When a Christian businessman spent millions of dollars to purchase a mall in Texas, he wanted to do something with the space that spoke to his values. Now, John Bushman is turning heads and stirring up quite the controversy for installing a monument in the mall that honors his love for the Ten Commandments. Because Bushman is the owner of the Vista Ridge Mall in Lewisville, Texas, he wanted to transform the space into a place where customers and guests could find “peace and love” as well as an astute reminder of the Ten Commandments that Bushman follows every day.
Bushman has other businesses on the side, including a chain of taverns called “The Bushmans.” He paid $17.3 million for Vista Ridge Mall and planned to spend an additional $3 to $4 million in improvements. Bushman hired a firm to build the Ten Commandments monument as part of the renovations, which he has installed in many of his other enterprises because he believes it encourages customers and reminds people to live lives of love and faith.
“We’re not trying to overwhelm anyone or make a statement,” said Bushman to Dallas News. “We just believe in the Lord’s love. That’s the sole reason. We hope when someone sees it, it will touch their heart and give them new hope that day.”
The Ten Commandments monument would be quite easy to spot. If Bushman has his way, the reminder of God’s love will stand eight feet tall and five feet wide when completed. The monument would weigh more than eight hundred pounds, making it difficult for someone to steal if they so desired, according to a printed estimate.
“We’re putting the two greatest commandments about loving the Lord and your neighbor on the second level because they weigh about a third of the 800-pound Ten Commandments,” he stated. “In times of turbulence in the world, we’re sharing peace and the Lord’s love. We all need more of that.”
The unveiling of the statue in a Texas shopping mall has sparked debate among visitors to Facebook and Twitter. Many people supported Bushman’s efforts to propagate his Christian ideals through his business operation.
“What a beautiful thing he is doing,” one reader commented on Facebook. “I sincerely hope & pray that you will be blessed in this endeavor, and it will be a grand and wonderful success. The Lord says, ‘he who honors Me, I will honor him.’ That is my sincere prayer for you.”
Others, on the other hand, felt that Bushman was being a little too heavy-handed by forcing his visitors to view a Christian monument when they might not be of that religion.
“What a beautiful thing he is doing,” one reader commented on Facebook. “I sincerely hope & pray that you will be blessed in this endeavor, and it will be a grand and wonderful success. The Lord says, ‘he who honors Me, I will honor him. That is my sincere prayer for you.”
