The American Bible Society has announced that it will shutter the Faith and Liberty Justice Center (FLDC) at the end of the month, a mere three years after opening.
Opening in May 2021 at Philadelphia’s Independence Mall, the FLDC is a 40,000-square-foot museum whose construction cost a reported 60 million dollars, with another 40 million in operating and planning costs over the past decade.
Created by award-winning designers, the center was designed to help people “discover the Bible’s influence on America’s founders, leaders, reformers” while inviting patrons to “journey through time from America’s founding to the present, revisiting key moments where faith inspired the American pursuit of liberty towards justice and hope.”
Unfortunately, it was plagued by low ticket sales and disinterest throughout its short lifespan. ABS projected 250,000 annual visitors but only received a reported 5400 in 2022, or 2% of their estimations.
Notably, the American Bible Society, founded over two centuries ago and is one of the country’s oldest Christian ministries (as well as the largest, with a $100M budget and over $600M in assets), has experienced leadership churn in the last two years. They’ve had five CEOs since 2022 and have faced accusations of “mission creep,” previously having the singular goal to distribute bibles in the USA, to getting involved in all other projects and machinations.
