Did the Founding Father’s Respect Islam?
Not so much . Unless by “respect” you mean “fear” it. As in the way a Sicilian “respects” the local Don. I’ve seen many of the quotes before and knew the Founding Father’s weren’t fans of Islam or Muhammad, but I was under the impression that the first Islamic holiday celebrated at the White House was held by Thomas Jefferson. It wasn’t. Which just goes to show that telling a lie over and over again is often enough for people to believe it. Here’s what I learned from this post: During the Barbary Wars, in 1805, the bey (i.e., monarch) of Tunis threatened war with the United States after the U.S. had been successful in capturing some Tunisian pirate ships. The bey sent an envoy to the United States to negotiate for the return of the ships. This envoy stayed in Washington for six months, during which the month of Ramadan passed. One of Thomas Jefferson’s many invitations extended to this envoy to meet with him at the White House was during the month of Ramadan. To accommodate the envoy’s religious obligation, Jefferson changed the time of dinner from the usual “half after three” to “precisely at sunset.” Jefferson was being polite — not celebrating the first White House iftaar, as Akbar Ahmed suggests. So, the next time someone makes this claim, kindly inform them of the facts. The whole thing is worth a read . Laura Rubenfeld uses this Wiki to back up her claim about Jefferson’s meeting with the Barbary envoy. I thought this was the funniest part: Mellimelli’s request for “concubines” as a part of his accommodations was left to Secretary of State James Madison. Apparently the predilections of Middle East ambassadors hasn’t change in 200 years! I wonder if securing concubines is one of Hillary’s duties or if she gets Bill to do it for her?
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Did the Founding Father’s Respect Islam?