So Long, Gideons

The one thing travelers could reliably count on in their hotel rooms: a Bible in the bedside table. But like many traditions, this one may be dying.

By Roya Wolverson | Newsweek Web Exclusive
Nov 8, 2007 | Updated: 3:16  p.m. ET Nov 8, 2007

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  • Posted By: robynhawk @ 02/28/2009 11:17:55 PM

    For lose of you who don't believe in God or Jesus, I think you should have your own holiday like April Fool's Day. God is not a myth and neither is his power. Katrina, Andrew, and many other "natural" disasters should prove that. Live as you will but when Judgement Day comes will you be saved from the eternal lake of fire or will you be hoping to lead your secular life there. And study history the United States was founded on christian beliefs by christian leaders.

  • Posted By: Motomouse @ 11/29/2007 5:19:53 PM

    After checking into my hotel roomlast week, I was pleasantly surprised when I didn't see any versions of the bible anywhere. I smiled to myself and felt proud that my country is continuing to take steps, although small and slow steps, forward. Let's continue to move past these superstitious beliefs, as our founding fathers intended.

    • Posted By: sismari94 @ 08/04/2008 11:28:14 AM

      This country was founded on Christian Beliefs not superstitious befiefs. One day you will find yourself in the position of needing those so called superstitious beliefs and the God you probably don't even believe in exists I pray you find him one day and see how your life can truly change for the better. You will never understand how this can be until you truly search for him and find the love only Christ can give.

      I feel sorry for the direction this country is headed. Utter destruction!! Keep on removing prayer and bibles and you will see what happens to this great country.

      • Posted By: vissi87 @ 11/04/2008 10:10:55 AM

        Comment: To sismari94, the country is going to cave in on itself because hotels won't be providing bibles anymore? Calm down will you. The bible has no place in hotels, which see many world travelers of various beliefs staying there. Either provide all the holy books, or neither.

        America was most certainly NOT founded on Christian beliefs whatsoever! The founding fathers founded the county as a secular nation separated from the chucrch in order to distance themselves from the stranglehold religion had on Europe at that time.

        And finally, since when were Christian beliefs not superstitious??

  • Posted By: vissi87 @ 11/04/2008 10:08:18 AM

    To sismari94, the country is going to cave in on itself because hotels won't be providing bibles anymore? Calm down will you. The bible has no place in hotels, which see many world travelers of various beliefs staying there. Either provide all the holy books, or neither.

    And also, to both of you, America was NOT founded on Christian beliefs whatsoever! The founding fathers founded the county as a secular nation separated from the chucrch in order to distance themselves from the stranglehold religion had on Europe at that time.

    And finally, to sismari94, since when were Christian beliefs not superstitious??

  • Posted By: pmpro @ 10/25/2008 6:02:44 PM

    I am so disappointed to read this. I love the comfort of knowing that when I travel, I will have a Bible awaiting me at the hotel room. What a sad commentary on hotels that they are willing to provide "intimacy kits" and not Bibles. I guess I will have to start checking on the hotel's policy re: Bibles before I book conferences or rooms in the future.

  • Posted By: spuddude @ 11/13/2007 2:26:24 PM

    It's important to remember that the Bibles in hotel rooms all across America were not paid for or placed by the hotel chain owners at their expense. They were paid for and placed by a private, non-denominational Christian ministry. Like the pornography available on any hotel television (which actually generates more profit for hotels than room charges), the Bible is available for guests to read if they choose. If you don't want to read it you don't have to. If you want some other religious or secular text generally available, then pay to buy and place them. I don't appreciate the pornography that's generally available, nor the booze at the convenience bar, but they're still in the room. The Bible is the only free thing there.

    As for the removal of Bibles being an indicator of declining morality and civility in this country, we're too far down that road to still be looking for (or denying) indicators. Our society is demonstrably less self-controlled and moral in its behaviour, and is reaping the consequences. Much like our medical-industrial complex--which thrives and prospers by treating symptoms rather than causes--society would rather come up with ways to deal with the consequences rather than accept the cure. Vaccinate against AIDS, not control sexual behaviour (which is traceable to 100% of AIDS cases everywhere the disease is found).

