We, the People: Islam and the U.S. Constitution
Compiled and edited by Aummanuel Bey
originally posted March 1, 2021
Doctrinal Foundation:
Often, the Judeo-Christian traditions are considered the doctrinal foundation of the US Constitution. A more appropriate tradition, the Islamic tradition, offers clearer insights onto the moral compass of America in which it derived from its early Moslem inhabitants.
It is interesting that the foundation of American law has drawn much close comparison with ancient Israel, as the Israelites accepted God as their King and kept his laws as their own. Like ancient Israel, America's Founders set forth laws based on the laws of nature and of nature's God. It has catapulted the United States to an unmatched position as the most prosperous and freest nation on earth.
Contrary to erroneous perceptions and Islamophobic propaganda of political extremists from various backgrounds, the true and authentic teachings of Islam not only promote the sanctity of human life, dignity of all humans, and respect of human, civil and political rights, but it fathered its foundational tenets which the U.S. Constitution was born from. Without question Islamic teachings uphold religious freedom and adherence to the same universal moral values which are accepted by the majority of people of all backgrounds and upon which the US Constitution was established and according to which the Bill of Rights was enunciated.
Those who are quick to dismiss Islam as unrelated to the American political tradition need to recognize that it was the beautiful simplicity and the spiritual wholeness that Islam encompasses which its foundation was wrought. Truly, the two systems of Law were bonded as a marriage made in heaven, as the religion of Islam and the American Constitution share no inherent contradictions. They actually embody the same universal ideals of justice, fairness, and equality.
With some comparative study of the legal cultures that were formed around the Koran and the Constitution, a few common themes start to emerge, and ultimately it turns out that there may be as many similarities as differences between the jurisprudence of Islam and that of the United States. This is in fact the conclusion of law Professor Asifa Quraishi. She contends that "What is striking about putting Islamic and American legal discourses side by side is that many presumptions inherent in the different interpretive methods translate across cultures quite easily, as do the corresponding attacks against those using an opposing method." In layman terms, as relates to approaches to considering the textual interpretation, Muslim and American jurists following a given method often will have more in common with each other than with those of an opposite methodology in their own society.
It is very interesting to note that in 1998 Congress recognized the Great Law of Peace as the foundation for the US Constitution, but makes no mention to the Islamic contribution to its creation. For two hundred years, scholars have often pointed to European institutions and philosophers to explain America's democratic model. However, a recent search into the origins of the Constitution revealed remarkable parallels with the Great Law of Peace, the ancient Iroquoian constitution. But, the mystery does not stop here.
Great league of peace:
First let us examine the inspiration of the ancient Iroquois “Great League of Peace” in planting the seeds that led to the formation of the United States of America. Historians have told us that the Iroquois Confederacy, founded by the Great Peacemaker in 11421, is the oldest living participatory democracy on earth. In 1988, the U.S. Senate paid tribute with a resolution that said, "The confederation of the original 13 colonies into one republic was influenced by the political system developed by the Iroquois Confederacy, as were many of the democratic principles which were incorporated into the constitution itself."
As the history is relayed, it is generally stated that: “The Great Peacemaker brought peace to the five nations.” At that time, the nations of the Iroquois had been enmeshed in continuous inter-tribal conflicts. The cost of war was high and had weakened their societies. The Great Peacemaker and the wise Hiawatha, chief of the Onondaga tribe, contemplated how best to bring peace between the nations. They traveled to each of the five nations to share their ideas for peace. A council meeting was called, and Hiawatha presented the “Great Law of Peace.” It united the five nations into a ‘League of Nations,’ or the ‘Iroquois Confederacy,’ and became the basis for the Iroquois Confederacy Constitution.
Philosophy of Peace:
In studying the “Great Law of Peace,” we learn that each nation maintained its own leadership, but they all agreed that common causes would be decided in the Grand Council of Chiefs. The concept was based on peace and consensus rather than fighting. It is very intriguing to discover that in Islam we find a philosophy of peace. The Arabic word “salaam” (سلام) ("peace") originates from the same root as the word “Islam.” The word “silm” (سِلم) also means the religion of Islam in Arabic, and the phrase "he entered “as-silm” (peace)" means "he entered Islam." One Islamic interpretation is that individual personal peace is attained by submitting one's will to the Will of Allah.
