Megachurch pastor — whose congregation includes Magic Johnson and Denzel Washington — lists Beverly Hills manse for $11M

Charles E. Blake acquired the home in 2002

Benedict Canyon Drive, Mae and Charles E. Blake Sr. (MLS/Church of God in Christ Inc.)
Benedict Canyon Drive, Mae and Charles E. Blake Sr. (MLS/Church of God in Christ Inc.)

Unlike a foolish man who built his house on the sand, Bishop Charles E. Blake Sr. has a house built upon the rocks of Beverly Hills. But now the pastor of megachurch West Angeles Church of God in Christ (COGIC) is searching for a new foundation.

Blake and his wife, Mae, listed their longtime Beverly Hills mansion Thursday for $10.9 million.

The 13,094-square-foot estate has seven bedrooms and eight bathrooms. There’s a racquetball court, sauna, gym, two family rooms and French doors that open to the property’s outdoor garden and swimming pool, according to listings details. It also has a gated circular driveway and four-car garage.

The couple purchased the home for $4.3 million in 2002, property records show.

Florence Mattar of Coldwell Banker Residential has the listing.

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Blake has been the presiding bishop of the 26,000-member West Angeles COGIC since 2007. The Pentecostal church is home to celebrities including Magic Johnson, Denzel Washington and Angela Bassett. 

Blake, an Obama appointee to the Advisory Council of Faith Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, has been at the center of several controversies in the past year.

He is currently named in a $15 million lawsuit filed in October 2016 by Pacific Mount Olive COGIC in L.A. The suit alleges Blake and two other church leaders tried to take control of Pacific Olive’s building and several of its properties including an apartment complex. The case appears to be pending.

Blake won a separate defamation lawsuit last year against Florida-based COGIC minister Earl Carter, who accused Blake of being a homosexual.