{"id":9680,"date":"2024-03-27T09:54:42","date_gmt":"2024-03-27T13:54:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/christnewstoday\/?p=9680"},"modified":"2024-03-27T10:46:14","modified_gmt":"2024-03-27T14:46:14","slug":"american-bible-society-to-close-its-60-million-faith-and-liberty-discovery-center","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/christnewstoday\/2024\/03\/american-bible-society-to-close-its-60-million-faith-and-liberty-discovery-center.html","title":{"rendered":"American Bible Society Closes Its $60 Million Faith and Liberty Discovery Center"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"faith
Faith and Liberty Discovery Center\/YouTube<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The American Bible Society has closed its Faith and Liberty Discovery Center almost three years after the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-based museum, which cost around $60 million, had opened. In a press release, the ABS announced that the center was ending operations on April 1. Full refunds will be given to those who bought tickets to visit the center after that date, according to the ABS.<\/p>\n

The press release cited \u201cstructural limitations,\u201d the impact of the COVID-19 lockdowns, and \u201cother factors impacting sustainability\u201d as the reasons for closing. The center struggled from the onset, receiving only around $54,000 in ticket sales for the tax year of July 1, 2021, to June 30, 2022, while reporting total expenses of around $11 million, according to a\u00a0statement of revenue<\/a>.\u00a0 Jennifer Holloran, who\u00a0recently became\u00a0president and CEO of the society, said in a statement that \u201cthe Faith and Liberty Discovery Center has served as a place of exceptional learning and inspiration since its doors opened.\u201d<\/p>\n

She added, \u201cWe look forward to reimagining what the future of content could look like through a publicly accessible, digitized format. We\u2019re tremendously grateful for our local Philadelphia partners, for those who have contributed to its vision, and for the FLDC\u2019s staff who have invested their hearts into serving every person who has walked through the doors.\u201d FLDC Executive Director Rob Wonderling was quoted in the press release as saying that it had been \u201can honor to serve the Faith and Liberty Discovery Center and witness the many ways it has spurred inspiration, engagement, and personal discovery over the years at the heart of Independence Mall.\u201d<\/p>\n