(ZENIT News / Rome, 03.09.2025).- His name is Patrick Van Der Vorst. This prominent businessman built his reputation through effort and dedication. He was born in Bruges, Belgium, and attended the Catholic University of Leuven, the country’s oldest university, where he earned a law degree. After graduating at 24, he moved to the United Kingdom and began working at Sotheby’s Billingshurst. By the age of 28, he was promoted to deputy director of Sotheby’s, and by 31, he became director and head of the Continental Furniture Department, specializing in 18th-century French furniture.
He remained with the company until he was 39, when he decided to leave and start his own company, ValueMyStuff, a website designed to provide people with an easy way to determine the value of items they wished to sell.
In addition to ValueMyStuff, in 2011, he founded St George Valuations, the premium brand of his online antiques business, specializing in in-person appraisals. The company proved to be a great success.
Despite his business achievements, he felt that something was missing. Some interactions with his clients made him reflect on how he could help them in other ways. He discovered that what he enjoyed most was accompanying them through difficult times.
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“People need to sell things when they are going through a divorce, when a loved one passes away, or when they face financial difficulties. You’re there with them, helping them sell their properties and artworks. That was the part I liked the most,” he said.
Over time, he realized he could no longer ignore an idea that had always been in his mind: dedicating his life to serving God as a priest. Although he did not grow up in a particularly religious family, his faith had always been strong. Thus, at the age of 47, after a successful business career, he decided to enter the seminary for the Diocese of Westminster at the Pontifical Beda College in Rome.
Making this decision was not easy. Entering the seminary at his age and leaving behind the projects he had worked on for years, and where he had been so successful, was a challenge he placed in God’s hands. Regarding his fortune, he decided to distribute much of his wealth among his family and charitable organizations.
He was ordained a priest in 2023 at Westminster Cathedral and was assigned as parochial vicar at Our Lady of Mount Carmel and St. George in Enfield.
However, his entrepreneurial spirit has not disappeared. Now, dedicated to the service of the Gospel, he has created a digital platform where he shares daily reflections on works of art related to biblical passages. His website, Christian.art, has reached more than 70,000 people, combining his passion for art with his mission of spreading the good news of the gospel.
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