congregations | 730 |
| Official website | acts29 |
Acts 29 is a global family ofchurch planting churches that adheres toReformed orNew Calvinist theology.[2] It derives its name from theBook of Acts in the New Testament, which has 28 chapters, making Acts 29 the "next chapter" in the history of the church.[3] A number of other Christian organizations also use the phrase "Acts 29" in their respective names.[4][5][6]
Acts 29 was founded in 1998 byMark Driscoll[7][8] and David Nicholas.[9] Beginning September 17, 2007, with the Raleigh Boot Camp, Acts 29 began usingGreat Commission Ministries as its mission agency for fundraising and leadership training.[10][11][12]Matt Chandler was appointed as the president of Acts 29 Network in 2012.[13] Chandler announced plans to keep the network's objectives intact while reorganizing to address the global scope of the organization. The offices and leadership of Acts 29 moved fromMars Hill Church in Seattle to The Village Church in Texas in March 2012.[13][14] The offices of Acts 29 are now[when?] inMission Viejo, California.[15]
In August 2014, Acts 29 removedMark Driscoll andMars Hill Church from its membership. According to the Acts 29 Board, this was due to "the nature of the accusations against Mark, most of which have been confirmed by him."[16][17][18] Subsequent years saw the network restructure, with a focus on diversification, financial accountability and devolved leadership, transforming "from an American-based network to a diverse global family of church-planting churches".[19]
As of January 28, 2024, its board consisted of:[20]
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Acts 29 is a global family of church planting churches that originated in North America and now has representation in Europe, Australia and New Zealand, Latin and South America, Africa, and Asia.[2]
Acts 29 has been described as part of theemerging church.[21][22] However,Darrin Patrick, former vice president of Acts 29 has pointed out "bad things" in the emerging church such as "the fascination withdeconstructing almost everything while building almost nothing", and "ugly things" such as "conversing about God's Word [theBible] to the neglect of obeying it, deviating from historical orthodoxy and the lack of clarity regarding issues of theology and sexuality."[23]
Steve Lemke of theNew Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary cited interactions with Acts 29 instead of local Baptist churches on the part of Pleasant Valley Community Church in Owensboro, Kentucky, as a reason they were denied acceptance into the Daviess–McLean Baptist Association, saying, "those who want to be accepted should make themselves acceptable."[24]
Roger Moran, a former member of the Southern Baptist Convention's executive committee and head of the Missouri Baptist Layman's Association has criticized Acts 29 on matters of doctrine, vulgarity and drinking. In his view, Acts 29 and other emerging church movements have become a "dangerous and deceptive infiltration of Baptist life".[25][26]
Christian Piatt of theHuffington Post has criticized the network for disguising the traditional evangelical agenda of conformity and conversion behind the veneer of the new missional church movement. He also criticizes the emphasis on male leadership.[27]
Acts 29 churches have faced criticism for a number of high-profile church discipline issues. On April 13, 2016, then vice president of the network Darrin Patrick was removed from his position at The Journey for misconduct and was required to step down from all external leadership positions.[28]
In February 2020, it was announced that Steve Timmis had been removed from the position of CEO of the Acts 29 Network amid allegations of an abusive leadership style; five staff members had previously raised similar concerns with Chandler in 2015, only to be fired and asked to sign non-disclosure agreements.[29]
Criticisms have also been made over how church discipline has been conducted. The Village Church in Dallas offered a general apology after a female member was disciplined for annulling her marriage to a man who admitted to viewing child pornography. No elders or leaders were removed from their offices, but the church said in an email that the action taken against the woman was "unbefitting" of a church leader.[30]
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)As messengers to the annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention walked into the Kentucky Fair and Exposition Center in Louisville, they were handed a copy of Missouri layman Roger Moran's nearly 50-pageViewpoint document attacking the 'Emerging Church Movement' and the church-planting Acts 29 Network.
Moran addressed the Executive Committee Feb. 20 regarding his concerns relative to Acts 29, saying in part, 'One of the most dangerous and deceptive movements to infiltrate the ranks of Southern Baptist life has been the emerging/emergent church movement. Not since the stealth tactics of the CBF (Cooperative Baptist Fellowship) have we seen a movement operate so successfully below the radar of rank and file Southern Baptists.'
I'm all for congregational and denominational change. But when it's the same old white guys preaching largely the same old agenda, it smacks more of a desperate power grab than a genuine longing to better know and connect with the world around us.
According to a copy of a 2015 letter sent to Acts 29 president Chandler and obtained by CT, five staff members based in the Dallas area described their new leader as "bullying", "lacking humility", "developing a culture of fear", and "overly controlling beyond the bounds of Acts 29", with examples spanning 19 pages. During a meeting Chandler arranged with two board members to discuss the letter, all five were fired and asked to sign non-disclosure agreements as a condition of their severance packages.