Estate sale company launches auction for belongings of Crystal Cathedral founder Robert Schuller

The estate sale company Everything But The House (EBTH) has launched an online auction for the belongings of the late Crystal Cathedral founder Robert Schuller.

According to The Christian Post, the auction, which is being conducted exclusively online, began on Aug. 7 and will run until Thursday.

The auction page included a note from Schuller's daughter, Carol Milner, in which she recounted how her late father was viewed as "Hollywood's pastor" over his "Hour of Power" program.

"We could not go to a dinner out without multiple people approaching for a handshake, a hug, an autograph. Many times, we just wanted Dad to ourselves," Milner wrote.

"Dad's life was a privileged one, not because of his access to fame and success, but because of his access to those moments when people need to be known and heard and hovered over, so that loneliness and the fear don't alienate them from God," she added.

Among the items with the highest bids as of Monday afternoon include a Michael Maiden bronze sculpture called "The American Dream" ($2,650); a Robert Wyland limited edition bronze sculpture called "Genesis" ($2,293); an early 20th century angel holy water font carved from marble ($1,850); and a collection of Wallace Sterling silver flatware ($1,700).

Other items include letters written to Schuller by presidents Bill Clinton and Ronald Reagan; an autographed copy of Johnny Cash's 1975 memoir "Man in Black"; and Schuller's Bible from the 1950s signed by evangelist Billy Graham.

Schuller, who passed away at the age of 88 in April 2015, founded the Crystal Cathedral church in Garden Grove, California in 1951. The first worship space was a drive-in movie theater, but after 10 years, the pastor officially started services in the new Crystal Cathedral.

The $18 million cathedral with 10,000 panels of glass held 2,890 people, but the congregation was estimated to have had 10,000 members at one point under Schuller's leadership.

The ministry started to crumble under financial pressure after Schuller's retirement in 2006, and it filed for bankruptcy in March 2012, citing debts of $43 million. The cathedral, which has glass walls and ceiling, was sold to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange for $57.5 million in February 2012.

The Orange County Register reported that the profits from the auction will be used to pay for the Schuller and his wife's debts and expenses stemming from the economic downturn.

Milner, who is the trustee of the estate, did not disclose the amount of debt the Schullers still have, but noted that it is "significantly more than our assets."