Ep. 402: Leaving The Network: A Conversation with Reporter Kim Roberts

MinistryWatch Podcast

The Network is a group of churches started by Steve Morgan, a pastor who began his career as part of the Vineyard USA association of churches, but left that group to start his network of churches in 2006.

Until recently, the network had 26 member churches. Morgan is the lead pastor of Joshua Church in Austin, Texas. But in the past few months, families and even some churches have been speaking out about the practices of Morgan and The Network.

Today, we talk with reporter Kim Roberts, who has been covering The Network for MinistryWatch. Below is a transcript of that conversation.

Warren

Your story begins with a woman named Melanie and her estrangement from her daughter that she believes is because of The Network.

Before we talk more about Melanie, I want to mention that we use only her first name in today’s story. It is generally the practice of MinistryWatch to only use named sources. In this instance, because Melanie is trying to strike a balance between warning others and maintaining the possibility of reconciliation with her daughter, we agreed to only use her first name.

So, with that said, what can you tell me about Melanie’s story?

Kim

Melanie raised her children in a Christian home. So she was happy her daughter was getting involved in church while at college. But then she noticed their conversations change. Her daughter started to seem disconnected.

Warren

Then she really became disconnected.

Kim

She did. Melanie said that she hasn’t heard her daughter’s voice in two years. Her eldest daughter cut off contact with her on November 29, 2022, after Melanie expressed concerns about her daughter’s church and its practices. She sent her daughter a link to a website with stories of heartbreak from people affiliated with The Network.

Warren

Her daughter had joined Foundation Church, a Network church led by Justin Major, while she was a junior at Illinois State University.

Kim

That’s right, and this was not the first time she had disconnected from the family. Not long after her 21^stbirthday in 2017, Melanie’s daughter announced she would be getting married to a young man she had just met. They were married within 10 days of meeting.

Six months later, Melanie received a text that her daughter and new son-in-law would need time to themselves and would have no contact with Melanie and her family for a year.

Warren

Melanie and her husband agreed to respect their daughter’s wishes and after about a year, they got together and things started to improve, Melanie said. What happened next?

Kim

In January 2020, Melanie helped after the arrival of her first grandbaby. While she loved spending time with her daughter and her family, Melanie was soon told not to send any text messages to her daughter without including her son-in-law also.

When she was in the area, Melanie asked to have lunch with her daughter but that was “not allowed.”

Warren

Despite the continued inexplicable boundaries and family strain, Melanie again helped when the second grandbaby arrived in May 2022. During the visit, Melanie said the two had good conversations, and she was optimistic that healing was occurring.

Kim

Then in October 2022, when Melanie was on her way to visit her father for his birthday, she offered to drop by so her eldest grandchild could sign the card to his great-grandfather.

Her daughter’s response was “upsetting” and “bizarre.” “I respectfully decline your request,” her daughter wrote in a text response, claiming the child didn’t know Melanie’s father.

Her daughter didn’t join the family Thanksgiving celebration that year and a few days later, Melanie shared her concerns about The Network of churches to which her daughter’s church belonged.

Warren

That was in 2022. And that’s her texts were blocked and communication ceased.

And in your story, Kim, you wrote something really interesting. Quoting Melanie, you wrote:

“I feel like if you have a close family, they will try to put a wedge there. They want to eliminate the family as a threat. The pastor becomes the father figure.”

Kim

That’s right, and that idea is a part of Melanie’s motivation to expose The Network.

Melanie began searching online and found similar stories. She wanted to warn others, so she created Families Against Cults on Campus (FACC). That effort includes a You Tube page with content about The Network, including testimonials.

Warren

The YouTube channel has gotten tens of thousands of views. So it is starting to get noticed.

What else can you tell me?

Kim

The leadership structure of Network churches and the alleged emphasis of the principle of “obeying your leaders in all things” is a red flag for the several dozen families who have joined FACC. They hope to stop the inflow of new recruits into Network churches, which are often planted near college campuses where they recruit members.

The FACC members have all been negatively impacted by connections to Network churches. In many cases, family members have cut off contact with them without explanation.

