2016 Election

[it]

Originally Posted by Lamplighter

No.

My interpretation is that Carson's statement is a test in that:
No Muslim can be President of the US because Islam is inconsistent with the US Constitution.

Again, context. He is essentially saying no Muslim can be a good president because he thinks Islam is inconsistent with the US constitution, thus, he does not think Americans should vote for a Muslim president. The "test" is in the voting booth.

Contrast with the requirement for the royalty to belong to The Church of England in the very same rule they just gained independence from - which is the most likely context at the time, or for that matter with the Imam's self-given right to test the faith and filter presidential candidates in Iran prior to being allowed to run, if you want a more recent example.

[Lamplighter]

He is essentially saying ...

Not "essentially". That becomes your interpretation.
Read his actual words, above.

Contrast with the requirement for the royalty to belong to the church of England ...

The US is not England, so any such a contrast is a misdirection.

[it]

Originally Posted by Lamplighter

Not "essentially". That becomes your interpretation.
Read his actual words, above.



The US is not England, so any such a contrast is a misdirection.

....It's not England, but it was Britain, and for the writers of the constitution, very recently. This was the historical context the amendment was written in.

Given as they just recently deposed a monarchy that had an official religious test, it is far more likely they meant it in the context, rather then an abstract post-modern meaning of being judged for their religion, which is in itself a meaning the concept of judgment wouldn't even start to form until 2 centuries after, which would have being an amazing but very unlikely prediction of social evolution for any of them to have made.


You are somehow under the impression that the later interpretation is free of personal interpretation and the clear cut meaning, when it is completely built in a verbal context that would have being impossible at the time. If you hear someone from the 17th century say the word "ship", they probably didn't mean a spaceship (Also you may want to check if ghostbusters do ear exams).