Bible Museum blasted for leaving out Islam

There's been both praise and criticism for the new Museum of the Bible in Washington, a 430,000-square-foot facility that features some of the world's top artifacts linked to the book Christians consider holy and Jews revere as containing their Scriptures.

For example, one prominent pastor says the $500 million project is a little too "politically correct."

Marshall Foster told WND that "everything that is good in the world has come because people of turned to God and the Bible."

Meanwhile, another Christian at the museum's opening events said: "If you know the Scripture, you will find Jesus in this museum. I am very satisfied and inspired with this museum so far. It's beautiful – I've never seen anything like it in my life."

However, writer Nick Kangadis at the Media Research Center TV site said Yale University Hebrew Bible professor Joel S. Baden took the museum "to task for not having representations from faiths other than Christianity and Judaism."

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Baden complained, "There are a number of prominent omissions that make it clear that it's not a museum of the Bible as one might imagine it from a secular perspective," MRC reported.

"No duh! It's highly doubtful that the Bible was written by atheists, smart guy. What did you expect? The 'Secularist's Guide to Jesus?'" Kangadis wrote.

"It's time to add another entrant into 'This Week in Stupid Observations!'"

The museum makes clear it's purpose is to recognize the history and influence of the Bible, but "apparently that's not good enough for some," the commentary said.

"New York Times writer Emily Cochrane noted that Baden 'questioned the lack of representation of other religions and sects, including Mormonism and Islam,'" the report said.

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"I'm sorry. Did Muslims all of a sudden begin using the Bible? If I'm wrong, please let me know," Kangadis wrote.

See the museum on video:

Foster founded the World History Institute to teach the Christian history of the world, co-produced actor Kirk Cameron's 2012 film "Monumental: In Search of America's National Treasure" and is currently writing the script for "Monumental 2," bringing a major motion picture into theaters that tells the story of the Gospel of liberty.

He suggested that if the Museum of the Bible doesn't revamp to accurately teach Jesus' life and message, it will lose the Christian base that its success relies on, Foster warned.

"My tour company is slated to bring 15,000 students a year to this museum," he said. "If they want our students to come, they better have a good representation of the Scripture. Otherwise they are going to lose the Christian community. The Christian community is their base; if they lose the Christian community, you're not going to have a base for coming into this museum. Their message of the Scripture needs to be strengthened."

Steven Bickley, a spokesman for the project, said organizers decided to widen the appeal of the Bible by educating people about the Bible's influence and history rather than the teachings of Jesus.

"We hope that people are so interested in the narrative of the Bible that they pick up and start reading whether it's the gospels, the epistles or anything in the Hebrew Bible," he said. "That's our hope."