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President Donald Trump<\/a> and many of his leading Christian supporters and top Republicans are taking part this week in a marathon reading of the Bible in an America 250-themed event billed as encouraging a \u201creturn to the spiritual foundation that has shaped our country.\u201d<\/p>\n The America Reads the Bible event \u2014 with each participant reading a passage aloud \u2014 is being livestreamed this week from the Museum of the Bible in Washington and other locations. It is slated to feature a video of Trump on Tuesday evening reading a passage that called for national repentance in ancient Israel \u2014 words that have been used prominently for decades by those promoting the belief that America has been and should be a Christian nation.<\/p>\n The Bible is \u201cindelibly woven into our national identity and way of life,\u201d Trump said in a statement commemorating the event. The statement cited historical figures such as the Puritan leader John Winthrop as \u201cimploring his fellow Christian settlers to stand as a beacon of faith for all the world to see.\u201d<\/p>\n Critics say the event has a highly partisan list of participants and is part of a larger project to connect America’s upcoming 250th birthday with a Christian nationalist vision that portrays the nation’s founding<\/a> as essentially Christian, something many historians dispute. White Christians, particularly evangelicals, have been crucial to Trump’s electoral base<\/a>.<\/p>\n The list of participants \u2014 which overwhelmingly includes Republican politicians and Christian supporters of Trump \u2014 shows it to be \u201cvery much a right-wing MAGA, Christian nationalist effort,” said Brian Kaylor, author of \u201cThe Bible According to Christian Nationalists: Exploiting Scripture for Political Power,\u201d referring to Trump\u2019s \u201cMake America Great Again\u201d movement.<\/p>\n \u201cIf they wanted this to be a unifying American project, there would have been a whole lot more attention to getting political diversity and ideological diversity,\u201d added Kaylor, president and editor-in-chief of Word&Way, a progressive site covering faith and politics.<\/p>\n Historian Jemar Tisby, whose books have challenged what he says is enduring Christian complicity in racism, criticized the event on Facebook: “You cannot quote the Bible while justifying violence, war and exclusion.\u201d<\/p>\n Bunni Pounds, founder of Christians Engaged, said that reading the Bible alone isn’t enough. \u201cFaith without works is dead,\u201d she said, adding: \u201cWe need the word first to bring faith into our life.\u201d<\/p>\n The Bible event comes just a week after Trump drew rare criticism from his evangelical supporters for circulating a social media meme in which a white-robed Trump appeared as a Jesus-like healer surrounded by patriotic symbols. Trump removed the image from his Truth Social site while insisting he was depicted as a doctor, not Jesus.<\/p>\n It also comes shortly after Trump’s high-profile clash with the U.S.-born Pope Leo XIV<\/a> over the Iran war. <\/p>\n Other high-ranking officials have been or will be reading biblical passages in person or by video. They include Cabinet officials such as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth<\/a> and Secretary of State Marco Rubio as well as House Speaker Mike Johnson and several other Republican members of Congress. Prominent evangelical supporters of Trump who are participating include evangelist Franklin Graham, pastor Jack Graham and pastor Paula White-Cain, who heads Trump’s White House Faith Office.<\/p>\n Pounds said that the organization invited Democratic members of Congress as well as leaders of some denominations that might be considered progressive but that they didn\u2019t accept.<\/p>\n Each speaker is taking a turn in the ongoing reading of the 66 books of the Bible as recognized by Protestants. Jews recognize the Hebrew portion of the Bible that Christians call the Old Testament but not the New Testament books centered on Jesus, while Catholics and Orthodox recognize additional books of the Bible that are not included in this reading. The event does include some Catholic representation, including the president of CatholicVote, which endorsed Trump in 2024.<\/p>\n The event involves a comprehensive reading of the entire Bible, from the famous verses (“Let my people go,” “The Lord is my shepherd”) to the obscure. Passages range from the creation of the world to bloody battles and apocalyptic destruction, from exhortations to love of God, neighbor and the needy to passages telling of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection.<\/p>\n The event organizer is Christians Engaged, a nonprofit whose stated mission includes \u201cdiscipling Americans on biblical worldview and their responsibilities to pray, vote and engage.\u201d<\/p>\n Trump’s appearance will be from the Oval Office, where he will read from the seventh chapter of 2 Chronicles, set during King Solomon’s dedication of the temple in ancient Jerusalem. In it, God promises forgiveness if a future generation rebels then repents: “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.\u201d<\/p>\n The verse has long been quoted at many conservative Christian rallies and political events such as the 2024 Republican National Convention.<\/p>\n Pounds noted that the Chronicles passage has for decades been a major theme at annual National Day of Prayer events and that organizers invited Trump to read from it. \u201cIt\u2019s a powerful statement that he decided to read that passage,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n The Bible-reading marathon comes just weeks before a May 17 event called a \u201cNational Jubilee of Prayer, Praise, and Thanksgiving,\u201d to be held on the National Mall. It’s the climactic event of \u201cAmerica Prays,\u201d a project Trump announced last year in conjunction with America 250, calling for prayer for the country and to \u201crededicate ourselves to one nation under God.”<\/p>\n Several of the groups and individuals involved in America Prays are also participating in this week\u2019s Bible reading event.<\/p>\n ___<\/p>\n Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP\u2019s collaboration<\/a> with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n