The Egyptian Constitution

12/23/2012—At least I understand when liberals fear a national Constitution with some commitment to Islam. Liberals fear a threat to the rights of women and know that such a Constitution will hinder the recognition of gay rights. They are right about these things. Yet to have a Constitution without reference to Islam in Egypt seems an alien hope. This Constitution does not seem at all heavy handed and is of course nothing like the Iranian system. Democracy still seems to be the controlling factor. But I am no expert and have only heard about it. The opposition in Egypt is opposed to it, including most of the Christian community, so maybe this Constitution is a threat.

But I find opposition to this Constitution by American conservatives weird, even laughable. After all, they want God, religion and even Christianity, or at least monotheism, embedded in the American Constitution. They want Christian symbols in every public event. They would champion a constitutional amendment that forbad laws that contradict the teachings of the Church. That is what the struggle over the contraception mandate is all about. They should be sympathetic to the Egyptian Constitution.

I always envisioned an Islamist national leader addressing Congress, proclaiming “I just want our national motto to say God to Great, just like yours says One Nation Under God.” What’s the problem?