Philly Jesus wants to take his show on the road and to do so he needs your help.
Michael Grant, aka Philly Jesus, has spent the last year or so preaching to whoever was willing to listen while taking plenty of selfies in the area around Love Park in Center City. Now he says that a higher power is guiding him to take his message worldwide.
“Our goal is to raise $70,000, which is going to be used to boost and take the Philly Jesus ministry… to the next level,” said Grant.
Philly Jesus’ team set up a GoFundMe page in hopes of raising the hefty sum.
“I have to grow, I have to take it to the next level, I can’t just stay in one spot,” said Grant Friday. “It’s time to move forward and the Holy Spirit is leading me to take it on a larger scale.”
Grant said a chunk of the money would go toward “the Philly Jesus mobile,” which he will use to travel around the country. But he also planned to feed and clothe the homeless as well as hire a creative team that can spread Philly Jesus ministries with a permanent building “eventually” down the line.
While he works on getting money for the cause, Grant – a recovering drug addict who says he donned his cloak and picked up his staff as a tribute to Christ – is looking to set up his ministry as a tax-exempt nonprofit.
Local
Breaking news and the stories that matter to your neighborhood.
In its infancy, Philly Jesus Ministries seemed to be struggling to raise funds. As of early Friday afternoon, Grant had a long way to go to his goal as only 11 people had donated just $275 on the GoFundMe page. But, Philly Jesus is confident that his mission will come to fulfillment.
“I know that we’re going to get that $70,000 to jump-start this ministry,” said Grant. “I thank (givers) for believing in what I do… and take this to the next level and share my story that Jesus saved me from drugs and share it on a larger scale.”
And, in case you are worried, Grant doesn’t plan on taking on any other city's personas when he strays outside the City of Brotherly Love.
“I will always be Philly Jesus,” he said.
