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MP MCP: AI for MinistryPlatform

Ask questions about your MinistryPlatform data in plain language —using the AI assistant your organization already has— and get an answer from your data in real time!

MCP stands for Model Context Protocol, which is the open standard used to secure a connection between your MinistryPlatform database and your AI assistant, such as Claude. Put simply, we're providing the context (your data) to your AI model so it can return answers. Once it's connected, your staff can ask questions in everyday language instead of building a report, and the assistant answers using your live data.

MP MCP is available to every MinistryPlatform customer with an AI subscription. To get access, just sign up!

What You Can Use It For

Locate and view congregant details without having to search through the Platform. Create advanced analytics without needing SSRS skills. Add page views to MinistryPlatform with no SQL knowledge.

Prompt the AI to complete tasks and answer questions:
  • "How many donations were made this year, and what's the total?"
  • "Break that down by campus and fund."
  • "Who gave last year but hasn't given this year?"
  • "Pull up a contact card for the top giver."
  • "Draft a follow-up email to the first-time guests from this weekend."
  • "Which small groups haven't recorded attendance in the last three weeks?"
  • "Save that list of families as a selection I can open in MinistryPlatform."

Because the assistant shows the queries it ran, staff can ask it to show its work and check the answer against a report. AI can make mistakes, so always verify responses.

Data Security & Permissions

AI is a guest in your system, not an admin. There's a PII guard in place by default that hides personally identifiable information, like emails, phone numbers, dates of birth, and so on. Responses are inspected, and sensitive fields are masked before they reach the AI model. This is enforced in server-side code, so you don't have to prompt this instruction every time.

How your data is handled:
  • Everyone sees only what they already see. Each person signs in with their own MinistryPlatform login. Every request runs as that user, and permissions are enforced by the Platform itself — not by the AI. For example, a volunteer coordinator can't see giving records through the assistant if they can't see them in MinistryPlatform.

  • Your administrators stay in control. MinistryPlatform administrators can hide entire tables from the AI, mask specific fields, turn off individual capabilities, and disable the connection entirely.

  • There's an audit trail. Activity is logged and can be reviewed by your organization.

For more on how ACS Technologies handles your data, see the MinistryPlatform Software Services Agreement and visit our Trust Center.
Note: AI policies: Many organizations are writing their first AI use policies. While we can explain how MP MCP works and what controls it gives you, we advise you to seek qualified counsel for writing your organization's AI use policies.

Cost

There is no charge from ACS Technologies for MP MCP or the integration configuration.

You only pay for the LLM/AI subscription that your organization chooses, directly through the AI provider, for each staff member who will use it. We don't sell, provide, or manage those subscriptions.
Tip: Have a large organization and don't want to purchase a subscription for everyone? Start with a small group of people who are interested. You can also see who is using the MCP server on your MP MCP management site, so you can adjust as needed.

AI Assistants

Which AI assistants work with MP MCP?

AssistantStatus
Claude (web and desktop)Recommended – successfully tested and provides the best experience
ChatGPTIn Beta – works but expect occasional rough edges
Google Gemini, GitHub/Microsoft CopilotNot currently supported – uses the same sign-in method but not a tested path

MP MCP is built on an open standard, so other assistants may connect. However, we test internally with Claude, so that's the one we recommend if you're just getting started. Your AI assistant must support a tiered (hierarchical) structure for tools and connectors, not a flattened one.

Sign Up for MP MCP

Before You Sign Up

Make sure you understand these two prerequisites before you sign up for MP MCP:
  • You bring your own AI assistant. While MP MCP is free from ACS Technologies, the AI assistant itself is a separate paid subscription that your organization buys directly from the AI provider. Your AI assistant must support a tiered structure for tools and connectors. We recommend Claude.

  • Someone with admin rights in your AI workspace has to enable the connector. If your organization uses a team or business plan for its AI assistant, an individual staff member usually can't add MP MCP on their own. Only a workspace owner or administrator can add a custom connector.

    • Not a workspace owner? Here's some wording you can copy and send to your workspace owner to explain the request:
      Our organization is connecting MinistryPlatform to our AI assistant using a tool called MP MCP, provided by ACS Technologies. Adding a custom connector requires workspace owner or admin permissions, which I do not have. Once you add it, it will be available to the rest of our staff. Can you help with this step?

Ready to Sign Up?

  1. Go to ai.ministryplatform.com.
  2. Click blue button with white text that says "Sign up" with an arrow pointing right, and complete the form.
  3. We'll configure MP MCP for your system.
  4. You'll receive an email with the next steps, including how to sign in and connect your AI assistant.

Access is granted per organization, by request. There's nothing to install in MinistryPlatform and no change to your existing setup.

Tip: Want a deeper understanding of MP MCP before you sign up? Check out the AI for MP: Smarter Answers from Your Church Data webinar.

Support & Documentation

Support is provided directly through our Innovations team at ACS Technologies.

All documentation —including full setup, administration, and troubleshooting— is available on your MP MCP management website on the Docs tab. The link to your site is provided in the welcome email after sign-up.

Also check out the Communities tab to see prompts and artifacts that other organizations have shared.

Example of an MP MCP management website with tabs across the top, including "Home", "Docs", and "Communities"

Resources