Rev. Michael Beck

Michael Beck is a pastor, professor, and author. Beck is a rare breed of both practitioner and scholar, actively engaged in frontline ministry while also researching and teaching at multiple academic institutions. Michael and wife Jill have led a series of revitalizations and unconventional church plants with "the ones no one else wants or sees." They are currently co-pastors of Compassion and St Marks UMCs, where they oversee a holistic recover housing program called Open Arms Village, and lead a network of fresh expressions gathering in tattoo parlors, dog parks, burrito joints, EV charging stations, digital spaces, and a substance abuse rehab. Michael serves as the Director of Fresh Expressions Florida, Director of the Fresh Expressions House of Studies at United Seminary, and Director of Fresh Expressions UM. He is currently in a teaching assistantship at the University of Florida, and teaches as an adjunct professor at several seminaries including Emory and Duke. Beck is the author of 15 books and widely considered the primary practitioner and thought leader of the Fresh Expressions movement in the United States.