The ideal society according to the Quran is “Dar as-Salam,” literally, "the house of peace" of which it intones: And Allah invites to the 'abode of peace' and guides whom He pleases into the right path.
According to Ibn Hajar al-Haythami, there will be an era in which justice, plenty, abundance, well-being, security, peace, and brotherhood will prevail among humanity, and one in which people will experience love, self-sacrifice, tolerance, compassion, mercy, and loyalty. Muhammad said that this blessed period will be experienced through the mediation of the Mahdi, who will come in the end times to save the world from chaos, injustice, and moral collapse. He will eradicate godless ideologies and bring an end to the prevailing injustice. Moreover, he will make religion like it was in the days of Muhammad, cause the Quran's moral teachings to prevail among humanity, and establish peace and well-being throughout the world.
It will be contention to demonstrate that the ‘U.S. Constitution’ and the ‘Great Law of Peace’ are both derived and inspired by Islamic principles and Moslem law. And these foundational principles have long been upon American soil predating the era of colonialism and the American Revolution in which the U.S. Constitution was ultimately born from.
Pre-Columbian Moslems:
There are many historical facts concerning establishing Islam in pre-colonial America which has been previously little-known by the masses, particularly that Moslems had actually set foot on American soil centuries before Columbus’ illustrious expedition. Research conducted in the West during the twentieth century has proven the existence of Muslims on the American mainland approximately seven centuries before Christopher Columbus. Similarly, archeological excavations, linguistic, and philological analyses of languages and settlement names in the region, the fact that coins, household tools and other utensils were discovered there that were similar to those of the Abbasids in the eighth and ninth centuries are all justifications of the theory that Muslims, beginning from 650 CE, made their way to the continent for settlement, during which time they erected mosques and schools, leaving a prolonged impact on the natives, i.e. American Indians.
The Islamic sources carry no information as regards Muslim settlement in America, although research undertaken by Professor Barry Fell of Harvard University confirms that Muslims reached the continent at the time of Uthman, the third Caliph, concomitantly indicating the significant possibility that some of the Companions could have arrived there as well. Professor Barry Fell, retired lecturer from Harvard University and also a member of the American Academy of Science and Arts, the Royal Society, the Epigraphy Society and the Society of Scientific and Archeological Discoveries, is adamant about the arrival of Islam in America in the 650s, predicating this argument upon the Cufic calligraphy belonging to that era found in various diggings across America. If the words of Professor Fell have truth-value, then the Muslims had arrived in America during the era of Uthman, or at least that of Ali, the fourth caliph. Such information, however, is not found in Muslim sources.
Professor Fell also uses the results of various archeological diggings undertaken across many regions in the states of Colorado, New Mexico, and Indiana to assert the construction of Muslim schools during 700-800 CE. Writings, drawings, and charts inscribed on rocks discovered in the most remote and untainted terrains of Western America are relics bestowed by the elementary and intermediate systems of Muslim education at the time. These documents were written in the old Cufic letters of North African Arabic, covering subjects such as reading, writing, arithmetic, religion, history, geography, mathematics, astronomy, and navigation. The descendants of these settlers are thought to be the current native tribes of “Iroquois,” Algonquin, Anasazi, Hohokam, and Olmec.
Leo Weiner, a well-known Harvard historian and linguist, stated in his book “The Discovery of Africa and America,” written in 1920, that Columbus was aware of the existence of Mandinka, an ethnic group of West Africa, in the New World. The same book also affirms that Columbus was aware that West African Muslims were living across North America, including the south, “middle regions and Canada,” as well as in the Caribbean, and that they had marital and commercial ties with the native tribes of “Iroquois” and Algonquin.
