When President Donald J. Trump took the oath of office in January 2017, he rested his hand on both the Lincoln Bible and his childhood Bible. Trump received this Revised Standard Version (RSV) Bible from his mother as a child and carried it with him to Sunday school classes at First Presbyterian Church in Queens, New York. Upon his graduation from primary Sunday school in 1955, the Bible was inscribed by his pastor and Sunday school teachers.
Today, that childhood Bible joined a collection of other presidential Bibles currently on display at Washington’s newest museum, Museum of the Bible. It will join other artifacts in the museum’s second-floor Bible in the World exhibit to help tell the story of the impact the Bible has had on our world.
“We are honored to add this piece of our nation’s history to our growing exhibit of presidential Bibles,” said Museum of the Bible President Cary Summers. “President Trump’s inauguration Bible will be displayed alongside Bibles belonging to President Harry Truman, President Dwight Eisenhower, President George H.W. Bush and President George W. Bush. It is our hope that guests will be able to learn not only about each president’s unique Bible, but also about the influence this book has had on government and elected officials around the world.”
Each presidential Bible is displayed within the government exhibit in the Bible in the World section of the museum’s 27,000-square-foot second floor. The government exhibit is one of 23 exhibits that demonstrate the depth and breadth of the Bible’s impact around the world. Each exhibit discusses the Bible’s impact on a different subject—including education, human rights, literature and even fashion—with interactive experiences to engage guests. The area focused on government includes a dome enshrining four large artifact cases and an interactive map demonstrating the impact of the Bible on the formation and dissolution of governments throughout history.
Other presidential Bibles on display include:
- President Harry Truman’s personal Bible
- President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s Bible opened to Psalm 33:12, the verse upon which he placed his hand while taking the oath of office in 1953 and 1957
- The Air Force One Bible, on loan from President and Mrs. George H.W. Bush, which the crew of Air Force One presented to President Bush as he exited the plane on his last day in office.
- The Bush Family Bible on which President George H.W. Bush took the oath of office in 1989 while it was opened to the Beatitudes (Matt. 5:3-12) and President George W. Bush rested his hand during his inaugurations in 2001 and 2005.
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