'It isn't a Christian nation': Pastor Loran Livingston's words go viral after Trump speech

In his weather-delayed speech at the Great American State Fair on Saturday, President Donald Trump made a claim about the Declaration of Independence that seems to misrepresent the founding document. The President claimed the document says "we are all made in the image of one almighty God," which was false and has since been widely criticized on social media. Amidst this, North Carolina Pastor Loran Livingston is going viral for a fiery speech he gave on why America can never be a Christian state.

In the light of Trump's comments and the Christian nationalism undertones in the celebrations, Livingston's scorching speech from Sunday went viral, in which he claimed: "There has never been a Christian nation, and never will be. You don't live in one now. A Christian nation wouldn't have killed and displaced 20 million Native Americans, or thought owning slaves was pleasing to God," Livingstone said in his strong remarks. 

Livingstone went on to add that a "Christian nation would never have believed that owning slaves was pleasing to God or that it was supported by Scripture in any way, shape, or form." He slammed the Civil War as well, claiming 500,000 Americans died, more than in World War II or any other war the country has ever fought. "We killed 500,000 of our own people so that some could claim the right to own other human beings as property," he said. 

The comments came after the President, during his remarks on Saturday night, claimed that the Declaration of Independence "tells us, we are all made in the image of one Almighty God. And a Communist will never say that. That's for sure," referring to the Democratic party which has come under such allegations ever since a string of socialist candidates, backed by NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani won their respective primaries. 

While the second claim is speculation, the first claim of the President is apparently false as the Declaration of Independence doesn't mention "one almighty god" instead it says, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness." A version of Trump's remarks went viral on X as it included a community note in which users pointed out that the Declaration does not allude to people being made in God's image.

In his speech, Trump also claimed, "All over the world, they try and be like us, nobody can be like us, and with God's help, we will always be this, or even better," and pushed his party's agenda by pushing for the passage of the SAVE America Act voter ID bill. "There will be no mail-in ballots, except for illness, disability, military deployment, or travel, and you won't have cheating on the elections anymore," Trump said, referring yet again to his unfounded mass election fraud claims.