Some critics and biblical scholars are frustrated that the Museum of the Bible does not accurately represent other religions.
One professor said that the museum, which opened Saturday to the public and is located near the National Mall in Washington, DC, presents a point of view that favors American Protestantism over other religions such as Islam.
“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,” Joel S. Baden, a professor of the Hebrew Bible at Yale University, told the New York Times. “They don’t do a good job of talking about whether parts of the Bible are historically accurate.”
Baden added that he thinks the museum does not represent Islam and Mormonism to the same degree as other religions.
The 430,000 square foot Museum of the Bible contains six floors filled with a collection of 40,000 biblical artifacts that include first edition Bibles and Torah scrolls.
The museum also houses the world’s largest private collection of rare, historic biblical artifacts, gathered by Hobby Lobby president and museum founder Steve Green since 2009.