SALT LAKE CITY — One of President Abraham Lincoln’s old Bibles has resurfaced about 150 years after his death, and apparently it says something about his faith during the final years of his life, according to Fox News.
Lincoln had been known as a “village atheist” when he was a young man. Still, he would give religious speeches throughout his tenure as president.
Experts said the new Bible discovery shows Lincoln had an interest in religion toward the end of his life.
“For me, it’s a physical connection with Abraham Lincoln,” said Alan Lowe, the executive director of the library and museum, according to The New York Times. “We see it as an important artifact to preserve for history’s sake, but also the beginning of a conversation about the relevance of Lincoln and the role of religion in our lives today.”
The Bible was put on display at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum in Springfield, Illinois, on Thursday.
“Presented to Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States, by the Ladies of the Citizens Volunteer Hospital of Philadelphia,” the Bible cover reads.
According to Fox News, Lincoln received the book on June 16, 1864, when he was visiting Philadelphia to raise money for wounded soldiers. Lincoln donated 48 signed copies of the Emancipation Proclamation to raise funds for the hospital.
Lincoln once wrote his thoughts about the Bible after receiving a different Bible as a gift.
"In regard to this Great Book, I have but to say, it is the best gift God has given to man. All the good the Saviour gave to the world was communicated through this book. But for it, we could not know right from wrong. All things most desirable for man's welfare, here and hereafter, are to be found portrayed in it."
The new Bible is reportedly the sixth known to historians to be owned by President Lincoln and his family.
President Barack Obama previously used a Lincoln Bible to take the oath of office in 2009 and 2013. President Donald Trump used the same one at his inauguration in 2017.