Dwain Northey (Gen X)

Put Your Hand on the Constitution, Not the Bible

There is something I would like to see change when this next group of elected officials is sworn into office. Whether we’re talking about Zohran Mamdani, James Talarico, or any of the other newly elected representatives, I would like to see them put their hands on something other than a religious text when they take their oath of office. My suggestion is simple: Put your hand on the Constitution.

Not the Bible. Not the Quran. Not the Torah. Not any other religious text. The Constitution.

Before anyone gets their religious feathers ruffled, let me explain. This isn’t an attack on Christianity, Islam, Judaism, or anyone’s personal faith. People are absolutely entitled to believe whatever they want. They can worship on Sunday, Friday, Saturday, or whenever their particular faith tells them to. They can read their holy books, attend services, pray, meditate, or practice whatever religious traditions give their lives meaning.

But that’s personal faith. Holding public office is a public responsibility. Those two things should remain separate.

We supposedly have this little principle in the United States called separation of church and state. It isn’t an obscure suggestion or some modern invention designed to offend religious conservatives. The First Amendment establishes that Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting its free exercise. In other words, the government isn’t supposed to establish a religion, favor one religion over another, or interfere with an individual’s right to practice their faith.

Yet somehow, we’ve managed to turn religious symbolism into a recurring part of our political theater. Politicians hold Bibles, swear oaths on religious texts, invoke God in political speeches, and occasionally seem to confuse being elected to public office with receiving some sort of divine appointment.

I find that particularly ironic.

The oath of office isn’t a promise to God. It’s a promise to the American people and to the Constitution that establishes the government those officials are about to serve.

The Constitution is the document that defines their responsibilities, limits their authority, establishes the rights of the people, and provides the framework they are supposed to protect. It is the document that makes it possible for a Christian, a Muslim, a Jew, an atheist, or someone who practices a religion nobody in Washington has ever heard of to serve in the same government.

So why wouldn’t that be the document sitting underneath their hand when they take their oath?

Think about the symbolism for a moment. We have a country made up of people with different religious beliefs, different cultural backgrounds, and different ideas about the existence of God. Some believe deeply in a higher power. Some aren’t sure. Others don’t believe in God at all. But we all live under the same Constitution.

That’s supposed to be the common ground.

Article VI of the Constitution actually reinforces this principle by specifically prohibiting religious tests as a qualification for public office. The government doesn’t get to decide whether you’re Christian enough, Muslim enough, Jewish enough, or religious enough to represent your neighbors.

And that’s exactly how it should be.

I don’t want elected officials making decisions based on what they believe God wants. I want them making decisions based on the Constitution, the law, evidence, and the interests of the people they represent. Their personal religious beliefs are theirs to practice, but those beliefs shouldn’t become the measuring stick for everybody else’s rights.

If a politician wants to pray before taking office, that’s their business. If they want to attend church after the ceremony, that’s their business, too. But when they stand up to swear an oath to serve the United States government, I’d rather see them place their hand on the document that actually defines that responsibility.

And here’s where I’d like to take this one step further.

I would love to see the next swearing-in ceremony become an opportunity for every elected official, regardless of their religious affiliation, to make the same statement. Whether you’re a Christian minister, a Muslim, a Jew, an atheist, or someone who simply doesn’t subscribe to organized religion, put your hand on the Constitution and take the same oath.

Not because your religion is unimportant to you, but because it isn’t the job of government to represent one religion over another.

And I would even suggest changing the traditional closing words of the oath. Instead of ending with “So help me God,” why not end with something that actually reflects the responsibility these individuals are accepting?

Something along these lines:

“I take this oath for every person who voted for me and every person who didn’t. I take this oath to uphold the Constitution, protect the rights of the people I represent, and faithfully perform the duties of the office to which I have been elected. I understand that my responsibility is to all the people, not just those who share my political beliefs, my religious beliefs, or my opinions. I will do the job the American people entrusted to me.”

Now, that sounds like an oath of public service.

Because the person who voted against you still deserves representation. The Christian who disagrees with you deserves representation. The Muslim who disagrees with you deserves representation. The atheist, the agnostic, and the person who doesn’t give a damn about religion at all deserve representation.

You weren’t elected to represent God’s interests, your church’s interests, or even exclusively the interests of the people who put you in office. You were elected to serve the people.

There is something beautifully appropriate about that.

Imagine the next swearing-in ceremony. No religious competition over whose holy book gets the most prominent position. No implication that one faith has a special relationship with the government. Just elected representatives placing their hands on the Constitution and making a promise to the American people.

Because that’s the job.

My suggestion for getting God out of our politics isn’t complicated. We don’t need to outlaw prayer, remove religion from people’s lives, or tell anyone what they can believe. We simply need to remember that our government isn’t a church, the presidency isn’t a pulpit, and Congress isn’t a religious congregation.

Put your hand on the Constitution.

And when you finish taking your oath, don’t promise God that you’ll do your job. Promise the American people.

They are the ones who hired you. They are the ones whose rights you’re supposed to protect. And they are the ones to whom you are ultimately accountable.

It’s the Constitution that makes that promise possible. Perhaps it’s time we started treating it as the most important book in the room.