Fact check: No, Donald Trump church photo op was not the same as Bill Clinton church photo

The claim: "It wasn't a big deal when Bill Clinton held up the Bible in front of the same exact church (as Donald Trump)"
President Donald Trump drewwidespreadcriticism after hoisting a Bible for a June 1 photo op in front of a Washington church damaged by protesters.

After a speech in which Trump raised the specter of military deployment to quell protests, police cleared demonstrators so the president could walk across Lafayette Square to St. John’s Church.

The imagery was praised by some Trump supporters in the faith community, but many others decried it as a stunt.

One defender turned to history to make her case, saying, “It wasn't a big deal when (President) Bill Clinton held up the Bible in front of the same exact church.” The Facebook post, from June 3, was shared more than 5,000 times.

The caption appeared above a photo of Clinton holding a Bible in front of a church sign, which like the one in Trump’s photo had white lettering on a black background.

Did Clinton really raise a Bible in front of the same church, and is the implied similarity between the two images reasonable?

The short answer to both questions is no.

The photo of Clinton was taken July 9, 2000, by Manny Ceneta and distributed by Getty Images. The caption says it shows Clinton waving his Bible “following a church service at Foundry United Methodist Church.” Clinton worshipped there “most Sundays when he’s in town,” according to a 1998 Washington Post article.

So it’s not the same church. And the post’s underlying implication about the similarity of the two situations is just as off base. Clinton was pictured carrying his Bible after attending a church service at his church.