Can someone explain why Keith Ellison taking an oath on the Quran is a big deal??

Question

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070103/ap_on_go_co/ellison_quran


If he is a Muslim, shouldn't he swear on the Quran, since that is the book he considers holy? If he were made to swear on the Bible, and he doesn't consider that book sacred, then isn't that the same thing as if he were to swear on, say, "The Lord of the Rings" or something? I just find this whole "controversy" absolutely bizarre... I thought one of the key principles of America was freedom of religion.

Someone please tell me I am not alone in thinking this whole thing is ridiculous, or at least explain the other side of the debate to me in logical terms (logical, please... meaning try leaving the word "terrorist" out if at all possible!).

Answer 1

Because America has always had a Christian majority, and it's tradition for people to swear their oaths on a Bible. We've been at war with Muslim extremists who are fanatical about their worship of the Quran and that has left a bad impression on most Christian Americans, who tend to view the Quran as less than holy, especially when compared with the Bible. Many people feel that an oath on the Quran taken by a Muslim who has been elected to public office is offensive, not to mention worthless.

Answer 2

Oh, you are definitely not alone on thinking it's ridiculous. The only reason I see for the condescending view of his swearing on it is that many people assume following Islam is bad, which brings us into a totally different issue of discrimination. This is supposedly against American views, as stated by the Bill of Rights which grants us Freedom of Religion, but really, this practice is more common than the government would like us to know. It's wrong, though. Making him swear on the Bible would be pointless, and would do no good. So yes, you're right, this whole thing is ridiculous. The poor guy should have never been thrown into the spotlight in this cruel manner.

Answer 3

To my knowledge, Jewish peoples do not have the choice of the Torah. It is the fairness of the court that peoples of all religions swear by one book. The unfairness of it is that that one book is the Bible, and not everyone is Christian to swear the Bible. To answer the question, Muslims are not looked upon highly in the United States for obvious reasons being terrorism, wars, enemies, against their allies, et cetera. Having the first Muslim in Congress in a great achievement! I personally think it's a great idea for Mr. Ellison to swear by his own faith's book, since it is a widely acknowledged faith and also because Allah (God) is the same God Christian's and the Bible believe in, so it's not much of a difference. The reason why it's a big deal is because of people like Virgil Goode and his rude and ridiculous statements like:
"warned that unless immigration is tightened, 'many more Muslims' will be elected and follow Ellison's lead."
First of all, Goode parent's are immigrants, there's nothing wrong with more Muslims to be elected, except for their apparent stereotypes.

ps. Another ideal of the Constitution is the separation of church and state. Seeing how the Bible is used..it's very much of a contradiction.

Answer 4

You are right, it is absolutely ridiculous. It is as ridiculous as saying that the constitution only covers the rights of men, not women. Lot's of people are saying that Keith swearing on the Koran defies a "great American tradition". That is disgusting. America is a place where you can be any religion you want and you can believe anything you want. At least, more that in other countries. Yet you still see mixing of government and religion. The dollar bill saying, "in god we trust". Atheist don't. Atheists are Americans too. A frightening number of people think that America is a Christian Nation. That is the most dreadfull assumption, though America does have very Christian roots, it also had it's roots in Slavery. Are we a Slave nation? I think not.

Answer 5

I share your viewpoint but to answer your question, I think that a lot of people really consider the US as a "Christian" nation and think that other religions don't have the same norms and values. Ellison swearing on a book that isn't the Bible would mean that he is swearing to uphold his beliefs, not those of the Christian majority that (they would say) our country was built upon.

And, unfortunately, a ridiculous proportion of Americans are xenophobic, racist, and scared of anyone Muslim.

Answer 6

I think the problem most people have with Mr. Ellison being allowed to take the oath on the Quran is that (1) This is America, (2) Our nation was founded on the Christian faith, and (3)If we start changing the rules to suit everyone, where will it end? Hope this helps.

Answer 7

He could swear in on the Bagva Ghida for all I care, as long as he abides by his oath and properly serves his electorate. That is the most important thing. Most of the Christian Reps and Senators that have been sworn in on the Bible have so badly broken their oaths as to be Archangels of Satan...in my opinion... all the rotten deal making, cover ups, senators murdering aides and getting off scot free (remember the California senator from Modesto????) Kennedy killing his secretary. Molesting page boy and page girls, assassinations of foreign heads of state like Chili, the list goes on and on.

Let's see if this guy is a cut above the rest and who gives a rat's @ss which holy book he swears in on...

Answer 8

I agree with you...He should swear upon what he believes in......But I don`t trust a muslim`s true convictions (especially his, do the research) and niether does most of America. Most Americans are christian and are proud of their countries heritage...America is the last great civilization at present and they want to protect it from primitive muslim culture.

Answer 9

Thank you for answering the same to my question. I myself am a Muslim and have been trying to fight Islamaphobia since it became such a threat to freemen. Biased men with no other reason for life than to demean men who only wish to improve the lives of everyone sicken me.
You are not alone, and some day this discrimination will be a distant memory, insha allah.

Answer 10

This particular copy just happened to be owned by Thomas Jefferson. Many Americans just look at it as anti-American.Maybe because of all the problems in the Middle-East.