Acts 29 Network
The Acts 29 Network is a Christian organization dedicated to church planting. It derives its name from the Book of Acts in the New Testament, which has 28 chapters, making Acts 29 the "next chapter" in the history of the church. A number of other Christian organisations also use the phrase "Acts 29" in their name.
The Acts 29 Network was initially led by Mark Driscoll,[1] while the current President is Scott Thomas and current Director is Elliot Grudem, who is also the Global Church Pastor at Mars Hill Church in Seattle.[2]
Other figures active in the early days of the Acts 29 Network included Dr. David Nicholas of Spanish River Church, Boca Raton, Florida;[3] Rick McKinley of Imago Dei Community, Portland, OR; Doug Pagitt of Solomon's Porch, Minneapolis, MN; the aforementioned Mark Driscoll; and several other non-denominational and Presbyterian church planters.
The network calls itself a "trans-denominational peer to peer network of missional church planting churches" and describes itself as "first Christians, second Evangelicals, third Missional, and fourth Reformed."[4]
The Acts 29 Network has been described as part of the emerging church.[1][5][6] However Darrin Patrick, Vice President of Acts 29 has pointed out "bad things" in the emerging church such as "the fascination with deconstructing almost everything while building almost nothing," and "ugly things" such as "conversing about God's Word to the neglect of obeying it, deviating from historical orthodoxy and the lack of clarity regarding issues of theology and sexuality."[7]
The network includes almost 300 churches.[8] A number of churches within the network belong to other denominations. Christ the King Presbyterian Church in Raleigh, North Carolina is also a member of the Presbyterian Church in America,[9] while Sojourn Community Church in Louisville, Kentucky is also a member of the Southern Baptist Convention.[10]
References
- ^ a b Henard, William D.; Greenway, Adam W. (2009). Evangelicals Engaging Emergent: A Discussion of the Emergent Church Movement. B&H. pp. 8, 245. ISBN 0805447393.
- ^ "Leadership". Acts 29 Network. Retrieved 7 April 2011.
- ^ Interview with Scott Thomas.
- ^ "FAQ". Acts 29 Network. Retrieved 7 April 2011.
- ^ Jameson, Norman (21 March 2011). "SBC Pastors' Conference slate raises ire". Associated Baptist Press. Retrieved 7 April 2011.
- ^ Palmeri, Allen (28 January 2008). "Theology committee tackles Emerging Church". The Pathway. Missouri Baptist Convention. Retrieved 7 April 2011.
- ^ Patrick, Darrin. "Emerging Church - The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly". Acts 29 Network. Retrieved 7 April 2011.
- ^ "Churches". Acts 29 Network. Retrieved 7 April 2011.
- ^ "Why We Do It". Christ the King Presbyterian Church. Retrieved 7 April 2011.
- ^ Smith, Peter (16 March 2011). "Sojourn church buys Silver Street Elementary building in New Albany". The Courier-Journal. Retrieved 7 April 2011.