While the US presidential inauguration largely follows procedure, there is one aspect that allows for the two incoming leaders of the Executive branch to add a little personal touch: the Holy Bible. When sworn into office, the leaders are allowed to place their hand on any holy book of their choosing, and in this case both Vice President Vance and President Trump selected Bibles of significance to them.
Newly minted Vice President JD Vance was first to be sworn in during the 2025 presidential inauguration. He got personal with his Bible choice, as the book had once belonged to his maternal grandmother, who – according to Kera News – helped raise Vance during a period in which his mother struggled with addiction.
The Bible is reportedly a King James Version that was given to him by his grandmother – or “Mamaw” as he called her – in 2003, just before he left to train with the Marines as a fresh-faced recruit. While he took his grandmother’s Bible with him for his service time, his faith journey was far from over.
In a 2020 column published in The Lamp Magazine, Vance recalled debating religion with his grandmother, even going so far as to call himself an atheist. The more he examined himself, however, the more he realized that his “Mamaw’s” Christian values influenced much of his worldview. He wrote that once he became a father, this became even more clear to him:
“I realized that there was a part of me — the best part — that took its cues from Catholicism. It was the part of me that demanded that I treat my son with patience, and made me feel terrible when I failed. That demanded that I moderate my temper with everyone, but especially my family. That demanded that I care more about how I rated as a husband and father than as an income earner. That demanded that I sacrifice professional prestige for the interests of family. That demanded that I let go of grudges, and forgive even those who wronged me.
Lincoln's Bible
Following Vance’s pledge, Donald Trump was sworn in for the second time, for which he used two different Bibles. The first was the Bible given to Trump by his mother when he attended Sunday Church Primary School in 1955, the cover of which is emblazoned with his name. The second Bible was the famed Lincoln Bible, used by President Abraham Lincoln during his 1861 inauguration.
This significant piece of American history has now been used four times at presidential inaugurations since the days of Lincoln. Twice it was used to swear in President Barack Obama, and President Trump also used the Lincoln Bible for his first inauguration, in 2016.
