congregation showed their approval by £285,000 in one night! The legal fees were paid for and the remainder used to purchase the home. Bishop Reid, however, did not want to put the home in his name, even though he could have. Being a genuine man of God who did not preach to gain material goods he insisted that the new home be registered in the name of the church. Few would have done such an act of integrity.
“…the house was bought for us to live in the rest of our lives but the Arch bishop when he left wanted it in my name but I put it in the churches name as I wasn’t looking to enrich myself and I never did. Maybe unwisely now it seems, but that’s the way it was” Bishop Michael Reid, What God Can Do Ministries,- Interview May 2010
Eviction from Testimony House One of the most distressing actions the Peniel Church took was to threaten the Reid’s with eviction from their home – Testimony House. Bishop Reid and his wife had no income from employment and no money to purchase another house. The cruelty of this action was beyond belief.
“…the trustees guaranteed that Ruth and I live here [Testimony House] for the rest of life and if something happened to me she could stay on and if it was necessary for her to move they would buy an equivalent property somewhere else so she was provided for, so on that basis I signed that document to help Peter Linnecar out of debt” Bishop Michael Reid, What God Can Do Ministries,- Interview May 2010
We have documented evidence that the Peniel Pentecostal Church had discussed with solicitors and the trustees to provide the Reid’s with life time occupancy of Testimony House, which was specially purchased for them and which the Reid’s chose to register the deeds in the name of the church and not their own.
“Kevin Lee explained the License drafted by the lawyer which gives Bishop Reid and Mrs Reid a license to occupy Testimony House for the rest of their lives. All the directors were in agreement that this was the least the charity could do for the Bishop and Mrs Reid, and were happy with the idea. Jennie.Whealy to forward License to David Attar, John Adebanjo, Richard Cope, John Shelton and Meidre Clemenson for them to check. It was agreed that Kevin Lee could sign on behalf of the trustees…” Minutes of meeting, Michael Reid Ministries AGM, Saturday 14th April 2007
It is clear from all the documents in our possession that the Reid’s were given Testimony House as their life long residence. The Peniel Church have lied and now claim that there was no such agreement. Documents that would have proved the Reid’s have life time occupancy are mysteriously difficult to locate. In a letter from the Peniel Church solicitiors they stated that the Reid’s ‘submitted no evidential basis for a claim by which our client has a beneficial interest in Testimony House.’ 9