{"id":832,"date":"2026-07-06T21:09:08","date_gmt":"2026-07-06T21:09:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=832"},"modified":"2026-07-06T21:09:08","modified_gmt":"2026-07-06T21:09:08","slug":"trump-misquoted-declaration-reciting-bible-passage-instead-in-july-4th-speech","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=832","title":{"rendered":"Trump Misquoted Declaration, Reciting Bible Passage Instead in July 4th Speech"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Did you know that Truthout is a nonprofit and independently funded by readers like you? If you value what we do, please support our work with <\/span><\/i>a donation<\/span><\/i>.<\/p>\n

Read more Planned Parenthood Can Access Medicaid Funding After Congressional Ban Expires<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

In a speech during Independence Day celebrations in Washington, D.C. on Saturday night, President Donald Trump misquoted the U.S. Declaration of Independence, falsely claiming it contained deep religious overtones.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs our Declaration of Independence tells us, we are all made in the image of one almighty god,\u201d Trump said during the speech, referring to a concept that appears in the Book of Genesis.<\/p>\n

The Declaration of Independence makes no reference to Americans (or anyone) being created \u201cin the image\u201d of a god. The document includes only one mention of the word \u201cgod,\u201d stating that all people are subject to \u201cthe Laws of Nature and of Nature\u2019s God.\u201d<\/p>\n

The phrase \u201cnature\u2019s God\u201d has long been understood by historians to be a term deists used in the late 18th century to refer to whatever universal force created the universe \u2014 not necessarily a Christian god. <\/p>\n

\u201cNature\u2019s God is\u2026a \u2018deity\u2019 that operates entirely through laws \u2014 natural laws \u2014 that are explicable,\u201d explained historian Matthew Stewart, author of the book \u201cNature\u2019s God: The Heretical Origins of the American Republic,\u201d in an NPR <\/em>interview from 2014. \u201cAnd we have to approach this \u2018god\u2019 through the study of nature and also evidence and experience. So it\u2019s a dramatically different kind of deity from that you find in most revealed religions.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Big Banks Are Accelerating Their Investments in the Fossil Fuel Industry<\/a><\/p>\n

Notably, the U.S. Constitution, the country\u2019s foundational governing document, doesn\u2019t refer to any god at all, and explicitly forbids religious tests for those seeking political office. The First Amendment to the Constitution also bars the federal government (and state governments, through the 14th Amendment) from establishing an official religion.<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s remark could be viewed as a gaffe \u2014 but it could also be interpreted as a signal to his Christian nationalist base that he aims to push the country into a more theological direction (so long as that theology is aligned with his goals). Indeed, the president used the word \u201cgod\u201d multiple times in his Fourth of July speech. <\/p>\n

Trump wasn\u2019t the only political leader to make erroneous references to religion and the nation\u2019s founding on Independence Day. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York) posted on social media that \u201cThe founding fathers called America \u2018God\u2019s noble experiment.’\u201d<\/p>\n

There is no historical evidence that any founder ever called the U.S. \u201cGod\u2019s noble experiment.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s disturbing to see any American politician fabricate \u2014 apparently from whole cloth \u2014 a quotation that is indistinguishable from the junk history being pushed by\u2026the White Christian Nationalist movement,\u201d Nick Fish, president of American Atheists, said in a statement responding to Schumer\u2019s post. \u201cIt\u2019s particularly galling in the wake of Christian Nationalist hijacking of our nation\u2019s 250th anniversary and their attempts to redefine America in stark, exclusionary terms.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Lawyer of Olympian Indicted After Touching Reflecting Pool Calls Case Outrageous<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Historians say the inclusion of the word \u201cgod\u201d in the Declaration is symbolic, not meant to be a religious endorsement.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":831,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-832","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"\nTrump Misquoted Declaration, Reciting Bible Passage Instead in July 4th Speech - Smart Moving Home<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=832\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Trump Misquoted Declaration, Reciting Bible Passage Instead in July 4th Speech - 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