According to Salvatore Michael Trento, former director of the Center for Archeological Research in Middletown, New York, before embarking on his first voyage to America, Columbus had read the book of Roger Bacon of Oxford University, which comprised information, compiled from a variety of Arabic resources, about geographical regions on the other side of the Atlantic; hence Columbus’ previous knowledge of the islands in the Atlantic Ocean and other places.
A sum of 565 names, 484 in America and 81 in Canada, of villages, towns, cities, mountains, lakes, rivers and etcetera, are etymologically Arabic, designated by locals long before the arrival of Columbus. Many of these names are in fact the same as names of Islamic places; Mecca in Indiana, Medina in Idaho, Medina in New York, Medina and Hazen in North Dakota, Medina in Ohio, Medina in Tennessee, Medina in Texas, Medina and Arva in Ontario, Mahomet in Illinois and Mona in Utah, are just a few noticeable names at the outset. A closer analysis of the names of native tribes will immediately reveal their Arabic etymological ancestry; Anasazi, Apache, Arawak, Arikana, Chavin, Cherokee, Cree, Hohokam, Hupa, Hopi, Makkah, Mohician, Mohawk, Nazca, Zulu, and Zuni are only a few.
Arabic words are prevalent among natives prior to the arrival of Europeans. The pervasiveness of many Islamic words across the continent prior to European influx is verified by the following terms discovered in the regions currently known as New England and Nova Scotia, in America and Canada respectively. Fell pointed to some words as example of Arabic influence on Native Americans. All of the words listed below are derived from the Arabic language. However, time had eroded their original meanings and most are not used in Arabic today.
The research undertaken by Professor Cyrus Thomas of the Smithsonian Institute shows that a small cabin built from piles of rock found in Ellenville, New York is virtually the same as the cabin, again of rock, found around Aqabah, Southern Arabia, both of which are thought to have been built around the start of the eighth century.
According to Rashidah Sharif of Baltimore, MD who is a present-day Muslim, divorcée from the East Coast Iroquois Nation, says the women wear tunic top and long skirts, with a cap covering their hair- “they dress like Muslims.”
From the article titled “Bury the Hatchet, Bedouin Style” by Yossef Rapoport, we read: “The burying of the hatchets was part of the diplomatic culture among the Iroquois Five Nations of northeastern North America. In negotiating with outsiders, they refer to burying hatchets in a deep hole, over which they planted a tree to symbolize peace. This localized Iroquois custom was encountered by European settlers in the seventeenth century, and later entered the English language as a metaphor for reconciliation.
Three centuries earlier, a similar legal ritual of burial, dafn, was described by the Mamlūk bureaucrat Ibn Faḍlallāh al-ʿUmarī (d. 1349). As with the Iroquois, this was a ritualistic burial that formed part of the customary laws of tribal communities. It led to reconciliation between two groups, the Bedouin equivalent of written peace treaties.”
Without question there is factual evidence that not only connects Moslems in America but in direct contact with native tribes, with whom I suggest they influenced and dictated Islamic customs and traditions to.
Islamic Jurisprudence:
The most crucial remnant of Islam in America is the influence of Sharia or Islamic jurisprudence on the republic ideals of the Founding Fathers in creating the Union and in drafting the United States Constitution. Islamic law is one of the three major legal systems of the world following common law and civil law systems. The greatest impact Islam had in the early Americas is the influence of Islamic legal principles on the drafting of American Constitution. Actually, Muslims in Madinah under the leadership of Prophet Muhammad made the first written constitution in the world.
Fascinating fact, there is even a bas-relief statue of the Prophet Mohammed on the north wall of US Supreme Court that, while constructed in 1935, deliberately harks back to much earlier roots. As noted by scholar Timothy Marr in his book “The Cultural Roots of American Islamicism,” I which he writes that the "larger-than-life representation of the Prophet Muhammad" is situated "between Charlemagne and Justinian as one of eighteen great lawgivers of history."
