Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

After Donald Trump Endorsed Bible Study in Public Schools, Trump's Former Pastor Is Calling Him Out, and He Has a Lot to Say

After Donald Trump Endorsed Bible Study in Public Schools, Trump's Former Pastor Is Calling Him Out, and He Has a Lot to Say
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 21: President Trump with first lady Melania Trump, Vice President Mike Pence, and his wife Karen Pence, listen during the National Prayer Service at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, DC on Saturday, Jan. 21, 2017. (Photo by Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Whoa.

Early Monday morning, President Donald Trump posted a tweet supporting the teaching of the Bible in public schools. One faith leader who has known Trump for years believes this is all a crock.

"Numerous states introducing Bible Literacy classes, giving students the option of studying the Bible," Trump wrote on Twitter. "Starting to make a turn back? Great!"


According to Trump's former pastor, however, the president has never before expressed interest in practicing his faith.

"I was 's pastor for 5 years " Pastor David Lewicki tweeted on Wednesday. "I assure you, he had the 'option' to come to Bible study. He never "opted" in. Nor did he ever actually enter the church doors. Not one time."

Lewicki implied that Trump is a hypocrite, tweeting a quote by Edmund Burke: "Hypocrisy can afford to be magnificent in its promises, for never intending to go beyond promise, it costs nothing."

Trump used to be "on the membership roll" at Marble Collegiate Church in Chelsea, Lewicki said. "None of us ever saw him," Lewicki explained. "Based on other evidence, I'll bet he never gave a dime, either. My distrust of him goes back a long way."

Lewicki correctly stated that Trump "had one of his weddings" at Marble Church. Trump tied the knot with his first wife Ivana at Marble Church in 1977. Trump's second wife, actress Marla Maples, was also a member of the church.

Naturally, Trump's defenders wasted no time trying to poke holes in Lewicki's account.

"Never been a fan of pastors who criticize their congregation for not showing up regardless of who it is," one person complained. Lewicki said members have a duty to their church, which Trump failed to live up to.

"Members have a responsibility to a) show up, b) contribute, or 3) volunteer," Lewicki replied. "I won’t criticize anyone for deciding Christianity isn’t for them... unless you then go around talking about how important faith is. Then, you’ve opened yourself to your former pastor holding a mirror."

Another person suggested that Lewicki was lying. Lewicki's response was that it is "tough to have a personal pastoral relationship with someone who doesn’t care at all about God or the church."

Lewicki also shot down an accusation that his intent is to publicly shame Trump. This is about "calling a person to accountability," Lewicki said.

The New York Times reported in 2016 that Trump had a decades-long, and fuzzy, relationship with Marble Church.

Trump "attended its Sunday services for almost 50 years, but says he does not know if he ever formally joined the church," the Times wrote. "He describes himself as a Presbyterian, but Marble is not a Presbyterian church — it is part of the Reformed Church in America, a separate denomination that traces its beginnings to 1628 and the first ordained minister in New Amsterdam, as New York was then known."

The Times also found that despite his regular attendance, Trump never expressed any religious beliefs. Trump, like his father Fred, was a huge fan of the church's preacher-turned-best selling author, Reverend Norman Vincent Peale.

Peale was “a great preacher and a great public speaker,” Trump said in 2016. “You always, when the service was over, you said, ‘I’d have sat there for another hour,’” Trump told the Times. “There aren’t too many people like that. It wasn’t the speaking ability, it was the thought process.”

As the comments on his Twitter feed accumulated, Lewicki said it feels "nice to get some attention on Twitter. But not this much."

Trump? A devout Christian? Twitter has its doubts.

Many feel gunning for Biblical eduation in public schools is just another Trump grift.

As for why Trump all of a sudden wants Christianity taught in public schools, there's likely a simple explanation: he got the idea from Fox News.

The segment below aired a few minutes before Trump tweeted.

Of course.

More from People/donald-trump

JD Vance; Jen Psaki
Johannes Simon/Getty Images; Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

Vance Gets Brutal Reminder After Accusing Jen Psaki Of 'Attacking' People For Praying Following School Shooting

Vice President JD Vance was criticized after he lashed out at MSNBC host Jen Psaki for saying that "prayer is not freaking enough" to end school shootings after a shooter killed two children and wounded 17 others during the first week of classes at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis.

Psaki spoke out on X shortly after the shooting occured, to stress that "thoughts and prayers" don't actually address or prevent mass shootings and gun violence overall:

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from @andydouglas.trumpboy's TikTok video; President Donald Trump
@andydouglas.trumpboy/TikTok; Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

Video Of Little Boy Sobbing After Finding Out Trump Is A Real Person Goes Viral—And We Totally Get It

Whether it was Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, or some other important facet of childhood, most of us found out when we were kids that something we loved did not exist, and it was absolutely devastating and world-changing.

But imagine there being something that you deeply disliked or feared, only for you to find out that it actually exists on the same plane and in the same timeline as you.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from @originalsugarphly's TikTok video
@originalsugarphly/TikTok

Woman Stunned After Best Friend Of 23 Years Ends Friendship Over Her 'Mom Shorts'

We will all have friends who come into our lives for a reason, for a season, or for a lifetime. There are those situational friendships, like from work or school, that dissolve when we exit that space, and there are friendships that might form from knowing the same people.

Then there are those tried-and-true friendships that we think will truly stand the test of time—but even those sometimes fracture under pressure. And sometimes for the most ridiculous reasons.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from @nurse_xtina129's TikTok
@nurse_xtina129/TikTok

Woman Sparks Debate By Putting Out Small Fire At Dunkin' Donuts After Workers Ignored It

Imagine hitting that afternoon slump and seeking out your favorite caffeinated beverage: a highlight in an otherwise dumpster fire kind of day. But then you arrive at your coffeehouse of choice—and there's literally a fire.

TikToker Cristina Conklin was waiting in line for a beverage at Dunkin' Donuts in Warwick, New York, when she became either a villain or a hero, depending on who was watching her TikTok video.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshots from David Dickson's TikTok videos
@new.beginnings639/TikTok

56-Year-Old Man Leaves The Internet In Shock After Showing Off His Mexican Facelift

Between constant conversations about generations not looking their age, and a resurgence of "skinnytok" and "beautytok," there's this renewed pressure for everyone to look their best, for them to refresh their look, and most importantly, to look a decade younger than they actually are.

Stories have been circulating about Americans going to Mexico, specifically Guadalajara, in search of quality and affordable plastic surgery to give them a fresh look, but patients are walking away looking much younger than you might expect.

Keep ReadingShow less