    To all you Christophobes out there who get the heeby-jeebies every time you see a Bible, I suggest you get over yourself. Perhaps your reaction is akin to the perennial speeder that hates the sight of police cars, and even blames the police for the negative emotional response. I'd rather place my faith in Christ's redemptive work and live an upright life and risk being wrong than reject Christ and live a helter-skelter, 'it's-all-about-me' life and risk being wrong. And before you waste breath calling me one of those judgmental Jesus-freaks, you should know that pointing out the nature of something and giving it a name is seriously different from passing judgment on its perpetrator.

    I like how many of you show your hypocritical streak by calling for the destruction of all Bibles while espousing the concept of inclusion and acceptance of all beliefs. The liberal mind is a curious thing indeed.

    • Posted By: pennyln @ 11/14/2007 2:52:57 PM

      Excellent spudude. Intelligent and concise. Thank you.

      • Posted By: ronathan @ 11/20/2007 12:42:26 PM

        Uhh. . . no one is calling for the "destruction" of the Bibles being placed in hotel rooms. Get over yourself.

        The POINT here is that if a hotel chain is going to provide Bible's, then to be fair and respectful of the many other religions that exist in this world besides Christianity, the hotel should be obligated to provide Torah's, yalmukah's, and talit's for the Jews, Koran's, and praying matts for the Muslims, statues of Buddha and incense for the Buddhists, statues of Sheeba (or any other of the many Hindu gods) for the Hindus, . . . and so on. Are you starting to get it now? Do you see how ridiculous that would be, and why no hotel chain should be obligated to provide that service?

        If you want a Bible so damn bad while on vacation, then bring one with you from home! It's a simple solution that would satisfy your needs without the hotel having to potentially offend any non-Christian guest it might receive! Why is that so hard?

        • Posted By: sismari94 @ 08/04/2008 11:36:41 AM

          The Point is this country was founded on CHRISTIAN beliefs. I wouldn't go to a predominately muslim country and DEMAND a BIBLE in all their hotels sorry, get over it. Bring your Koran, Torah, or what ever you want but stop demanding this country change what it was based on!

        • Posted By: StephanieLynn75 @ 11/20/2007 1:31:46 PM

          Once again, for emphasis, and perhaps to help all the readers remember...

          THE HOTELS ARE NOT PROVIDING THE BIBLES!! The Gideons are! The hotels incur no cost whatsoever in providing these Bibles. Perhaps if proponents of other religions also offered to provide and place free LITERATURE (not statues, etc...as I've never gone into a hotel room to be greeted by a statue of Jesus or a cross), then hotels would accept the offer. However, as no other religious group is doing that, the hotels cannot be blamed for accepting the offer of the one group that is.

          As for advising people to bring their Bible from home if they want one so badly, I do not think the Gideons place the Bibles necessarily for those who are regular readers. They place the Bibles for those who are desperately seeking a reason not to overdose on drugs and end their lives, or for a reason not to have the affair they intended to use the hotel room for, or for the lonely business traveler who wants to experience some peace and calm.

          So, again, those few of you who are so deeply offended by the presence of the Bible in your rooms....Get over yourself!! There are plenty of others who are glad to have it there!

          • Posted By: ronathan @ 11/20/2007 1:57:49 PM

            And once again, the point is that it is irrelevant whether or not the hotels are paying for the Bible's instead of the Gideon's. By allowing the Bible's to be placed in the rooms, the hotels are CONDONING the practice REGARDLESS of whether they are actually paying for them. So yes, the hotels CAN be held accountable for allowing Gideon Bibles in their rooms.


            And secondly, the Bible's are there to console people who are thinking of committing suicide, use drugs, or cheat on their spouses? Are you kidding? If that is the real intent, then don't you think that the hotel would be better served (and more respectful of its non-Christian guests) by having an on-call therapist or counselor to talk to 24 hours a day? Wouldn't that be a better solution that would satisfy everybody rather than having one religions holy text preferrentially placed in hotels at the expense of all other's?

    • Posted By: Friendnotfoe @ 11/13/2007 2:52:44 PM

      Right on!

      • Posted By: mismgm2 @ 11/13/2007 7:23:04 PM

        Thank you so much for articulating the Christian perspective so well. It seems the only target left for society is the Christian view.

