The founder of the Hobby Lobby chain is building a Bible museum in Washington, D.C. That’s nice. But building a monument to the Bible runs the risk of compounding the serious problem of Bible worship that has plagued evangelical Christianity since the early 20th century. We continue to make the book more sacrosanct than the God who inhabits the pages of the book.
Museums are places where ancient things get memorialized, where tourists come to gaze at relics and remembrances. And even though this eight-story Museum of the Bible will include interpretive features to showcase biblical-era plants and foods, such an edifice situated near the monuments of the National Mall easily could become both a political statement and an idol.
Read Full Article »