Donald Trump on Tuesday read from 2 Chronicles 7:11-22 in a video message recorded in the White House’s Oval Office for a weeklong Bible-reading event billed as a celebration of the United States’ founding. The appearance came as the administration moved from one culture-war fight to another, with Trump now using scripture to frame the country’s political moment.
The event, called America Reads the Bible, was livestreamed from Washington by Great American Media and described on its website as “a sacred opportunity to call our nation back to its spiritual foundation.” Trump’s recorded reading landed on a passage that begins, “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.” The presidential flag stood behind him as he spoke.
The Bible-reading marathon is being organized through Christians Engaged, a ministry of the Family Policy Alliance Foundation, a conservative lobbying group that has pushed to defund abortion providers and restrict transgender medical care. The foundation’s weeklong event also is expected to include other Trump administration officials, among them Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, extending the White House’s reach into a campaign-style religious gathering.
Trump’s participation came after a sharp clash with Pope Leo XIV and backlash over an AI-generated image that appeared to depict him as Jesus. On 12 April, Trump posted on Truth Social and said the pope was “weak on crime” and “terrible for foreign policy.” Pope Leo later called the image “truly unacceptable,” while Trump said he thought the deleted post was portraying him as a doctor. The episode added a layer of tension to an event meant to project reverence and unity.
What the reading shows, in plain terms, is that Trump is treating public religion as a political message, not just a private expression of faith. By choosing 2 Chronicles 7:11-22 and delivering it from the Oval Office, he joined a faith campaign that has become part worship service, part political statement, and part test of how far the White House will go in blurring those lines.
