Quick Facts
Founded
2021 (started in a living room)
Denomination
Non-Denominational
Service Times
Sundays at 10:02 AM at Hartfield YMCA Exercise Building
Men's Ministry
Yes
Kids Ministry
No
Pastor Credentials
Ordained minister (13 years); Founder of The Family Captain — coaching for Christian men on family leadership
10-Point Theological Scorecard
Christology
Is Jesus the only way? (John 14:6)
Scripture-loving, Great Commission church. Trinitarian orthodoxy.
Strong
Scripture
Inerrancy affirmed? Final authority?
Describes itself as "Scripture-loving" — Bible is central to identity.
Strong
Men's Discipleship
Intentional formation for men?
John Michael Clark IS men's discipleship. The Family Captain ministry coaches men on family leadership, marriage, and fatherhood. Close brotherhood within the congregation prioritized. GREEN.
Strong
Soteriology
Faith alone? How is salvation presented?
Making disciples who make disciples — Great Commission soteriology.
Strong
Gender / Biblical Design
Biblical manhood and womanhood by God's design — patriarchal, complementarian, egalitarian, or affirming gender ideology?
John Michael Clark runs The Family Captain — men as family leaders. Full patriarchal vision: men leading families, not just complementarian. GREEN.
Patriarchal — John Michael Clark teaches men as family captains. The Family Captain ministry coaches men on leading families. Not merely complementarian.
Strong
Leadership Structure
Male elders/pastors? Accountability?
Church planted May 2021 'in a living room' — small church-plant stage. Clark as planting pastor.
Strong
Preaching Style
Expository or topical/therapeutic?
Verify — church is a plant meeting at YMCA. Watch sermons to assess expository depth.
Caution
Mission Clarity
Great Commission central?
Homepage: 'made up of children of God that actively and urgently follow the call and command to make disciples for King Jesus.' Great Commission DNA confirmed.
Strong
Cultural Alignment
DEI/CRT language? Social justice crowding out gospel?
No progressive drift signals. Rural Chesapeake Bay church plant. Clark's Family Captain ministry explicitly teaches masculine family leadership.
Strong
Accountability Structure
Denominational home, elder plurality, or external network — is the pastor answerable to anyone?
Independent/non-denominational church plant. No external accountability structure. Yellow for independence, but the patriarchal culture provides internal guardrails.
Caution
Assessment
Salt Church in Hartfield, VA is a scrappy church plant on the Chesapeake Bay led by John Michael Clark — a 13-year ordained minister who also runs The Family Captain, a coaching ministry for Christian men on family leadership and marriage. Clark is a Mathews, VA native who planted Salt Church in 2021 starting from a living room. The church meets Sundays at 10:02 AM at the Hartfield YMCA. This is one of the most explicitly patriarchal church plants in Virginia — Clark teaches that men are family captains who lead their homes, marriages, and children. Close brotherhood is prioritized. Great Commission focus: making disciples who make disciples. Personal friend of MOOP. One of the few GREEN-rated churches in rural Virginia.
#non-denominational#church-plant#chesapeake-bay#middlesex-county#patriarchal#the-family-captain#mens-ministry#personal-connection#verified-2026#green-rated
MOOP Engagement Tracker
How this church was personally verified by the MOOP directory team:
✓
Researched church website
✓
Personally knows church members
Last reviewed:
2026-05-16
— Annual review recommended
Hartfield YMCA, Hartfield, VA 23071
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