In Muhammad's last years in Mecca, a delegation from Medina from its twelve important clans invited him as a neutral outsider to serve as the chief arbitrator for the entire community. There had been fighting in Medina involving mainly its pagan and Jewish inhabitants for around 100 years before 620. The recurring slaughters and disagreements over the resulting claims, especially after the Battle of Bu'ath in which all the clans had been involved, made it obvious to them that the tribal conceptions of blood feud and an eye for an eye were no longer workable unless there was one man with the authority to adjudicate in disputed cases. The delegation from Medina pledged themselves and their fellow citizens to accept Muhammad into their community and to protect him physically as if he was one of them. History tells us that after emigration to Medina, Muhammad drafted the constitution, "establishing a kind of alliance or federation" of the eight Medinan tribes and Muslim emigrants from Mecca and specifying the rights and duties of all citizens and the relationship of the different communities in Medina, including that of the Muslim community to other communities: the Jews and the other "Peoples of the Book."
Unbeknownst to many, Islamic constitutional precedents played into the American constitutional debates. When Alexander Hamilton argued for giving the federal government the right to impose taxes by referring to the example of the Ottoman Empire, he noted that the sovereign of that empire had no right to impose a new tax: In the debates of 1787, Anti-Federalists, using what they judged to be the example of the despotic Turkish government, argued against a strong central government, and demanded guarantees of individual liberties and religious freedom. In particular, Daniel Webster, Patrick Henry and Patrick Dollard spoke of the evils of Turkish despotism. Alexander Hamilton, on the other hand, saw deeper into the Turkish example, recognizing a complex power structure. He argued that, from one perspective, the Turkish sultan was in fact weak and had limited powers. Hamilton then concluded that a strong central government would protect people from oppressive local governments.
Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, and other framers incorporated some Islamic principles into the American Constitution. The idea of religious freedom and shura (decision-making by consensus), along with other legal rights, were drawn up in the Charter of Madinah by Prophet Muhammad. Many Colonial thinkers at the time of the American Revolution were incorporating the principles from the Charter of Madinah in their writings. James Madison argued the legislative, executive, and judiciary branches should be separate and distinct; otherwise, the accumulation of these powers in the same hands would lead to tyranny. Liberal-minded Islamic jurists such as al-Mawardi were similarly inclined to adopt separation of power principles to ensure that the executive (the ruler or president) and the legislature (the shura council or parliament) effectively kept each other in check. The Constitution of Medina required the exercise of judicial authority, political rule, and religious interpretation to be subject to a consensus of the Muslim jurists. It was ratified through a process of mutual consultation (shura) to ensure the interests of the community would be taken into consideration before legislation was enacted. This process is similar to the American principle of judicial review. Under the pact made between Muhammad and the people of Medina, non-Muslim communities were treated with respect and understanding. They were protected and permitted to live in accordance with their own laws and customs; the community chose its own rulers so long as they acted in accordance with. These Islamic principles will be explored more thoroughly in the upcoming sections.
Constitutional Unity:
Under Islam, all - black, white, red, and yellow-are at one in justice, freedom, and equality. For Islam, true excellence lies, not in the intellectual or manual attainments of people of differing gifts; but in the level of piety and fear of God.
Over 1,000 years before the US Constitution, the Prophet Muhammad and his followers devised the Constitution of Medina, a document that created a free and just society for Muslims, Jews, and Pagans. In the 7th century, Muhammad envisioned a tribeless, raceless, and classless society based on tolerance and civil rights. As he made clear in the Constitution, Muhammad believed that all Muslims were to be treated fairly and with dignity. In particular, Article Three of the Constitution states that all the Muslim groups of Medina “shall formulate a Constitutional unity,” even as the community was diverse in its Muslim identities.
The Quran and Muhammad’s final sermon show his apathy for judging people based on their beliefs or skin color and his indifference to a homogenous society based on exclusive requisites for belonging.
America’s founding fathers had a similar apathy for determining a person’s societal worth based on ethnicity and heritage. In 1776 several of America’s founding fathers gathered in Philadelphia to write the Declaration of Independence, which held a strong and clear position on promoting equality similar to that of the Quran and Muhammad’s final sermon. The second paragraph of the Declaration states that Americans are “to hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal,” which mirrors the progressive spirit of Muhammad written down over 1,000 years prior to the founding of the United States.
