Riding the high of his media merger placing him on the list of the world’s 500 richest people yesterday, former President Donald Trump posted an ad for a patriotic-themed bible on Truth Social. He’s hoping it will “Make America Pray Again,” which is a play on his infamous 2016 presidential campaign slogan.
The bible, in particular, is based on Lee Greenwood’s 1984 song “God Bless the USA” and is sold by Greenwood himself. As stipulated on the God Bless the USA Bible’s website, ads for the product use Trump’s name and likeness, but the company is not owned by Trump. In addition to the King James version of the bible, the bible includes the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights, and the Pledge of Allegiance.
Trump said in his video advertisement for the bible that many Americans haven’t read the aforementioned documents, the bible is his favorite book, and that religion is key to making America great again.
“I want a lot of people to have it. You have to have it for your heart, for your soul,” Trump said of the God Bless the USA bible. “I love God… Make America Pray Again.”
The bible itself has a brown cover engraved with stars and stripes. It is sold by Greenwood and is “officially endorsed” by Trump. Greenwood began selling the bible in December 2023, and Trump’s endorsement comes during Holy Week, or the week between Palm Sunday and Easter.
Religion Unplugged reported in 2021 that Harper Collins canceled its publication of the Bible after a petition circulated accusing the bible of “adding fuel to the Christian nationalism and anti-Muslim sentiments found in many segments of the evangelical church.” In response, Greenwood told Deseret News in 2023 the pushback he got in 2021 was “cancel culture” and the result of “woke companies” getting in the way of production.
Though Greenwood is an adamant Trump supporter, the bible’s proceeds do not support the Trump campaign.
Replies to Trump’s Truth Social advertisement for the God Bless the USA bible included a photo of Trump being visited by Jesus, calls to action about praying for Trump, and a meme about Trump being on a “mission from God.”
Trump himself was raised Presbyterian but converted to a non-denominational Christian while in office in 2020. Trump and his campaign receive overwhelming support from Evangelicals, and some polls show Republicans consider Trump more religious than President Joe Biden. Biden is Catholic.
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