It's amazing to me - reading the posts here on FR - whenever the issue of Muslims and the Koran come up - how many supposedly freedom-loving Americans don't really believe in the free exercise of religion. It's scary, really.
I suppose that's because we're in a war with Muslim extremists. But the people that we are trying to HELP in Iraq and Afghanistan are also mostly MUSLIM. They're not all the enemy.
As a matter of public policy: If someone can swear an oath with their hand on the Bible, they should be able to affirm that oath on whatever "holy book" they choose. The government is incompetent to make judgments about what's theologically valid and invalid. Seriously, do you want the government telling you that YOUR religious ideas are wrong?
Oaths today are a quaint relic of more superstitious times, a way to indicate the seriousness of the proceeding and to invoke the punishment of the gods on perjurers. I'm not sure they are much more than a solemn tradition these days. But, if putting your hand on a book isn't very likely to make you more truthful, it's probably not going to make you a bigger liar, either.
As a matter of theology: for Christians, no oath is necessary. Jesus said, "Again, you have heard that it was said to our ancestors, You must not break your oath, but you must keep your oaths to the Lord. But I tell you, don't take an oath at all .... But let your word 'yes' be 'yes,' and your 'no' be 'no.' Anything more than this is from the evil one. (Matthew 5:33-34a, 37 HCSB)
Christians are supposed to be people of integrity whose word can be trusted. Putting my hand on the Bible can't increase my responsibility to be truthful in court. God already requires that of me.
Free exercise is good for everybody. I'm not afraid to let my beliefs compete in the market place of ideas. Certainly, many ACLU suits seek to limit the free exercise of religion. This isn't one of them. Even a stopped clock is right twice a day, and in this case the ACLU is right. (Americans United, as usual, is dead wrong. Don't get me started on Barry Lynn who told me in the early 1980s .... well, that's a story for another time).
Right on!!