Rough Stone Rolling

As I get older, I think I better understand the nature of the Church and realize how resilient it is to its members. General authorities do disagree on doctrinal points, prophets change policy without saying “thus sayeth the Lord”, people “feel good” about decisions after prayer and then things don’t work out, church appointments turn out to be mistakes, members take for doctrine what is actually myth, etc. What I’m trying to say is, it doesn’t have to operate perfectly to stay true. We’re certainly not all on the same page.

Recently, a Muslim congressman was sworn into office. Rather than using a Bible to take his oath, he chose to use a Koran, the primary scripture of his faith. A woman in my ward was openly indignant about it, saying this country was based on a Christian government and that all those who choose to take office should do so with a Christian oath. I openly disagreed with her, and that made her even less happy. The Founding Fathers, she declared, were Christians. Well…they were, and they weren’t, but never mind.

Regardless of their denominational affiliations, I don’t believe the nation’s architects shared her sentiments. James Madison wrote in his original wording of the First Amendment, “The civil rights of none shall be abridged on account of religious belief or worship, nor shall any national religion be established, nor shall the full and equal rights of conscience be in any manner, or on any pretence, infringed.” During his presidency, John Adams signed the Treaty of Tripoli which stated, “As the Government of the United States of America is not in any sense founded on the Christian religion; as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion, or tranquility, of Musselmen; and as the said States never have entered into any war or act of hostility against any Mehomitan nation, it is declared by the parties that no pretext arising from religious opinions shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries.” And my favorite irony is, the Koran the congressman took his oath on belonged to Thomas Jefferson.

It would be a mistake to assume that a religious Muslim swearing on the Koran is an abomination to the Lord. Each worshipper memorizes the opening chapter of the book, the Fatifah, and recites it on many occasions as a Christian might the Lord’s Prayer:

Praise be to God, Lord of the worlds!
The Compassionate, the merciful!
King on the day of reckoning!
Thee only do we worship, and to Thee do we cry for help.
Guide Thou us on the straight path,
The path of those to whom Thou hast been gracious;
With whom Thou art not angry, and who do not go astray. Amen.

In Alma 29:8 an ancient American prophet declared, “For behold, the Lord doth grant unto all nations, of their own nation and tongue, to teach his word, yea, in wisdom, all that he seeth fit that they should have; therefore, we see the Lord doth counsel in wisdom, according to that which is just and true.”

On February 15, 1978 the “Statement of the First Presidency Regarding God’s Love for All Mankind” was issued. In part, it reads: “The great religious leaders of the world such as Mohammad, Confucius, and the Reformers, as well as philosophers including Socrates, Plato, and others, received a portion of God’s light. Moral truths were given to them by God to enlighten whole nations and to bring a higher level of understanding to individuals.”

Frankly, as a Latter-Day Saint, I’d be inclined to believe that a Muslim has at least as much light as a Catholic, Episcopalian or Baptist, and at least as much understanding of God’s Word. I dare not assume otherwise. I was actually glad when I heard about the congressman’s request– that a public figure and politician felt strongly enough about his beliefs to want to exercise them before his constituents is a bold and loveable act, and I wish him well.

Of course, I never passed all these quotes and thoughts onto the sister in my ward. It would make me feel confrontational and argumentative. Maybe I’ll just anonymously send her a card with this site’s URL written inside.