Bids opened Monday for a contract to supply the state Department of Education with 55,000 Bibles. According to the bid documents, vendors must meet certain specifications: Bibles must be the King James Version; must contain the Old and New Testaments; must include copies of the Pledge of Allegiance, Declaration of Independence, U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights; and must be bound in leather or leather-like material.
A salesperson at Mardel Christian & Education searched, and though they carry 2,900 Bibles, none fit the parameters.
But one Bible fits perfectly: Lee Greenwood’s God Bless the U.S.A. Bible, endorsed by former President Donald Trump and commonly referred to as the Trump Bible. They cost $60 each online, with Trump receiving fees for his endorsement.
Isn’t it ironic that bibles sold to this agency have the documents stating there is separation of church and state included in the book?
Rev 22:18 NET testify to the one who hears the words of the prophecy contained in this book: If anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book
I always object to adding anything to the bible. It is fine to want a printed constitution but it should be a separate book.
Look, I hate this too, but that’s not what that passage means, clearly. Addendums aren’t the same as adding new fake scripture (although since there are multiple ideologies on what books of the Bible should be cannon, who’s to say). Put your pitchfork down.
I know what you mean but I don’t think it is quite that clear and in this case useful to remind people of the other meanings. If nothing else to think about it even if they reject them the thinking is good.
If that’s how you chose to interpret it, nearly every bible sold is guilty of it since most have indexes or other addendums
Sacrilegous in two ways - adding to the scriptures, and promoting a religion with the state. Pick either one, both lanes lead the same direction.
To be fair, the average readers just interpret the word as is convenient to their own ends, so…
people still read the KJV?
and like, not as some sort of masochistic snoodery?
Sure along with ever other translation I can find. I prefer the geneva translation but that is hard to find so I often end up with the king james when I need a printed copy. for those not familar, the good parts of king james is where they took the geneva and updated to modern english - this should tell you something about my tastes.
KJV people are always around. Thee thy and thou.
It’s what I had to memorize as a kid so it’s embedded in my brain.
In Ye Olden Tymes, people learned to read with it, to much the same effect.
Very clever, Christians.
It’s public domain so they don’t have to pay for the copyright of a modern translation.
American Standard, Young’s Literal Translation, are both out of copyright as well. Both of which are more readable than the KJV and frequently offer more insight into historical and cultural context without… fudging things for political interests…
Some denominations do believe that only the KJV is the correct English translation. Many of those people do not understand what the words actually mean. They interpret the text very narrowly and frequently are told by others what interpretation is correct.
“If the King James version was good enough for Jesus, it’s good enough for me”.
I live in the shithole south, and I have heard this unironically on multiple occasions. Please send help. And education.
They also don’t know that King James was gay. And it pleases me to inform them.
Which the whole symbolism of the temple veil being torn when Jesus carked on the cross was meant to mean there was no need for anyone (the clergy) to do that or to intercede.
See also: Jesus chasing away salesmen in the temple, because they used god to peddle shit to people.
also that part where god snuffed a guy because he was an asshole. I kinda wish he’d go back to doing that. (well. maybe not. I get the feeling my definition of ‘asshole’ and their god’s definition are different.)
I’ve had plenty of asshole moments. Let’s hold off on that one.
like seriously, though, god totally tolerated the existence of all sorts of down right awful people. what kind of asshole do you have to be… to get “fuck you in particular” kind of attention?
Well Jesus is part of the Christian pantheon and those guys are just practicing Judaism with blood magic.
He probably slept with his wife. Gods hate that shit.
He pissed on his rug.
That’s insane, because the KJV is objectively a bad translation. I’m not even Christian anymore and it still annoys me how popular it is.
With the 3 million they would save buying the cheaper bibles(something they shouldn’t be doing either) they could wash a lot of men’s feet. They could be teaching all these students how to fish. That is their job after all.
That is pretty messed up.
Who tf wrote those requirements?
It seems pretty clear to me that they intended the Trump Bible to be the only one that fit all the specifications.
While it’s obviously weird to want the bill of rights and declaration of independence in your Bible; let me just say, if your goal is to convert kids to Christianity, the KJV bible is just completely opaque to children that don’t normally read 17th century literature.
At the rate these political hacks are going, students won’t be able to parse modern text.
Why would any school want a Bible that doesn’t also have the Declaration and Constitution? It’s a perfectly logical requirement, and it’s not Trump’s fault so few others are making them.
Did you drop this: /s
No, because the sarcasm was so obvious that a doorstop would get it.
I know people who would actually say this though.
Choose better company
Can’t avoid all family functions and family friends without alienating non-shitty family.
When at least 30% of people would post that without any sarcasm intended it is absolutely needed. Sorry bud, but that is the world we’re living in now.
Some similarly stupid, yes. But different enough to detect they weren’t being ironic.
/s is cowardice
On Lemmy?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poe's_law
On the other hand, some of us couldn’t give less of a shit if people don’t realize we’re being sarcastic.
ADHD and autism mean some of us don’t see it all the time tho. That’s why /s can be a big help.
Specifically created for the grift.
Walters is a piece of shit.
Yep, that’s when you start with the answer you want, then set “general” requirements that only it can meet
Ah, yes, the best thing to do money laundering with: Bibles!
Likely not the first time
Why are they putting bibles in classrooms in the first place? Did they repeal the First Amendment?
The first amendment doesn’t apply to Christian evangelism.
According to SCOTUS at any rate.
The Bible is really important for understanding western society and it’s history. It has a place in the classroom.
I’m sure that was not the motivation behind that law but it’s true.
You’re not wrong but, thankfully, studying history and teaching the impact of things doesn’t require the things to physically be in the room.
There are history books that can contextually bring our students up to speed on what religious texts drove certain events/societies.
It might fit into history if it hadn’t been changed and edited, sections omitted, additions made, for the entire time it existed. It was only the printing press that allowed us to have true copies for the masses.
It surely has a place in history, but not for psychology or sociology. In my opinion there is some value educationally but its very limited. There are even denominations that exclude books or add them, so it depends which religion you consider to be the “main” one.
To have a truly nuanced class about it, would have to be in college I would think.
Apparently, the State Superintendent gets to decide what gets taught in classrooms, and how it gets taught is left up to individual school districts. But it’s fully within his right because no “commentary” is allowed around the Bible, just how important it was to America’s history.
Why that requires a physical copy that’s leather bound, I have no idea. Nor why the money has to come from the fucking payroll budget.
Oklahoma is ranked 49th in education, yet this is what we’re spending money on? Seriously?
But they are top five in propaganda training!
They’re really gunning for 50th.
I’m certain they take 49th with equal amounts salt and pride, as that means theres still a few states left to beat.
Is there a term for a society that has all the wealth, technology, industrial knowledge, and manpower readily at hand to be a utopia and despite that, leans hard into dystopia?
Idiocracy
Murika
Leech.
Thats the word for a country that turns worldwide suffering into cash.
Civilization
Capitalism
if legislation was to be passed against this book, would it be called the “bye bible bill”?
Wait, I thought these guys were against indoctrinating children or whatever?
They’re against anyone else indoctrinating children.
