Last week, in what can only be seen as a historic election, Zohran Mamdani was elected mayor of New York City. The new mayor is a Democratic Socialist and a Muslim. I will state up front that I am still learning about his economic and political beliefs, as well as what he actually believes about Hamas. I know that he supports the rights of Palestinians; again, I am still learning what that actually means. Today, I don’t want to consider any of that because I don’t know enough. What I do want us to think about is the wide-reaching reaction about his religion. More than anything else on social media, I have seen an angry and bigoted response to his being Muslim. So, yes – this thought is about religion and politics.
You can oppose Mamdani’s economics and politics. You can oppose him if he supports Hamas. You cannot, based on the Constitution, oppose him for being a Muslim, just as you can’t oppose someone who is Christian, Jewish, or any other – or no – faith tradition. The Constitution says almost nothing about religion, but what it does say is clearly stated in Article 6. It forbids a religious test to hold government office. The First Amendment provides each person in this country the right to practice the religion of their choice. There have been arguments made ad nauseum about the First Amendment; it is seen as vague to a lot of Americans. There is no question, however, about Article 6.
Dislike Mamdani’s socialism all you want and oppose his views politically; that is our right as Americans. But if you oppose his holding office based on his religion, you are a bigot. You can believe that his faith is wrong – you can believe he will go to hell for not believing in Jesus (I don’t) – but you cannot, legally, believe it is wrong for him to hold office because he isn’t a Christian. As long as he upholds and defends the Constitution, he is legitimate. And that goes for every single American. Your religious values are your personal right, and as long as you don’t use them to injure others, you be you. To believe otherwise goes against everything this country stands for.
Prayer – Holy God, thank You for the wisdom of America’s founders in protecting our individual religious rights. Give us the courage to defend that freedom. Amen.