Warren

Can you give me another example?

Kim

Lori Hallatt is still hoping for a restored relationship with her son. She hasn’t had a conversation with him since May 2023 when he texted that he “needed distance” and would “reach out when ready.”

Warren

Lori Hallatt posted her testimonial on the Leaving The Network website. Can you read a portion of it?

Kim

She wrote this:

“I have come to discover in talking with others who have left the Network, this type of family division is not unique to my family; in fact it is quite prevalent. I have spent hours on the phone in recent weeks talking with other parents who have also been cut off from their family members who attend Network churches.”

Warren

And at least in this situation, there seems to be a bit of a break.

Kim

Now her son has reached out and asked his parents to come visit for a conversation on October 7. Hallatt will drive 10 hours in hopes that she can have a relationship with her son again.

Warren

Kim, I first heard about The Network when I got an email from a man named Andrew Lumpe. What can you tell me about his story?

Kim

Andrew Lumpe had been involved in three different Network churches since its inception. He had served in leadership roles, including serving on boards of elders.

In 2019 he raised concerns to leaders in The Network about Steve Morgan’s background. Morgan had been arrested for aggravated criminal sodomy in 1987 while serving as a youth leader for the Reformed Latter-Day Saints. The case against Morgan was ultimately diverted.

Lumpe said Network leadership declined to conduct an investigation, so he and his wife left. They were shunned by many previous friends.

Warren

Since leaving, Lumpe says he has learned of hundreds and even thousands of individuals who have been negatively impacted by The Network.

An online forum, Leaving the Network, was created to “platform the stories of those who have left Steve Morgan’s Network of Churches and to create a public record of the inner workings and history of The Network.”

Kim

The Leaving the Network group has heard from many families who noticed rapid changes in loved ones who became involved in a Network church. Examples include drastic personality changes, loss of interest in hobbies, significant financial commitment to the church, abrupt priority shifts, Network gatherings prioritized over family celebrations, and increased control of their lives by Network leaders.

Warren

This activism seems to be having an impact.

Kim

During the process of raising awareness about alleged problems in The Network, four churches have announced their departure from the Network of churches.

On August 31, Isaiah Church in Madison, Wisconsin, posted a statement saying it was formally disassociating from The Network because of an inability to resolve concerns about “leadership theology, church governance, and past decisions with network leadership.”

“It has come to the point that we believe we have exhausted all avenues and withdrawing from the network is the appropriate action for Isaiah Church due to our biblical convictions,” the statement continued.

Warren

On September 8, Vine Church in Carbondale, Illinois—a church founded by Morgan—posted a statement saying it would now be an independent, local church and no longer part of The Network.

The same day, North Pines Church in Kalamazoo, Michigan posted a similar statement that its board of overseers had “unanimously decided to end our affiliation with our prior church network.”

Kim

About a week later, a fourth church — Hosea Church in Raleigh, North Carolina — announced it had “lovingly ended [its] official association with that network due to differing theological positions regarding leadership and local church governance.”

Warren

The Leaving The Network group wasn’t wholly satisfied by these departures.

Kim

The Leaving the Network website said none of these churches addressed the “call to action” by former leaders from Network churches, which calls for an investigation into Morgan’s arrest, any potential victims of abuse, concealment, abusive systems, and leader behaviors.

Warren

Now, Kim, here at MinistryWatch, we try to get both sides of the story. Did you reach out to The Network and attempt to get its side?

Kim

MinistryWatch reached out to Joshua Church in Austin where Steve Morgan is lead pastor to ask for comment, but we did not receive a reply.

Warren

Kim, thanks for this fascinating story. And please keep us posted if you hear of any new developments.

Kim

Will do.

Warren

That brings to a close this EXTRA episode of the MinistryWatch podcast. As I mentioned earlier, this story about The Network came to us from Andrew Lumpe, a reader of MinistryWatch. If you have a story you’d like to see us cover, we’d like to hear from you. You can send your email to [e-mail]

Thanks to Kim Roberts for being with me on this week’s EXTRA episode.

The producer for today’s program is Jeff McIntosh.

Until next time, may God bless you.