MIAMI — After an Evangelical pastor presided over the unveiling of a golden statue of President Donald Trump at his Doral golf course last week, several Florida religious leaders are likening the homage to idolatry and a violation of the biblical prohibition against worshiping false idols.

At a ribbon-cutting ceremony last Wednesday at Trump National Doral golf course in Doral, Trump’s spiritual advisor and Evangelical pastor John Mark Burns presented the 22-foot golden effigy alongside dozens of other religious leaders.

The statue, worth $450,000, depicts Trump raising his right fist in a gesture similar to the moments after he survived the assassination attempt at a 2024 campaign rally.

The optics of the ceremony soon sparked backlash from the faithful and religious leaders, many of whom drew a parallel to biblical scripture Exodus 32, which warns believers about the dangers of creating false idols and worshiping other gods. Burns took to social media to defend himself.

On X, Burns said the statue, dubbed the “Don Colossus,” was “not a golden calf,” which is referenced in Exodus as a false idol, but “a powerful symbol of resilience, freedom, patriotism, courage, and the will to keep fighting for America.”

Burns went on to say that statue is meant to be a symbol of the “hand of God over President Trump’s life,” and a “thank-you” to God for preserving the president’s life in multiple assassination attempts.

Coral Gables pastor Laurinda Hafner said she was “deeply troubled” by the pastoral dedication to the statue. Though Burns insisted the statue was not a “golden calf” moment, Hafner said the “symbolism and emotional energy” of the event tell a different story.

“When we build a towering golden image of an elected official, we are no longer just ‘thanking God.’ We are visually exalting a human being in a way that blurs the line between rightful gratitude and idolatrous devotion,” said Hafner, who is the senior pastor of Coral Gables Congregational United Church of Christ.

“In my Christian faith, not any president, not any party, not any nation is to be worshiped,” she said.

Fort Myers pastor Rev. Arthur Jones III criticized Pastor Burns — and other Christian pastors who surround Trump — as being more concerned about accessing political power than preaching the Gospel.

“It’s so egregious what he’s done. He’s not teaching the gospel. He’s actually advocating and teaching idolatry and blasphemy,” said Jones who is a minister at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Fort Myers. “Pastor Burns is dead wrong for what he did, and he knows it ... You are compromising people’s spiritual lives for reckless pursuits of power, and it’s wrong.”

Trump is no stranger to blurring the lines of religion and politics. He has touted himself as a champion for religious freedom and faith-friendly policies, including his creation of a task force to “eradicate anti-Christian bias,” as well as the White House Faith Office, which is headed by famed televangelist and megachurch pastor Paula White-Cain.

As a Christian pastor who grew up in an Evangelical home, Jones said he believes the president’s current appeal towards religious freedom is more about appeasing Christian Nationalists, or those who believe in an ideology that seeks to merge Christian and American identities in a way that gives more power and privilege to those who adhere to certain expressions of Christianity.

“It certainly has nothing to do with God, has nothing to do with faith. This has much more to do with Christian Nationalism than Christianity, and sadly, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to differentiate between the two,” Jones said.

But Burns argued on social media that many musicians, athletes and cultural icons have statues dedicated to them, yet they did not receive the same public response.

“Giving honor where honor is due is biblical. Bowing down and worshiping an idol is sinful. There is a major difference,” Burns wrote.

“It was created to honor a man whom many may disagree with, but millions of Americans believe has done extraordinary things to make this nation stronger,” Burns wrote, adding that dedicating the statue to Trump was “one of the greatest honors of his life.”

Rev. Nyya Toussaint of First Church Miami said that Burns brought up the “golden calf” reference initially in order to “get ahead of accusations that the regime is idolizing Trump.” Toussaint said elected officials should not be concerned with gold statues and “gallivanting through golf courses” and should instead focus society’s critical issues, including the housing crisis and environmental problems.

Hafner said as pastor she wants to remind the faithful that “our worship belongs to God alone and not to any golden image, and certainly not to any president. Faithfulness in this moment means turning our eyes away from gilded statues and back toward our neighbors who are hungry, hurting, and in need of the justice and compassion. “

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