      • Posted By: mismgm2 @ 11/13/2007 7:21:02 PM

        Very well put. Thank you for articulating the Christian perspective soundly and reasonably.

  • Posted By: ezeques @ 07/21/2008 12:02:26 PM

    I will now be staying at hotels like Sofitel where I don't have to be subjected to the evangelizing.

  • Posted By: ReligionIsACrutch @ 07/10/2008 3:34:14 AM

    But bibles in our hotel room are so useful! What are we going to use when we run out of toilet paper now? Bummer.

  • Posted By: jehovahsprincess @ 07/03/2008 12:05:06 AM

    I have 3 words for you, God Love You. God's love is beyond anything you may think of Him. The Bible is His Word and only those you are called by Him can have the desire to read it, study, but most of all, live what is written in it. You can only do this with the strength of His Holy Spirit and no other way. You can try as much as you want on your own strength, but my brother, I am sorry to disappoint you but you will eventually fail. I would not only the hotels should have a bible, but every human being should have a bible. Every invention ha its own manual to show people how to use it. Well, we are God's creation and surely we come to this world with a manual and that if the Bible, whether you choose to read it or not. When you are assemblying a desk, do you know where all the pieces and screws go, of course not, that is why you need to read the manual. Everyone knows that the Bible is our manual on how to live this earthly life but we choose not to read it and this is why some of us have not yet learned how to live this life. Do you kknow what the Word BIBLE stands for, well, it is the BASIC INSTRUCTIONS BEFORE LEAVING EARTH. It is the instructions given from God on how to live a life that would take us into eternity with him, it reveals the mercy and love of God for us.

  • Posted By: jehovahsprincess @ 07/02/2008 11:51:27 PM

    Never is too late to repent and be saved. The word of God is not for the understanding of all men but for the understandiing of those who are called by God. He is the one who puts it in your heart to love his Word. You will never understand the bible unless that it is revealed to you by the Holy Spirit. You can study it as much as you want or can but the revelation of God's word only comes from God and not with human effort. It is has contradictions for you because you are missing the other parts of the puzzle which is the church history and the main element, the Spirit of God. I do pray that the Lord reveal Himself to you one day so you can have a taste of God's mercy and love. If you only knew the grace and love of God, you would not dare to speak about God's Word in that manner, it is a privilege to be able to serve God and be loved by Him. I will go no further for I do not have the need to defend God as we will all stand one day before his throne in judgment and we will need to give an account for every word spoken and every action. We are all responsible for our actions, I beg you to consider this and look at how you are living your life with God for apart from Him we are nobody, even though we may think we are somebody. I will leave you with a thought but I will not write it here, you can look it up in the Bible in Revelations Chapter 3 verse 20. Always know that Jesus loves you inspite of what you may think of Him. God Bless

  • Posted By: freedom FROM religion @ 04/26/2008 4:52:20 PM

    Posted By: The Intellectualist @ 12/01/2007 12:49:54 AM
    " In and of itself without any religious agenda the Bible is a magnificent and time tested literary marvel. "

    You should actually read the book yourself before making this false statement. The bible is filled with hatred, violence, misogyny, murder, pain, divisiveness, superstition, falsehoods, contradictions, etc. If it were pared down just to the "peace and love parts" it would would be a pamphlet rather than a book.

  • Posted By: freedom FROM religion @ 04/26/2008 4:35:43 PM

    It's very simple - If you want a bible in your hotel room, then bring your OWN!

    But that's not the problem with those hwo carp about bible-freedom. It's not that they want the bible (because very few of them even read it), but it's because they want to force their religion on others.

    You who complain should read the bible - cover to cover. But, before that, try The United States Constitution.

  • Posted By: lhodges @ 11/15/2007 6:46:03 PM

    I don't think this is even about God! I believe this is about being a nation of greedy whores who are willing to sell our TRADITIONS AND BELIEFS to the highest bidder. Why are we always spouting off about diversity training at work and how we as Americans are supposed to respect the traditions, beliefes and customs of people from other countries when they are not required to respect ours? When does this madness stop? We are playing to people who move here from other countries who care nothing about learning the language or understanding what we are all about. They come here for the money and freedom however do not want to pay a price to be here. We as Americans are required to cater to every culture, yet no one caters to us.

