Today, Mars Hill Church rebranded Mars Hill Global by calling their missionary efforts Mars Hill Go. However, the revised Mars Hill Global/Go Frequently Asked Questions page still does not answer one of the most frequently asked questions — how much has Mars Hill Church spent on mission efforts in India and Ethiopia? From the FAQ page:
Where have past gifts been used?
During fiscal years 2009-2014, over $10MM dollars has been given to Mars Hill Church by the Mars Hill Global Family. During that same time period $22.48MM has been spent on church planting in the US, India and Ethiopia. In 2009-11 over 80% of funds given by the Mars Hill global family went to Acts 29 church planting and funds were consistently spent in India for church planting in each of those years. In 2012- 2014 expenditures for church planting efforts in India and Ethiopia were increased with the preponderance of expenses related to church plants and replants in the U.S.
This remains the same as when the FAQ was about Global. The period of interest is 2012-2014. The church knows what they spent on missions but they won’t release the numbers. The memo posted yesterday indicated that the plan was to fund “highly visible” mission projects costing about $120,000 per year. Given what the church claims to have done, I estimate they may have spent a little more than that. However, why not tell the church and the “Global family” how much they spent and where they spent it? The leaders revised the FAQ page today, but again failed to include the figures which would address how they handled the donations. Why not be transparent?
In 2012, Sutton Turner told the executive elders Mark Driscoll and Dave Bruskas that churches should be transparent:
It is my belief that the reason we have such poor giving by our Church is the lack of stewardship in the Church staff. Churches with excellent stewardship see greater giving because people know that every dollar they give will go towards the mission of the Church. It is very clear this has not been the case at Mars Hill Church.
What was true then is still true today.