A pastor has appealed for donations after a church he leads was left severely damaged by what he describes as repeated and "scary" acts of vandalism, with repair costs expected to exceed £50,000.
Daniel Berkoh-Gyamfi, leader of Salvation Chapel International, has practised Christianity in Britain since moving from Ghana more than 27 years ago. For several years, members of the congregation had been gathering to worship at the Country Park in Pitsea.
When a nearby Pentecostal church building was put up for sale, Mr Berkoh-Gyamfi saw it as an opportunity to establish a permanent base for the growing community.It was a building they had used for fellowshipping between 2018 and 2019, so the pastor was confident of its suitability.
The site had been earmarked for demolition to make way for housing before Mr Berkoh-Gyamfi contacted the owners and put a bid in. This was promptly accepted. However, for Mr Berkoh-Gyamfi and the Salvation Chapel International, that's where the problems began.Speaking exclusively to GB News, the pastor described a series of escalating attacks on the church building in Langdon Hills, Laindon.
"During the purchasing process, the building was subjected to continuous vandalism. We thought it was just one who had smashed the windows, but they later smashed everything in the church," he told the People's Channel."By the time we exchanged [an offer], they went in and set the building on fire. It took four fire engines from Essex fire brigade to put out the fire in the building.
"At that time, they had destroyed everything: the urinals, disabled toilet, female toilets, all smashed into bits. The church hall, the piano... everything was gone." The pastor said he became "very scared" for his safety, given the targeted nature of the attacks. FULL ARTICLE AT: https://www.gbnews.com/news/church-vandalised-targeted-attack-pastor-victimised
No comments:
Post a Comment