    • Posted By: MarieF @ 11/23/2007 11:40:58 AM

      "... yet no one caters to us."

      No one caters to the United States of America??

      Even thought we export zero petroleum, oil is traded on the world market using the American dollar. The Chinese are following our excellent example of owning as many automobiles as possible. McDonalds and Coca Cola are welcomed around the world. And sex education is being stifled in Africa to appease the American Christian Fundamentalists. People in the USA are the greatest narcissists on earth.

      • Posted By: kelkel @ 03/26/2008 5:36:17 PM

        If you are an American, you have LESS rights than those who are not!!!!!!

    • Posted By: DABROAD @ 11/15/2007 7:12:32 PM

      This IS my country. I was born and raised here by parents that were born and raised here. And I am not a christian. My beliefs are not christian. The beliefs of most of my friends are not christian. Chrisitianity isnt even native to this continent - it was people from other countries that made people already respect their beliefs, when the newcomers were not required to respect what was already here. I guess it's biting the christians in the buttocks now, isnt it? I guess the rule of three is true - what evil you do to another will come back on you times three.

      And as for that "end times" thing - people have been calling it "end times" since Jesus was around. Know what? it's the end time for someone somewhere every minute of every day.

  • Posted By: MAAnders @ 12/27/2007 11:18:15 PM

    GEEE, where are we going and why are we in this hand basket. It is time that the brakes be applied and this degrading of God and America come to an end.

  • Posted By: Dapro @ 12/08/2007 6:55:35 PM

    I will speak in ENGLISH here:
    Ahhh ....ok, remove the HOLY BIBLE and replace it with the QUACKran, uhh I meant to say quran.
    Will that make you feel better? ....Have you all bothered to notice that everything happening today is predicted in the BIBLE? ,,,, I guess you didn't notice that...........
    ........"A nation that forgets God, shall fall." . . (JDapro) France,,

  • Posted By: Dapro @ 12/08/2007 6:51:47 PM

    I will speak in English. Yeah ok, remove all the HOLY BIBLES and put in the EVIL QUAKran, uhh I meant to say quran. Will that make you all feel better? (JDAPRO) France

  • Posted By: DABROAD @ 12/05/2007 12:27:01 PM

    Dianetics (the scientology screed) is also a best seller. Does that make it true also? Or is it still just the ramblings of a crappy science fiction writer that formed the basis of a cult? Does popularity equal factuality? If you can freely choose to open the book, you can go out and buy your own copy, and take it with you to a hotel. It's a very nice book, but that doesn't make it true.

  • Posted By: DABROAD @ 12/05/2007 12:26:50 PM

    Dianetics (the scientology screed) is also a best seller. Does that make it true also? Or is it still just the ramblings of a crappy science fiction writer that formed the basis of a cult? Does popularity equal factuality? If you can freely choose to open the book, you can go out and buy your own copy, and take it with you to a hotel. It's a very nice book, but that doesn't make it true.

  • Posted By: Riolion @ 11/27/2007 3:54:54 PM

    We all need to remember that Adolf Hitler did not like certain books either - mostly those that revealed the truth about his ideals. The Bible has always been a book feared by those who really hate the light of the truth . Sieg Heil to the idiots who fear a book.

    • Posted By: kanawah @ 12/03/2007 10:06:38 PM

      Adolph professed to be a christina. I do not fear the bad book. I only have distain for it

    • Posted By: kanawah @ 12/03/2007 10:00:06 PM

      Hitler was "a christian??? As with most of the other atrocities through out history, religion has been at the root of it.

      Imagine, if you can.

  • Posted By: tiffwadman @ 11/27/2007 3:57:52 PM

    It is a direct reflection of where our country is headed. I am disappointed in our society, it is not suppose to be offensive to have condoms in a room yet it is offensive to have a bible. Very sad.

    • Posted By: kanawah @ 12/03/2007 10:04:15 PM

      Comment: It is a direct reflection of where our country is headed. I am disappointed in our society, it is not suppose to be offensive to have condoms in a room yet it is offensive to have a bible. Very sad.
      ______________________________________________________________________________
      No it is not sad, it is very encouraging, that we are starting to leave the mythology behind. I would feel no sorrow if all religion should disappear from the world.

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