Townhall | D.C.’s Museum Of The Bible: One Year Out

One year from today, Washington, D.C. will see the latest addition to its plethora of museums. The Museum of the Bible will open in November 2017 and is sure to draw millions of people from all over the world.

The Museum of the Bible will not only be Washington, D.C.’s newest museum but it will also be one of the best. It will catalogue the thousands year old history of the Bible in a way that will be appealing to both the academic and the lay person, to the spiritually inclined and the non-believer, and to adults and children. The Museum will not proselytize for any religion; in fact it has sought the advice from Protestants, Catholics, Jews, and people of other religious faiths during the formation and building process. Further, not all who work at the Museum are evangelical Christians but are selected on being the best people to present the Bible to a world that has much to learn from it.

The Museum of the Bible will lay out the impact of the Bible from ancient times to the present, for it is impossible to have a conversation about world history, literature, and even food without mentioning the impact of the Bible. Visitors to this amazing place will be free to come to their own conclusions about the Bible, its meaning, and its impact upon human history and everyday life.

While a private museum and not part of the Smithsonian Institute or any other government entity, the Museum of the Bible is bound to become a large tourist stop just as other Washington, D.C. museums are. The museum is in a prime location, being only two blocks from the National Mall and three blocks from the U.S Capitol. It will be located just off the Federal Center Southwest Metro Stop, making it more convenient to reach than many of our sacred national memorials. The museum will be quite large at 430,000 square feet of space and is six stories tall; six very large stories.

The Museum of the Bible will be not only one America’s most technologically advanced museums, offering immersion experiences for people of all ages, but will also be one of the most appealing to people of all creeds with a goal of educating about the most important book the world has ever known. If a person fully soaked in what will be offered in the Museum of the Bible, it would take them a total of 9 eight hour days to fully go through it.

In addition to exhibits, artifacts, and interactive space, food from the Biblical era will be offered in the museum and there will be provision for kosher food. The rooftop will feature a Biblical garden, featuring plants of the Biblical era and a peaceful, contemplative place. The rooftop will also offer one of the best views of the City of Washington to include the U.S. Capitol, the Washington Monument, and the different museums of the Smithsonian Institution.

An amazing array of staff and volunteers keep busy with the logistics of building the museum, cataloguing objects, giving site tours, responding to public inquiry, and raising money. The Steve Green family has generously donated much of the money for the Museum of the Bible but fundraising continues so that individuals may also lay claim, and have a personal stake in, building one of the most unique museums in our nation.

It has been a year of many surprises; some good and some bad. But who would have thought there would be a Museum of the Bible opening a year from now in Washington?

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