Ellison to Use Thomas Jefferson's Qur'an

by HijabMan :: posted 3 January 07

Rep. Keith Ellsion = Rockstar Extraordinaire. If you aren’t in the know, Rep-elect Keith Ellison is the first Muslim elected to Congress in the history of the U.S.

Everything was fine and dandy until about two weeks ago, when a certain Congressman, Rep. Virgil Goode of Virginia, made a big stink about Ellison’s insistance on using the Qur’an to swear-in. Oh, and he threw in some remarks about immigrants and Muslims as well. God bless you Virgil, we love you too.

In any case, Ellison, like a great comedian, didn’t say much. He waited. And waited. Then, this morning, the punchline appeared in the form of a Washington Post article. Keith Ellison will be using a Qur’an once owned by Thomas Jefferson. And Thomas Jefferson just happens to be a Virginian!

Rep. Goode = OWNED.

Here is the Washington Post Article in full:

But It’s Thomas Jefferson’s Koran!

By Amy Argetsinger and Roxanne Roberts
Wednesday, January 3, 2007; C03

Rep.-elect Keith Ellison, the first Muslim elected to Congress, found himself under attack last month when he announced he’d take his oath of office on the Koran — especially from Virginia Rep. Virgil Goode, who called it a threat to American values.

Yet the holy book at tomorrow’s ceremony has an unassailably all-American provenance. We’ve learned that the new congressman — in a savvy bit of political symbolism — will hold the personal copy once owned by Thomas Jefferson.

“He wanted to use a Koran that was special,” said Mark Dimunation, chief of the rare book and special collections division at the Library of Congress, who was contacted by the Minnesota Dem early in December. Dimunation, who grew up in Ellison’s 5th District, was happy to help.

Jefferson’s copy is an English translation by George Sale published in the 1750s; it survived the 1851 fire that destroyed most of Jefferson’s collection and has his customary initialing on the pages. This isn’t the first historic book used for swearing-in ceremonies — the Library has allowed VIPs to use rare Bibles for inaugurations and other special occasions.

Ellison will take the official oath of office along with the other incoming members in the House chamber, then use the Koran in his individual, ceremonial oath with new Speaker Nancy Pelosi. “Keith is paying respect not only to the founding fathers’ belief in religious freedom but the Constitution itself,” said Ellison spokesman Rick Jauert.

One person unlikely to be swayed by the book’s illustrious history is Goode, who released a letter two weeks ago objecting to Ellison’s use of the Koran. “I believe that the overwhelming majority of voters in my district would prefer the use of the Bible,” the Virginia Republican told Fox News, and then went on to warn about what he regards as the dangers of Muslims immigrating to the United States and Muslims gaining elective office.

Yeah, but what about a Koran that belonged to one of the greatest Virginians in history? Goode, who represents Jefferson’s birthplace of Albemarle County, had no comment yesterday.

HM’s Note:
Thanks for the tip, Sharmeen Jamal. May your eyes feel better.

Aisha at 3 January 07 :: #

sveet!! That is awesome!! “Thomas Jefferson’s Koran” What do you say to that?
noor at 4 January 07 :: #

:) salaams! :)
. at 4 January 07 :: #

while we are discussing Korans, the Danish translation of it was a big seller during Christmas (according to the Copenhagen Post)
desiwoman at 5 January 07 :: #

Ha! Take that, stupid Goode!
Maria at 11 January 07 :: #

haha!

Democracy, freedom of speech, expression, and much much more … you started it, America!

Welcome! This site serves two main purposes: to entertain and educate the Believing and curious community, and to generate a bit of cash—God willing. But there’s a lot more about HijabMan.

Ellison to Use Thomas Jefferson's Qur'an

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