Prophet Mohammad (PBUH), in his farewell sermon informed the believers relating to this matter:
"All mankind is from Adam and Eve, an Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab nor a non-Arab has any superiority over an Arab; also a white has no superiority over black nor does a black have any superiority over white except by piety and good action. Learn that every Muslim is a brother to every Muslim and that the Muslims constitute one brotherhood."
Furthermore, God says in the Qur'an:
"O Mankind: We created you from a male and a female; and made you into tribes and nations that you may get to know each other. and verily, most honored before God is the most virtuous." – Qur'an English Translation [49:13]
Islam clearly states from the above quote in the Qur'an people are made equal in God's eyes and one's true test of character is not decided by what "tribe or ethnicity" he/she is from but rather how virtuous and pious the individual. Islam stresses the point that all of the God fearing believers of this world are a part of a single brotherhood. [23:52-54]
Religious Freedom:
The Qur'an speaks explicitly about the imperative of just and peaceful co-existence, and the rights of legitimate self-defense against aggression and oppression that pose threats to freedom and security, provided that, a strict code of behavior is adhered to, including the protection of innocent non-combatants. The foregoing values and teachings can be amply documented from the two primary sources of Islamic jurisprudence – the Qur'an and authentic Hadith. These values are rooted, not in political correctness or pretense, but on the universally accepted supreme objectives of Islamic Shari'ah, which is to protect religious liberty, life, reason, family and property of all.
When the American Constitution was ratified in 1787, the founding fathers also put into practice that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise therefore,” which suggests that by law no particular group is to be treated as superior to another group in the United States. Similarly, the Fifteenth Amendment of the Constitution “prohibits the denial of suffrage based on race, color, or previous condition of servitude,” which again cements a culture based on civic principles instead of more absolute and ethnocentric requirements.
The founding fathers’ interest in safeguarding equality in diverse circumstances is similar to Muhammad’s concern for tolerance in his multifarious Muslim community. Muslims worldwide and Americans would be wise to remember this balanced approach in finding parity in their own communities today. Muhammad also specifically mentioned the Jews of Medina, a community of believers who, according to Article Thirty, were “guaranteed the right of religious freedom along with the Muslims.” Article Twenty of the Constitution of Medina declared that a Jew “enjoys the same right of life protection (as the believers do).” Here the Prophet was echoing the spirit of the Quran (109: 6), which states “To you be your Way, and to me mine.”
Muhammad even recognized the ethnic, cultural, and linguistic differences within the Jewish community. In granting equality to each Jewish tribe, he emphasized that certain Jews were not superior to others and that universal freedom was a pillar of his Muslim society. Safeguarding the religious freedom of Jews was a way for Muhammad to abide by one of the most important messages of the Quran: “There is no compulsion in religion” (2:256).
Alexandra Meav Jerome in an article for Oxford Islamic Studies Online notes: “The first Amendment to the Constitution, guaranteeing freedom of religion, was originally called the “Bill for Establishing Religious Freedom.” In his autobiography, Jefferson recounted that the contents of the bill and that he was emphatic that the language of the bill should name precisely the groups protected, writing that “the Jew, the Gentile, the Christian and Mahometan, the Hindoo, and infidel of every [emphasis mine] denomination” should be protected under the law.”
Like the Constitution of Medina, the US Constitution also officially established the separation between religion and state, much like Muhammad had done in the 7th century. As Muhammad had done with the Constitution of Medina, the Founding Fathers of America did not make a single religion the religion of the state. Instead, the Founding Fathers opted for the “wall of separation” between religion and government rule, an idea which can be traced back to Thomas Jefferson, the author of the Declaration of Independence. In 1777, Jefferson authored a bill in the Virginian Legislature which guaranteed freedom of (and from) religion. Jefferson began the bill with the phrase “An Act for establishing religious freedom” and continued by suggesting that people should not impose their religious beliefs on other people. Moreover, he wrote “our civil rights have no dependence on our religious opinions any more than our opinions in physics or geometry.” Both Muhammad and Jefferson were not only concerned with protecting the religious freedom of members in the Abrahamic tradition (Jews, Christians, and Muslims), but all individuals and groups in society regardless of whether they believed in God, multiple Gods, or no God.
