Oath of Office

America, Not Keith Ellison, decides what book a congressman takes his oath on

By Dennis Prager
[C~B~N's comments enclosed]

Keith Ellison, D-Minn., the first Muslim
elected to the United States Congress,
has announced that he will not take his
oath of office on the Bible, but on the
bible of Islam, the Koran.

He should not be allowed to do
so -- not because of any American
hostility to the Koran, but because
the act undermines American
civilization.

First, it is an act of hubris that
perfectly exemplifies multiculturalist
activism -- my culture trumps America's
culture. What Ellison and his Muslim
and leftist supporters are saying is that
it is of no consequence what America
holds as its holiest book; all that matters
is what any individual holds to be his
holiest book.

Forgive me, but America should not
give a hoot what Keith Ellison's favorite
book is. Insofar as a member of Congress
taking an oath to serve America and
uphold its values is concerned, America
is interested in only one book, the Bible.

If you are incapable of taking an oath on
that book, don't serve in Congress. In
your personal life, we will fight for your
right to prefer any other book. We will
even fight for your right to publish cartoons
mocking our Bible. But, Mr. Ellison, America,
not you, decides on what book its public
servants take their oath.

Devotees of multiculturalism and
political correctness who do not see how
damaging to the fabric of American
civilization it is to allow Ellison to choose
his own book need only imagine a racist
elected to Congress.

Would they allow him to choose Hitler's
"Mein Kampf," the Nazis' bible, for his
oath? And if not, why not? On what grounds
will those defending Ellison's right to choose
his favorite book deny that same right to
a racist who is elected to public office?

Of course, Ellison's defenders argue that
Ellison is merely being honest; since he
believes in the Koran and not in the Bible,
he should be allowed, even encouraged,
to put his hand on the book he believes in.

But for all of American history, Jews elected
to public office have taken their oath on the
Bible, even though they do not believe in the
New Testament, and the many secular elected
officials have not believed in the Old
Testament either.

Yet those secular officials did not demand
to take their oaths of office on, say,
the collected works of Voltaire or on a
volume of New York Times editorials,
writings far more significant to some
liberal members of Congress than the Bible.

Nor has one Mormon official demanded
to put his hand on the Book of Mormon.
And it is hard to imagine a scientologist
being allowed to take his oath of office
on a copy of "Dianetics" by L. Ron Hubbard.

So why are we allowing Keith Ellison to
do what no other member of Congress
has ever done -- choose his own most
revered book for his oath?

The answer is obvious -- Ellison is a
Muslim. [Placating the enemy in hopes
of stopping him? Not likely....]

And whoever decides these matters,
not to mention virtually every editorial
page in America, is not going to offend
a Muslim. In fact, many of these people
argue it will be a good thing because
Muslims around the world will see what
an open society America is and how much
Americans honor Muslims and the Koran.

This argument appeals to all those who
believe that one of the greatest goals of
America is to be loved by the world, and
especially by Muslims because then fewer
Muslims will hate us (and therefore fewer
will bomb us).

But these naive people do not appreciate
that America will not change the attitude
of a single American-hating Muslim by
allowing Ellison to substitute the Koran
for the Bible.

In fact, the opposite is more likely: Ellison's
doing so will embolden Islamic extremists
and make new ones, as Islamists, rightly
or wrongly, see the first sign of the realization
of their greatest goal -- the Islamicization
of America.

When all elected officials take their
oaths of office with their hands on the very
same book, they all affirm that some unifying
value system underlies American civilization.

If Keith Ellison is allowed to change that,
he will be doing more damage to the unity
of America and to the value system that
has formed this country than the terrorists
of 9-11. [AMEN. America is a CHRISTIAN nation.
Founded by Christians on Biblical principals.]

It is hard to believe that this is the
legacy most Muslim Americans want
to bequeath to America. But if it is, it is
not only Europe that is in trouble.



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