Trump and the Bible

Donald Trump was recently asked about his favourite verse of the Bible. He declined to say, arguing that his was “private.”

This naturally leads to the suspicion that Trump does not really know the Bible well, and that his claim that it is his favourite book is fabricated for public consumption.

That may be. On the other hand, there is something a little off, theologically, with asking for a “favourite verse” of the Bible, and Trump's answer could be perfectly justified on religious grounds.

You have to take the Bible as a whole, after all. It is the word of God. You cannot pick and choose passages you like and don't like. Each part must be understood in light of every other part. Otherwise, you are in danger of “proof texting”--as has been said, the Devil himself can quote scripture to his ends.

Given that the Bible must be taken, theologically, all in all, what can it mean to ask about or have a “favourite” passage? There are only two legitimate, non-proof-texting possibilities. One is an aesthetic judgement—which passage is the most poetic, most beautiful. But this is “Bible as literature” stuff, and not the way a believer naturally thinks. The other is which passage has spoken to you the most personally. And if this was meant, Trump is being reasonable in saying that is too personal. It would by its nature be something quite personal, perhaps connected with difficult experiences in one's past.

Assuming Trump was sincere has the advantage of making his response to a follow-up question coherent in turn. When he was asked the easier question, whether he preferred the Old or the New Testament, he declined again to choose a favourite. After all, even if he knew absolutely nothing of the Bible, he could easily and safely have said one or the other here. He did not. This really does suggest a principled stance on theological grounds.

In any case, it would be wrong for Christians to judge the depth of Trump's Christianity, so long as he professes to be a Christian. The critical thing is that he is prepared to acknowledge Jesus and the Bible.

49John answered and said, "Master, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name; and we tried to prevent him because he does not follow along with us." 50But Jesus said to him, "Do not hinder him; for he who is not against you is for you." (Luke 9: 49-50).