Do you think being asked to place one's right hand on the bible before testifying in court is an outdated method?

Question

So, I'm probably not the only one that's constantly watching crime shows that involve court scenes but it got me thinking. Is this an accurate method to use with say someone who's an athiest where to them it doesn't matter if they're being asked to swear the truth before god? Church and State are seperate so why haven't we found a better method, if this method is even effective at all with someone who isn't religious. Do you have any other methods in mind that might be more effective or methods that should replace this? Thoughts?

Answer

Imagine a Christian being forced to swear on the Quran...I think it's outdated, yes.

Answer

Completely outdated. They seriously think it makes a difference? I'm pretty sure most hard criminals aren't going to be put off by that even if they are Christian, I think they know where they stand in the bible already 🤷‍♂️

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Way outdated. I mean, what's the purpose? "You're putting your hand on the Bible so you MUST tell the truth". No.

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I think so. Besides not everyone is Christian. I'm not sure on the alternative though. Swear on the constitution? Or something else representing that lying on the stand means perjury?

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Yeah definitely outdated. I think maybe something like swearing to the courts or on your own life 👀 maybe that's too intense. Maybe just having them raise their one hand to pledge they are telling the truth and that's it.

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Why swear on anything at all? If someone intends to lie in court, I doubt having to swear on something will change their mind, regardless of what it is... but with separation of Church and State, if there's going to be something you have to swear on, it certainly shouldn't be a religious artifact/item! 🙄

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I'm gonna be 100% honest if it was to affect my immediate family... id lie on it and repent later 🙈

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it's so stupid. first off, christianity is not the only religion practiced. second, how is putting your hand on a bible going to change anything? in pretty sure nobody who is planning on lying in court is going to care whether they swore on the bible or not.

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In reality if you are giving evidence in court you have a choice of religious books to swear an oath on, or if you are an atheist you can choose to affirm instead which doesn't involve any mention of God or holy book. The current system is reasonable and works - the only issue is that a lot of people don't know how things really work.

Answer

I don't really care. I'm not religious and don't believe in god, but if I were ever to go to court I wouldn't care if I had to swear my oath on the bible.

Do you think being asked to place one's right hand on the bible before testifying in court is an outdated method?

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