In February 2015 a Muslim woman involved in a custody dispute with her estranged husband refused to take an oath on the Bible in a Pennsylvania court, demanding instead to be allowed to use a copy of the Quran.
The unnamed judge presiding over the case of Musaitef v. Musaitef, however, refused to allow her to do so, citing state law.
Under Pennsylvania law, oaths must be sworn on the Bible or be non-religious in nature, but still considered binding.
The woman is now challenging that law, arguing that it discriminates against her religious beliefs.
The husband, meanwhile, swore his oath on the Bible without incident — perhaps because under Islam, oaths sworn on books other than the Quran are not considered binding.
He has accused his wife of trying to make him look like a bad Muslim or a less credible witness because he took a non-binding oath.
The woman pointed to other states that allow books other than the Bible to be used for the purposes of oath-taking before giving court testimony, but the judge ruled that Pennsylvania law was clear.
“The mother pointed out that by allowing for the use of the Bible but no other religious book for an oath, Pennsylvania impermissibly favors Christianity over other religions and, therefore, serves as an unconstitutional endorsement of Christianity over other religions,” one source reported, according to Mad World News.
But others wrote that Pennsylvania law would have allowed the woman to take a non-religious oath, which she declined to do.
“Which oath so taken by persons who conscientiously refuse to take an oath in the common form shall be deemed and taken in law to have the same effect as an oath taken in common form,” according to Pennsylvania law.
The case has attracted the attention of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, a group that will no doubt delight in pushing the woman’s claim of discrimination by Pennsylvania law.
Time will tell how her case unfolds. But for now, if you want to take a religious oath in a Pennsylvania court, it’s the Bible or nothing.