Saddleback Church — Rancho Capistrano Campus — Church Directory

Quick Facts

Pastor — the shepherd God holds accountable Andy Wood (lead)

Founded Verify

Denomination Southern Baptist (SBC) — disfellowshipped 2023

Service Times Sunday Worship — verify times on website

Men's Ministry No

Kids Ministry Yes

Website saddleback.com/locations/campus-page/rancho-capistrano-campus/

10-Point Theological Scorecard

Christology

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

Saddleback's drift is over gender, not Christology; cautious yellow.

Caution

Scripture

Inerrancy affirmed? Final authority?

BF&M 2000 Article VI departure not a denial of inerrancy; cautious yellow.

Caution

Men's Discipleship

Intentional formation for men?

Female teaching pastor in the broadcast pulpit + pastoral-training site undermines the men-as-pastor pattern.

WARNING!

Soteriology

Faith alone? How is salvation presented?

Not directly named in disfellowship; cautious yellow.

Caution

Gender / Biblical Design

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

Stacie Wood functions as teaching pastor across all campuses; Rancho Capistrano is a Saddleback training/retreat center hosting same teaching staff.

Stacie Wood functions as 'teaching pastor' across all Saddleback campuses. The Rancho Capistrano facility additionally trains pastors under that teaching staff. BF&M 2000 Article VI reserves the office of pastor for men.

WARNING!

Leadership Structure

Male elders/pastors? Accountability?

Stacie Wood functions in the office of pastor contrary to BF&M 2000.

WARNING!

Preaching Style

Expository or topical/therapeutic?

Stacie Wood preaches in broadcast rotation; Rancho Capistrano hosts pastoral training under the same teaching team.

WARNING!

Mission Clarity

Great Commission central?

Cooperative Program participation severed June 2023.

Caution

Cultural Alignment

DEI/CRT language? Social justice crowding out gospel?

Saddleback doubled down on female pastoral leadership; Rancho Capistrano is also used for pastoral training, multiplying the drift footprint.

WARNING!

Accountability Structure

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

Disfellowshipped Feb 2023; appeal denied June 2023; left CSBC October 2023.

WARNING!

Assessment

Saddleback Rancho Capistrano ('The Ranch') is a 170-acre Saddleback property in San Juan Capistrano serving as campus, overnight retreat center, pastoral-training facility, and wedding venue. It is part of Saddleback (lead pastor Andy Wood, teaching pastor Stacie Wood) and was inside the disfellowship perimeter when the SBC removed Saddleback February 2023 over Stacie Wood functioning as 'teaching pastor.' This record exists for drift documentation only — and is especially notable because Saddleback uses Rancho Capistrano to train future pastors under a teaching staff that includes a woman in the office of pastor.

#sbc#drift#female-pastor#disfellowshipped-2023#credentials-committee-referral#ca#san-juan-capistrano#needs-review#saddleback-satellite#pastoral-training

MOOP Engagement Tracker

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

✓ Researched church website

Sources & Evidence

Enrichment Notes

Address verified via saddleback.com Rancho Capistrano campus page (29251 Camino Capistrano, San Juan Capistrano). Saddleback acquired the property in 2011 and uses it as retreat / pastoral-training site.

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 saddleback.com/locations/campus-page/rancho-capistrano-ca…
[2] Live source christianitytoday.com/2023/02/saddleback-church-southern-…

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.