Brookings resident Carl Kline is an ordained clergyman, part-time teacher and occasional blogger.

Dear God, your word has become a political football in the U.S. of A. Oklahoma wants to put a Bible in every school room in the state. Their order is for 55,000 copies costing over $3 million. Several other states would like to do this as well, if only they can manage the legal and economic consequences.

Of course, Oklahoma would like it to be a certain kind of Bible; the Lee Greenwood kind. This is a King James Version of the Old and New testaments. It also includes the U.S. Constitution, the Bill of Rights, the Declaration of Independence, the Pledge of Allegiance, and a chorus of the famous Lee Greenwood song, “God Bless the USA.”

This is one of two Bibles endorsed by Donald Trump. It bills itself as “easy to read,” with “large print” and a “slim design.” It “invites you to explore God’s Word anywhere, anytime.” It sells for $60 and Trump receives fees for his endorsement. The specifications set by the Oklahoma Department of Education were specific enough that only two Bibles would qualify. One was the Lee Greenwood Bible. The other costs $90, the We the People Bible, also endorsed by Trump.

Probably because the bid specifications were so specific, the Oklahoma Department of Education had to revise them to be a bit more inclusive, since a former attorney general in Oklahoma began to raise questions about the legality of the specifications. Normally, when you ask for bids, and the largest supplier of Bibles with an inventory of 2,900 different Bibles doesn’t have the one you want, you begin to wonder.

An Education Department official reportedly said: “We are going to be so proud here in Oklahoma to be the first state in the country to bring the Bible back to every single classroom and every state should be doing this. … President Trump praised our efforts. President Trump has been the leader on this issue.”

Of course, Donald Trump is big on the Bible, not just because he sells them! He says: “All Americans need a Bible in their home, and I have many. It’s my favorite book. I’m proud to endorse and encourage you to get this (God Bless the USA) Bible. We must make America pray again.”

Donald Trump needs to sell something. Sneakers aren’t doing it. He has some outstanding bills to pay. That $454 million civil fraud judgment still hangs over his head, and then there is the $92 million bond for defamation in the E. Jean Carroll case, who accused Trump of sexual assault. It appears that with enough money and lawyers (and another potential presidency), one can put off accountability for ones’ adjudicated crimes indefinitely and sell sneakers and Bibles, should he have to pay for them.

Seriously, who today reads the King James Version of the Bible, and if they do, why do they? This translation was undertaken for the king. It contains the English of the time and passages interpreted for a monarch. Biblical scholars have given us much better translations of the original languages, and in common day English we can understand.

Why in heavens name would we want the King’s English in our school classrooms, unless it was just for show, and the Christian Nationalist inclusions. I wonder, can Donald Trump quote one verse in the King’s English? When asked, he couldn’t name his favorite Biblical passage, as that was “too personal.”

All of the churches I have served give Bibles to young people when they are confirmed as church members. They are usually the Revised Standard Version of the Bible or perhaps an even more recent translation. This is an appropriate gift by the appropriate institution. The Bible is not sold, but given. If a Bible needs to be purchased, many can be found for $20 or less. Or ask any Christian Church and they will likely give one out for free, or let you study it in their library.

It appears that the Trump endorsed Bibles are so expensive because of his cut, or perhaps because of the additional material they include, celebrating the U.S. as a nation. That may be illustrative, as fusing religion with nationhood can be quite expensive.

I’m thinking of the two religiously exclusive nations in the world today on the brink of all out war. If you want to know the threat of Christian Nationalism in the U.S., look to the countries of Israel and Iran. In religious terms, both nations are religiously exclusive, but profess love of the neighbor. In terms of the nation state, a nuclear exchange against the neighbor might be necessary.

Christians need to understand that the Kingdom of Jesus is not of this world. His Kingdom doesn’t work in a nation the way we might want.

There is wisdom in the separation of religion and state. There is wisdom in leaving the Bible out of the public school classroom. There is wisdom in an inclusive, interfaith nation, where love of neighbor is evident even across traditional boundaries. Look to the life of Jesus for our way into the future, not to Donald Trump (or any other political figure).