A few weeks ago it was ugly red-soled sneakers.
. Grifts open source Mastodon code for which he was threatened with a lawsuit. (I do wonder how it is he can sell Truth Social, which is based on open source)
And now he wants to sell his marks Bible that he will get a cut of for selling them (Probably will go for his legal fees). Bibles as retail commodities. Not that there aren’t plenty of companies that are out selling Bibles (see the movie Paper Moon) but it’s to laugh seeing Trump, who really needs to start his own QVC-style show for all the junk he hawks, pushing Bibles that he *endorses*. For those who believe in the Last Days, there’s a message here
II Timothy 3:1-5 NKJV
But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away!
You know, because the Bible needs to have an endorsement from the likes of Trump. Also says something about how desperate Trump-The Billionaire is to pick up any type of nickel left on the sidewalk. (Have to say, if he was the type who really cared about getting Bibles to people, hopefully sans all the US govt stuff, since he is SO RICH, why doesn’t he just freely pass them out??)
And I sort of missed the idea that Trump is selling Bibles (that he is getting a cut of the money for) with the selling point that this Lee Greenwood Bible is the only Bible he endorses, so that’s why people should buy it. C’mon. What kind of nut buys a Bible, which is a ubiquitous book, with many different translation versions, because it’s somehow more special because of Trump – LOL!
It was during this week of action that we learned about the “God Bless the USA Bible.” It’s advertised as: “The ultimate American Bible. The Bible and the founding documents of America. Now… together in one very unique Bible.”
As Christians around the country organized to address “Christian” nationalism, we heard about this new Bible, with the American flag on the front cover. It features the text of the U.S. Constitution, the Bill of Rights, the Declaration of Independence, the Pledge of Allegiance and the words to the song, “God Bless the USA.” It’s available for pre-sale on their website for $49.99 and releases in September, the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.
There are many versions of the Bible and many translations. There is the “Justice” Bible and the “Green” Bible that emphasize the consistent themes in the text that we are to care for the poor and for the earth. There is even a military edition of the Bible, wrapped in camouflage. This is not the first time there has been an attempt to fuse American nationalism with the holy book – in fact Thomas Nelson released “The American Patriot’s Bible” over a decade ago, which was a very similar project.
But what is new is a growing awareness of how dangerous nationalism is when coupled with faith.
American nationalism is its own civil religion, where America rather than Jesus is the center of attention. Instead of Jesus and the Church being the light of the world and the hope for humanity, America becomes the Messianic force in the world. Like any religion it has its own liturgy, saints and holidays. These symbols are on full display in this new Bible – the eagle, the flag, the red, white and blue. America’s civil religion has its own creeds too in the new Bible – “We hold these truths to be self-evident…” It has its own “worship” songs – like “God Bless the USA” and “I’m Proud to be an American,” both by Lee Greenwood. It has its own theology – manifest destiny, the doctrine of discovery and American exceptionalism. And this is precisely why it is dangerous to mesh patriotism with orthodox Christian faith.
After all, the Bible does not say “God bless America.” It says, “God so loved the world.” The national anthem should not be in the church hymnal, and the Pledge of Allegiance to the United States should not be in the Bible.
There are 66 books in the Bible. Some streams of Christian faith include 14 others, known as the “apocrypha.” But no version of orthodox faith has an American apocrypha. Including the founding documents of America and the theology of American nationalism in the Bible is offensive. We do not need an “American apocrypha.” (And there is a verse in the book of Revelation that says:“I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this scroll: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to that person the plagues described in this scroll.”)
The bombshell article by Meagan Clark at Religion Unplugged that broke the news on this custom Bible had some deeply disturbing quotes from Hugh Kirkpatrick, the creator and driving force behind the “God Bless the USA Bible.” Here’s what he said as the visionary behind it:
“We noticed the divide in the public where some people started seeing pro-American images like the flag, the bald eagle, the statue of liberty as weaponized tools of the Republican party, and we didn’t understand that… We started seeing statutes coming down and we started seeing history for good or bad trying to be erased… That’s when we started thinking, okay how far does this erasing of history go? Love it or hate it, it’s history. But how far does it go?… We’ve never heard of anyone throwing a Bible away. It’s always prominent somewhere in the house, it’s either on the coffee table, it’s somewhere that’s accessible. So if the Bible contained holy scripture but it also contained these documents it would be a one-stop shop for people to learn the basics of why the founders built into those documents divine providence.”
This customized Bible is a reminder that the “Christian industry” must do better to stand against the heretical and deadly “Christian” nationalism that we saw on full display on Jan. 6. It is like a spiritual virus, infecting our churches, homes and social institutions. Just as we take intentional actions to stop the spread of COVID, like wearing masks and staying six feet apart, we must take concrete steps to stop the spread of this theological virus.
and along comes Trump, who JUST WANTS TO STAY OUT OF JAIL for all his crimes that sees an opportunity to endorse and sell, for a cut, a Bible that is tailored for the cult christian nationalists and undoubtedly pandering to them for a vote. Because you KNOW this creep is not an ethical person.
P.S. You ain’t gonna get that Bible in time for Holy Week.
So, there was a caveat that the Bibles might have pages sticking together. Is it because these are the same Bibles Lee Greenwood was selling and packaging from his house and had in the trunk of his car?
