Home Christian News Former Mars Hill Elders Plead For Mark Driscoll to Resign Immediately

Former Mars Hill Elders Plead For Mark Driscoll to Resign Immediately

“We plead with Mark to participate in and submit to Christian conciliation.”

The former elders said they wanted to see Driscoll pursue repentance, reconciliation, and restoration for all those he sinned against at Mars Hill Church and The Trinity Church, and they expressed disappointed in people who affirmed Driscoll’s planting of The Trinity Church. The former leaders said those who enabled Driscoll had not investigated why the Mars Hill Church elders found him guilty.

Former Mar’s Hill Church elder Ryan Welsh said the statement isn’t new information but is information that wasn’t widely shared. “Our hope is not just to point a finger. Our hope is to protect people and, by the Spirit’s work, that Mark would respond.”

Former Elders: Driscoll Shouldn’t Be in a Position of Spiritual Authority

Driscoll’s former elders said they want to see their former pastor restored to ministry in the future, but currently recommend it is not “prudent or healthy for him to be in a position of spiritual authority in a church or ministry setting for the foreseeable future.”

Mars Hill Driscoll Investigation Report Released

Christianity Today also shared a document which has never been released to the public regarding Mars Hill Church’s investigation into Driscoll’s bullying behavior. The document is a report from the Board of Elders detailing Driscoll’s behavior as quick-tempered and prone to “harsh speech,” arrogant, and domineering in his leadership of elders and staff. The Board of Elders recommended Driscoll “be rebuked for his sin” and that a restoration plan be developed. Their recommended process was for Driscoll to be removed from eldership and all church leadership so that there could be reflection, repentance, and restoration on his part. The report advised that Driscoll would need to repent and reconcile with those he sinned against and that he’d be cared for by a team of pastors and counselors from within Mars Hill Church and outside the church.

Mars Hill Church No Longer Exists

Driscoll did not follow the elder’s recommendations and instead resigned. Less than four months after his abrupt resignation, Mars Hills Church, a church that once reported weekly attendance of over 12,000 people at 15 campuses, disbanded all its remaining locations in January of 2015. Each location has since become its own local congregation.

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