Fellowship Memphis — Church Directory

Quick Facts

Pastor — the shepherd God holds accountable John Bryson (co-founder; Bryan Loritts was co-founder but left in 2015)

Founded Unknown

Denomination Acts 29 Network

Service Times Sunday 10:00 AM

Men's Ministry No

Kids Ministry Yes

Website fellowshipmemphis.org

10-Point Theological Scorecard

Christology

Is Jesus the only way? (John 14:6)

Acts 29 Network doctrinal distinctives affirm Trinitarian orthodoxy.

Strong

Scripture

Inerrancy affirmed? Final authority?

Acts 29 affirms inerrancy.

Strong

Men's Discipleship

Intentional formation for men?

Men's ministry link in nav — details not provided.

Caution

Soteriology

Faith alone? How is salvation presented?

Acts 29 Reformed-evangelical sola fide.

Strong

Gender / Biblical Design

Biblical manhood and womanhood by God's design — patriarchal, complementarian, egalitarian, or affirming gender ideology?

Acts 29 complementarian (male-only elders).

Verify

Strong

Leadership Structure

Male elders/pastors? Accountability?

2010 Trotter scandal and alleged suppression responses constitute documented leadership failure — red per rubric 'documented abuse patterns' territory.

WARNING!

Preaching Style

Expository or topical/therapeutic?

'Gospel-centered' framing per Acts 29 norm; 90-minute service.

Caution

Mission Clarity

Great Commission central?

Multi-ethnic mission; current framing gospel-centered. Scandal history clouds mission credibility.

Caution

Cultural Alignment

DEI/CRT language? Social justice crowding out gospel?

Multi-ethnic emphasis; 'come as you are' inclusive language — verify for DEI drift.

Caution

Accountability Structure

Denominational home, elder plurality, or external network — is the pastor answerable to anyone?

Acts 29 Network — peer accountability but no confessional denomination.

Caution

Assessment

Fellowship Memphis — Acts 29 multi-ethnic church. MAJOR CONCERN: Co-founder Bryan Loritts was involved in a scandal where worship pastor Rick Trotter (Loritts' brother-in-law) secretly recorded women and possibly children in a church bathroom in 2010. Allegations that leadership (including co-founder John Bryson) discouraged victims from going to police. Loritts left in 2015 for NYC. Guidepost investigation found 'errors of judgment' but 'no concrete evidence of cover-up.' Located at 1100 Cherry Rd (not 600 S Shady Grove). Currently gospel-centered, disciple-making, multi-ethnic mission. The scandal history is a significant concern for due diligence.

#acts-29#memphis#tennessee#batch-21-enriched#needs-review

MOOP Engagement Tracker

How this church was personally verified by the MOOP directory team:

✓ Researched church website

Sources & Evidence

Enrichment Notes

Downgraded from yellow to red based on documented leadership-response failure in Trotter scandal (pattern territory per rubric).

These are the URLs consulted to arrive at this church's scoring. Score-note claims are synthesized from homepage content, denominational directories, and public statements of faith at the time of review. Church websites change frequently; we're progressively adding Internet Archive snapshots to prevent link rot.

[1] Live source fellowshipmemphis.org

Transparency note: MOOP ratings are researcher judgments about publicly available theological and ecclesial evidence. They are not infallible. If a church's public posture has changed since our review, or if we've mis-read evidence, tell us — we publish corrections.