Rep. Goode Has It All Wrong About Rep. Ellison

Representative Virgil Goode (R-Va) has publicly stated that:

"The Muslim Representative from Minnesota was elected by the voters of that district and if American citizens don't wake up and adopt the Virgil Goode position on immigration there will likely be many more Muslims elected to office and demanding the use of the Qur'an."

Ellison is an African American Muslim who expressed the desire to take his oath of office with his Qur'an in place of the Bible.

Goode made several television appearances during which he pushed the above line, even after it was pointed out to him that Ellison was born in the United States and traced his families roots in this country back at least to 1742.

Ellison will be using Thomas Jefferson's Qur'an to take his oath. Meanwhile, Goode et al continue to try and establish a religious test for those who hold office.

The Nation sums it up very well by stating:

The objections to allowing Ellison, the first Muslim to be elected to Congress, to take the oath as he chooses were so absurd in its character and contention that they could easily be dismissed as a sideshow. But it would be dangerous to do so. The fact is that there has for a number of years now been a concerted effort by sincere if misguided religious zealots and conservative political strategists who delight in exploiting fears of diversity to redefine the American experiment as a Christian religious endeavor.

History does not provide even a soft grounding for this fantasy. The founders of the country were men and women of the enlightenment who, while surely imperfect in their thoughts and deeds, wisely sought to burst the chains of what Thomas Jefferson referred to as "monkish ignorance and superstition." They revolted against the divine right of kings, rejected the construct of state-sponsored religion, and wrote a Constitution that not only guaranteed freedom of religion but required that: "The Senators and Representatives... and all executive and judicial officers, both of the United States and of the several states, shall be bound by oath or affirmation, to support this Constitution; but no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States."