In the word of made up scandals and fake news, there was a small tizzy about the new representative from Minnesota, Keith Ellison. Keith Ellison swore his oath of office while holding his hand on the Koran last Thursday during his private swearing in ceremony. This caused the usual conservative gas bags to express their concern.

Ironically, it was Thomas Jefferson’s Koran, as pointed out by this article from the Washington Post.

What is my position on this topic? I have no patience for religious extremists who exploit the idea of God for political gain — yours, mine or theirs. When as a child my father explained to me that John F. Kennedy’s catholicism was a campaign issue in 1960, I was shocked that religion could be a relevant topic in the presidential race. Fast forward to the year 2004 and there was real debate if John Kerry was quite catholic enough. I hope my children shake their head in disbelief when they hear me tell this dumb story.

Ironically, dig far enough in American religious landscape you will find those who think swearing an oath is probably wrong to start with.

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