An area businessman and YouTuber known for offering controversial wealth-creation advice says he’s so frustrated by empty church buildings in England that he has offered to purchase one and rent it freed from charge to a Christian community willing to make use of it for worship, evangelism and serving the homeless.
Samuel Leeds, a property investor from Wolverhampton in England’s West Midlands, announced in a social media update: “I’m buying a church.” He confirmed he had submitted a money offer of £225,000 ($302,105) to buy Darlaston Methodist Church in Wednesbury, a market town near his hometown of Wolverhampton.
The constructing is prone to closure and could possibly be sold to developers for conversion into apartments. Leeds said he hopes to buy the church and offer it freed from charge, with no rent, to a Christian community willing to make use of the space for worship and outreach.
Leeds describes himself as a self-made millionaire on his LinkedIn profile. He runs a property training company and made headlines in 2018 when he and his brother Russell purchased the historic Ribbesford House.
“I’m fed up with driving past all these churches within the UK that used to thrive, support the community, and feed the homeless,” Leeds said.
“Now, just take a look at these beautiful church buildings. So many are boarded up and closed down, with developers queueing as much as take advantage of converting them into flats.
“I simply can’t accept that a constructing built to glorify Jesus for generations may be was something solely for profit.”
Leeds said his plan is to “buy it and offer it completely freed from charge, with zero rent, to a church willing to worship Jesus here and serve others.”
In a separate Facebook video, Leeds alleged that 16 developers had expressed interest in the location before his money offer.
“I’m so indignant and drained and sad at seeing churches closed down when we’d like them within the communities to be alive,” he said within the video. “I think revival is coming and we’d like churches to be open.”
The church constructing on Slater Street is one among the remaining Methodist properties within the local Darlaston Green circuit. The property is currently listed on the market as a “redevelopment opportunity,” with plans suggesting the 5,421-square-foot constructing could possibly be converted into apartments. Leeds’ purchase offer is meant to stop that conversion and reopen the constructing for Christian worship.
According to an inventory by Creative Retail, the location features a detached former church constructing with a foremost hall, kitchen, meeting rooms, a lecture room and a big secure automobile park.
“The property offers versatile open-plan accommodation that may be reconfigured for many various uses,” the listing states. “The premises also offer a transparent redevelopment opportunity subject to planning.”
Data from the Office for National Statistics from the 2021 United Kingdom census show that fifty.1% of residents in Wednesbury discover as Christian, compared with 46.2% across England and Wales.
Source: https://www.christiantoday.com/news/uk-investor-offers-to-buy-church-and-give-it-rent-free-to-christian-ministry
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