The Chapel rebounds from crisis, with plan to establish campuses as independent churches

A year after a crisis shook the leadership and members of The Chapel, the Akron church is considering a plan for its seven campuses to become independent churches led by elders.

It’s a dramatic change for the non-denominational church that emerged from a Ministry Model Committee after town hall meetings were conducted with members in October.

The meetings and committee both took place following the departure of the church's senior pastor and another pastor who helped implement his vision for the church. A third pastor returned to the Green campus after a time of reflection and coaching.

The committee's recommendations were affirmed April 26 by The Chapel’s board of trustees, and a formal vote of members will take place in September that will set in motion an extended process to transform the church.

“We really are renewing our historic practice of establishing independent (churches),” said the Rev. Zac Derr, lead pastor at The Chapel’s Wadsworth campus.

The plan envisions each campus as an independent church when they become ready for the change. The process is expected to begin after the September vote, but a  timeline suggests some locations could take two or three years to establish a firm foundation.

“There is no shortcut to rebuilding trust,” said Derr.

Derr was selected to become the interim senior pastor while Tim Armstrong was on leave of absence. Armstrong ultimately left the church after being informed he would not be restored to his position.

Shock to the foundation of The Chapel

One year ago, on May 22, 2021, The Chapel’s board of trustees delivered a letter to the seven-campus church’s congregation. In it were only a few pieces of a complicated puzzle. The board, itself, was learning on the go.

“Our church is in crisis,” the members were told.

The Chapel report:: Staff feared for their jobs, investigation into church crisis revealed

The news was a shock to the congregation: The lead pastor of The Chapel had fired popular Green campus pastor Mike Castelli two days earlier. Following the board’s letter, Armstrong, responsible for administering all seven campuses, and pastor Jim Mitchell went on voluntary leave. All three men had been with The Chapel for years, with Mitchell logging three decades for the evangelical church.

“I probably cried the first 10 days more than I ever have,” said Derr. “Things like this shouldn’t happen — especially in churches.”

The board hired a consulting group to get an objective look at the situation. It found that Armstrong, the pastor in charge of the church’s operations and staff, had practiced “harshness and fear-based leadership” for years.

Staff members speaking to the consultant told how they feared losing their jobs and were afraid to express ideas or opinions that varied from Armstrong’s. One staff member fired soon after the senior pastor was appointed told her tale on a Christian website, with many in the congregation drawn to her painful account of personal suffering and loss.

It was a time of tribulation for many as the board and church members worked through the crisis and the wider community wondered what new revelations might come forth. At no time, however, was there any suggestion of illegality or immorality, a point church leaders stressed from the start.

But the pain caused by the conflict was real. One member, concerned by what seemed to him a glacial process, suggested breaking off the Green campus.

Slow, but thorough, process to determine what happened

As the board worked through the process of determining what had happened, how it had happened and what to do about it, regular updates were issued to the congregation on The Chapel’s website.

Finally, the board received a recommendation from the church’s Constitution Committee. In a July 30, 2021, update, the board announced that pastor Armstrong was no longer with The Chapel.

The board had declined to restore him, prompting the resignation.

“My greatest desires are for the unity of the church and staff and therefore agree with the Trustees that it would be best for me to resign my position,” Armstrong wrote within the text of the update.

At the time, Melissa Trew, communications specialist with The Chapel, spoke about the difficult situation and the support from members and pastors.

“Our congregation is incredibly humble and faithful,” she said in early August. “…They have prayed and supported our pastors and everyone on staff has felt the impact of their support.”

In an Aug. 20 update on The Chapel's website, the church announced that pastor Mitchell, too, had left his position at the church, deciding to voluntarily resign on Aug. 16.

Pastor Castelli returned to the Green campus after a period of coaching and reflection.

Meetings with members to discuss findings

The board of trustees presented a summary of findings from the consulting group, discussing the situation with members in a series of town hall events in October. Following the meetings, an Oct. 21 update contained frequently asked questions and responses. Many of the questions revolve around the relationship between pastors Armstrong and Castelli.

In a question about the differences between the pastors, church leaders said the conflict between the two men went beyond their differing visions of where the church would go.

“We believe that the source of the conflict between Mike and Tim was less about vision and more about Tim's character,” the update states.

Other questions seek input on how the crisis would affect the church, including the centralized nature of its power structure. To address that, a Ministry Model Committee was formed to map out a new path that would unify members and restore church “governance and to structure accountability” that would meet the approval of church leaders and The Chapel’s members.

Trew said members have been receptive to the proposal.

"I have only heard positive feedback," she said. "People are filled with hope and joy and excitement."

Moving forward to a new structure

On April 26, trustees voted to affirm five recommendations crafted by the Ministry Model Committee. Over the summer, church leaders at the seven campuses will explain what the recommendations are and their scriptural foundation.

The fifth recommendation reads as follows: “... each local church (will) be governed locally by its own local elders. As such, any future association of The Chapel churches is voluntary. Prior to 2003, this is how The Chapel historically planted churches."

In 2003, the Green campus opened as a unit of The Chapel in Akron, with the centralized structure that ultimately helped create last year’s crisis.

In September, members at all seven campuses will vote on the plan. The churches will become independent as they establish a firm foundation for doing so.

Derr said it’s probable the churches will voluntarily work on issues together, although the extent may vary. He said much will remain the same between the campuses after they become independent.

“We will always share the same core convictions,” he said. “(But) they will be completely independent.”

He compared the future structure to the changes experienced by a family.

“If your adult kids move out of the house, they’re still your family,” he said.

Trew said the crisis was especially troubling to many members because The Chapel helps develop close relationships than can last a lifetime.

“We’ve met our best friends here,” she said.

Derr said he hopes individuals outside the church examine how it handled its issue and derive something positive from The Chapel’s experience.

“I would hope anybody who would read about this would see hope and redemption,” he said. “Here is a church in the area that went through a really humbling time, but the difficult things shouldn’t define us.”

Leave a message for Alan Ashworth at 330-996-3859 or email him at aashworth@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @newsalanbeaconj.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: The Chapel rebounds from crisis, plans for local control of churches