The God Bless the USA Bible has been resurrected from the dead but still faces some supply challenges due to “woke” companies that refuse to participate in the project, its publisher announced March 1.
News of the Lee Greenwood project first was announced last year, but the God and country project ran into an obstacle when HarperCollins, owner of the copyright to the New International Version of the Bible, declined to authorize that translation’s use.
The initial announcement drew howls of protest not only from church-state separationists but from pastors and other religious leaders.
The key selling point for the new product is that it combines the complete biblical text with the United States Constitution, Bill of Rights, Declaration of Independence and Pledge of Allegiance. Plus, “it will include the handwritten chorus lyrics of God Bless the USA penned by Greenwood, who both wrote and recorded the song now beloved by an entire nation.”
The key selling point for the new product is that it combines the complete biblical text with the United States Constitution, Bill of Rights, Declaration of Independence and Pledge of Allegiance.
That was all too much for HarperCollins, so the project’s organizers — who have created a company called Elite Source Pro that appears to be solely focused on this one product — have spent the last year seeking another way to get their version of the Good Book printed.
Step one was to revert to the King James Version of the Bible, which has no copyright restrictions in the U.S.
Step two was to find a willing printer, who has not been named. However, orders already are on hold. The company’s website flashes this “important notice”: “The God Bless the USA Bible is on extreme back order due to very limited paper and cover material. If you order, your place in line and your price will be guaranteed. Several ‘woke’ companies have refused to help us, but we will not be deterred. Always remember that united we stand & divided we fall! God bless the USA!”
Perhaps indicating its target audience, the God Bless the USA Bible is offered only in a large-print edition. The “leather-lite,” slim-line book sells for $59.99 plus nearly $5 in a flat-rate shipping fee. That makes the total cost $64.55.
By comparison, a regular KJV leather-bound Bible without the American history extras may be purchased for less than $20 from Amazon.
The company’s news release quotes Fox News as saying Bible sales have been at a “record high over the past year” because people are “searching for hope.”
The answer to that search is a large-print KJV Bible surrounded by four of America’s founding documents and a patriotic song.
“We are hoping it will bring renewed hope to America at a time most needed and become a treasured Bible that is ultimately passed down as a family heirloom,” said Hugh Kirkpatrick, president of Elite Source Pro.
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