[Vision2020] Another Gem Letter from the LMT

[nickgier at adelphia.net]

Greetings:

The only thing that I would add to Call's letter is that our politicians take their formal oath on the Constitution.  They arrange private ceremonies to swear on a book of their choosing.

Nick Gier

No Religious Test
Jan. 15

Mary Hohmann (letter, Jan. 7) argues that congressmen should not be permitted to swear to uphold the U.S. Constitution while holding a Quran because it is the foundation of Islamic law, not the American legal system. 

Among other things, the Islamic legal system (Sharia) condones and regulates slavery and various atrocities and injustices are cited as evidence to support her position. She concludes that we should "stick to taking oaths on the Bible!"

Apparently, Hohmann has not read the Bible very carefully because she will find that slavery is condoned in the New and Old Testaments as well as many atrocities on par with what can be found in the Quran. 

Furthermore, calling the Bible the basis of our legal system is remarkable considering our democratic-constitutional system of governance is anathema to the theocratic totalitarian principles espoused by the Good Book.

Article VI, Section III of the U.S. Constitution states that no religious test shall ever be required, as a qualification to any office or public trust, under the United States. 

Requiring a swearing ceremony with any particular religious text (e.g. Bible) would also violate the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. If Bible swearing is required as suggested, then our congressmen would be party to violation of two parts of the U.S. Constitution while swearing to uphold said document.

Finally, as our last Congress so nobly demonstrated, pious symbolism is great for photo ops, but it is apparently pretty meaningless when opportunities arise for graft and corruption.

Douglas Call

Pullman