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Newly elected Congressman Keith Ellison created quite a stir
last January when he announced that he would be taking the
oath of office on a Quran. It is customary, although not
required, for incoming officials to use a Bible while being
sworn in. Ellison, who is the first Muslim congressman, was
elected to the 5th Congressional district in Minnesota.
Even though I am a Christian, I cannot
agree with those who so vociferously condemned Ellison. The
practice of placing one’s hand on the Bible when being sworn
into office derives from the once commonly accepted view of
the sacredness of that book, and thus indicates the
seriousness and sanctity of the vow being made. If any
politician does not personally believe in the message of the
Scriptures, it would be rank hypocrisy for him to use God’s
Word as a mere political prop.
The people in the 5th
Congressional district in Minnesota presumably knew what
they were getting when they elected Ellison to office, so
his rejection of the Bible, and acceptance of the Quran,
should come as no surprise. I personally wish more
politicians would be so honest. In fact, perhaps it would
be more appropriate if, instead of using a Bible, incoming
congressmen raised their right hand while placing their left
hand in the wallet pocket of a nearby taxpayer.
I do raise an objection, however, to
one specific aspect of the ceremony. In a shrewd bit of
political theatre designed to blunt criticism, Ellison
borrowed Thomas Jefferson’s copy of the Quran to use while
taking his oath. Ellison said the Quran “is definitely an
important historical document in our national history and
demonstrates that Jefferson was a broad visionary thinker
who not only possessed a Quran but read it. It would have
been something that contributed to his own thinking.
Ellison’s maneuver will play well to
the political correctness crowd, in large part because the
average American is notoriously ignorant of history. Those
who are familiar with Jefferson’s term as president,
however, will understand that our third president had a more
likely motivation for reading the Quran than seeking
spiritual enlightenment.
Many Americans today are unaware that
one of the young nation’s first challenges was facing Muslim
“terrorists” in the form of the Barbary pirates. They
seized United States vessels off the coast of Portugal,
imprisoned Americans, and demanded “tribute” (which for a
time was paid by the nation, since our military forces were
too weak to respond.)
In 1786 John Adams, who was then our
ambassador to Britain, arranged for a meeting with Sidi Haji
Abdul Rahman Adja, the ambassador of the Dey of Algiers.
Adams was joined in the meeting with Jefferson, then our
ambassador to France, and together they tried to negotiate a
treaty to end the piracy. When they asked Adja why the
pirates were attacking American ships, he said Islam “was
founded on the Laws of their Prophet, that it was written in
their Quran, that all nations who should not have
acknowledged their authority were sinners, that it was their
right and duty to make war upon them wherever they could be
found” and that every Muslim slain in these battles “was
sure to go to Paradise.”
These attacks continued well into the
presidency of Jefferson. In fact, they did not end until
Jefferson unilaterally deployed U.S. warships to the coasts
of North Africa. (By the way, that is why the Marine Hymn
opens with the line, “From the halls of Montezuma to the
shores of Tripoli” – Tripoli was one of the piratical Muslim
city-states in what is now north Libya.)
Jefferson most likely purchased a Quran
for the same reason millions of other Americans have bought
one since the attacks of 9-11: to understand what motivates
those who wish our destruction.
In all the furor over Congressman
Ellison’s swearing-in ceremony, I believe the larger lessons
of history are being lost. If one wishes to demonstrate the
freedom that is found in America, he need only point to the
fact that in this country a Muslim can be elected to high
political position, and can even use a Quran to take his
oath of office. The real question is: if Muslims were in
the majority in this nation, would they afford that same
freedom to Christians? Contemporary history suggests not.
-Dan Williams
El Dorado, Arkansas |
