Hobby Lobby president Steve Green has found a new way to express his Christian faith. His family’s $4 billion arts and craft chain was already known for closing stores on Sundays, waging a Supreme Court fight over healthcare, and donating tens of millions of dollars to religious groups. Then Green began collecting biblical artifacts. He hoped they would become the starting point for a museum. He realized his vision last week when the 430,000-square-foot Museum of the Bible opened three blocks from the U.S. Capitol.
The $500 million museum is a grand attempt to appeal both to people of deep faith and no faith—and to stand out amid the remarkable museums already in Washington. Exhibits include pieces from the family’s collection from the Dead Sea Scrolls, towering bronze gates inscribed with text from the Gutenberg Bible, and a soundscape of the 10 plagues—enhanced by smog and a glowing red light to symbolize the Nile turned to blood.
Green says the museum is meant to educate, not evangelize. Museum administrators have taken pains to hire a broad group of scholars as advisers. Exhibits are planned from the Vatican Museum and the Israel Antiquities Authority. Still, critics are skeptical. They believe the museum presents more than just history.
“There’s just a basic need for people to read the book,” says Green, sitting in a hotel-style suite inside the museum where visiting dignitaries can stay. “This book has had an impact on our world and we just think people ought to know it, and hopefully they’ll be inspired to engage with it after they come here.”
(AP Photo: Steve Green, owner of Hobby Lobby and a founder and major backer of the Museum of the Bible, outside the newly opened museum)
