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Sold My Soul, Got No Rock 'n' Roll

It's been said that you can get anything on eBay - though Upfront's experience is limited to an old pair of rollerblades and an outdated

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It's been said that you can get anything on eBay - though Upfront's experience is limited to an old pair of rollerblades and an outdated bike shock. But a quick survey on the online auction site revealed listings this week for a private jet ($525,000), a signed Andy Warhol screenprint ($22,000) and a men's fitness book written by OJ Simpson ($2).

One item you may have missed though, Hemant Mehta's soul, which was reportedly auctioned in 2006.

The winning bidder was a pastor from Seattle who didn't technically win Mehta's soul, but secured 50 Sundays worth of church attendance from the Chicago schoolteacher and avowed atheist. Under an agreement with the pastor, Mehta agreed to attend religious services in the Chicago area and write about them for the Seattle pastor's church website. During a recent interview with beliefnet, a religious website, Mehta discussed the experience, which turned into a book deal after a publisher spotted the postings.

Asked what surprised him about the church experience, Mehta said he was struck by the genuine emotional interaction at many churches, but equally puzzled by the rote formula delivery at others.

"But I did go to some churches where the pastor says a line, the congregation repeats or says the next line, and they go back and forth. There's no emotion. It's like a bunch of students reciting the Gettysburg Address in class. You're just saying it because you have to."

To which Upfront says: 'Wow, he's just lucky he didn't come on Latin day.'

Oh yeah, the price for Mehta's "soul" on eBay: $504.