Fact Check

Hobby Lobby Places July 4 Newspaper Ad: 'One Nation Under God'

The newspaper ad Hobby Lobby bought was also shared by its official social media pages and hosted on the company's website.

Published July 4, 2021

ANTIOCH, CA - MARCH 25:  A sign is posted on the exterior of a Hobby Lobby store on March 25, 2014 in Antioch, California. The U.S. Supreme Court is hearing arguments from crafts store chain Hobby Lobby about the Affordable Healthcare Act's contraceptive mandate and how it violates the religious freedom of the company and its owners.  (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
Image Via Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
Claim:
On Independence Day in 2021, Hobby Lobby crafts store placed an ad in several newspapers that read: "One Nation Under God."

On July 4, 2021, Hobby Lobby began to trend on Twitter after the company purportedly placed an ad in multiple newspapers across the country that promoted Christian ideals. The top of the ad read: "One Nation Under God."

Trending

The trending topic also appeared under "What's Happening" on Twitter:

Hobby Lobby placed a full-page newspaper ad for One Nation Under God that promoted Christian ideals.

One of the most shared tweets was from @Barkiologist.

It was true that Hobby Lobby placed the "One Nation Under God" ad in multiple newspapers. In fact, the company uploaded a PDF of the ad to its website, tweeted about it, and posted it on the Hobby Lobby Facebook page:

The Ad

In Hobby Lobby's "One Nation Under God" full-page ad, a Bible verse was printed, followed by three columns of quotes about Christianity.

Some of the quotes came from former U.S. presidents including George Washington, John Adams, James Madison, Thomas Jefferson, and John Quincy Adams.

There were also sections of quotes from other figures from history, titled "Founding Fathers," "Supreme Court Justices," "Congress," "Education," "Supreme Court Rulings," and "Foreign Opinion."

At the bottom of the ad, it read:

If you would like to know Jesus as Lord and Savior, visit Need Him Ministry at www.chataboutjesus.com. To download a free Bible for your phone, go to www.mardel.com/bible.

Hobby Lobby and Mardel Stores - 7707 SW 44th St. - Oklahoma City, OK 73179 - www.hobbylobby.com/ministryprojects © 2021 Hobby Lobby

Across the Nation

We found other tweets, such as this one from @TBlountNews:

The Hobby Lobby newspaper ad was also printed in The Boston Globe:

Another tweet mentioned that the Hobby Lobby ad ran in Oregon's Register-Guard newspaper:

The number of newspapers in which the Hobby Lobby ad ran was unclear.

Holiday Messages from Hobby Lobby

On the Hobby Lobby website, it mentioned that the company has a long history of placing newspaper ads on holidays:

Holiday Messages

Christmas 1995, David Green was reading the Christmas advertisements, including those for his own store, and he felt commissioned by God to do something different. Hobby Lobby was selling all kinds of crafts that customers used to celebrate Christmas, yet David Green was struck by the lack of any testimony in newspapers regarding the meaning of the holiday.

David Green responded to that commission in 1996 by creating a simple newspaper ad that began: As you celebrate this Christmas season in the warmth of family and home, may you be drawn to the Savior; He who left the beauty of Heaven on our behalf and became like us, that we might become like Him. If you know Jesus as your Savior, then this season already has a special meaning. If you do not, we encourage you find a Bible-believing church in your community, and to discover a relationship this Christmas with the God who loves you more than you can begin to imagine.

Before long, Hobby Lobby was placing beautiful full-page ads celebrating the real meaning of Christmas, Easter, and Independence Day in newspapers across the country. The impact and relevancy of these messages is ongoing, so we post them here for your enjoyment.

We reached out to Hobby Lobby to learn more about the newspaper ad and will update this story should we hear back.

Jordan Liles is a Senior Reporter who has been with Snopes since 2016.

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