JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (ABP)—A decision by Missouri Baptist Convention leaders to cut off funding for certain new church starts has set off a firestorm of protest and further widened a rift among conservative Baptists in the state.
MBC Executive Board members approved a measure Dec. 10 to withdraw funding and other assistance to MBC church plants that are affiliated with the Acts 29 Network.
Last year, some conservatives accused an Acts 29-affiliated church start in St. Louis of endorsing alcohol consumption by holding a Bible study night in a local pub. They later accused the network of being riddled with similar churches. Acts 29 is a non-denominational association of so-called “new paradigm” congregations.
Micah Fries, pastor of Frederick Boulevard Baptist Church in St. Joseph, Mo., pointed out that several Southern Baptist Convention leaders participate in the Acts 29 Network, including Ed Stetzer, senior director of the North American Mission Board's Center for Missional Research. Stetzer is a former Acts 29 Network board member.
A report by a theological study committee appointed by the convention to study the issue labeled the Acts 29 Network part of the emerging-church movement. The report charges the emergent movement with de-emphasizing “systematic Christian doctrine and biblical theology,” “intentional reluctance” to deal with “social, moral, ethical and political issues,” “distrust of traditional values” and “levels of immaturity and even rebellion,” among several other accusations.