Moreover, the Fourteenth Amendment of the US Constitution also included a pivotal message on religious freedom, for it guarantees the religious civil rights of American citizens, regardless of their ethnic or racial background. Dealing specifically with the prohibition of religious discrimination on behalf of a state, the Fourteenth Amendment declares: “No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States…” The Founding Fathers intended for the US to be a safe haven for all of humanity, especially for individuals and groups who have been attacked because of their religion. Being impartial in dealing with the complex issue of religion and politics was the only way for them to achieve this goal.
Muhammad and the American founding fathers were keen to respect Judaism. Muhammad’s Medina Charter singled out Jews, who “shall maintain their own religion and the Muslim theirs… The close friends of Jews are as themselves.” Muhammad added in the Constitution that “those who followed [Jews] and joined them and struggled with them… form one and the same community.” Muhammad’s tolerance of Judaism is strikingly similar to that of Washington, who in 1783 wrote in a letter to the Jewish Community of Rhode Island that “the children of the stock of Abraham, who dwell in this land, [will] continue to merit and enjoy the goodwill of their inhabitants.” This tribute to Jews by Muhammad and Washington is an important reminder for Muslims worldwide and Americans in their own struggles against anti-Semitism.
Equal Rights of All Citizens:
Historical documents also show that Muhammad and America’s founding fathers were compassionate men. The depth of Muhammad’s humanity can be found in the Constitution of Medina, a document he created to ensure that the more vulnerable members of society felt safe and protected under the majority Muslim rule. The Medina Charter, Muhammad’s Constitution gave equal rights to non-Muslims living under an Islamic government. “Strangers” in Muhammad’s Muslim society were to be treated with special consideration and “on the same ground as their protectors.” Acting as a social charter for all Muslims to live by, the Medina Constitution helped to actualize the idea of a single community made up of a diverse people living under one government and under one creator.
Ten centuries after Muhammad’s charter, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson would adopt a similar societal structure as the basis for their new nation. In 1783, Washington wrote that “the bosom of America is open to receive… the oppressed and persecuted of all nations and religions, whom [Americans] shall welcome to a participation of all [their] rights and privileges… They may be [Muslims], Jews, or Christians of any sect.”
Likewise Thomas Jefferson, who authored the Declaration of Independence, wrote in a document for the Virginian colonial legislature that “the Jew, the Gentile, the Christian, and the [Muslim], the [Hindu], and infidel of every decimation” are accepted as equal citizens in the United States. The Constitution of Medina and documents of George Washington and Thomas Jefferson show that welcoming vulnerable groups who are perceived as outsiders is a central component of what it means to be Muslim and American. Muslims worldwide and American citizens should defend the creeds of their founding fathers and fight against prejudice and discrimination in their respective societies.
Women's Rights:
Both Muhammad and the American founding fathers also worked to assure women’s rights. In a time when women had few – if any – rights in Arabia, Muhammad helped liberate women with divinely sanctioned social, property, and marital rights. The Quran states that men and women were created “of a single soul, male and female.” Under sharia, or Islamic law, women were able to own property, freely spend their earnings, and agree or disagree to marriage arrangements – all unprecedented rights prior to God’s revelation to Muhammad. He also requested that men treat their daughters and wives with dignity and respect. “Do treat your women well and be kind to them,” he is reported to have said in a hadith, or saying of the Prophet Muhammad.
In the same disposition, the language Inalienable Rights of the Declaration of Independence, although written at a time when women were not considered to be equal to men, later inspired American women to fight for their “inalienable rights,” such as the right to own property and vote in elections. Although it did not explicitly verify the human rights of women, the Constitution was later reformed in the Nineteenth Amendment that prohibited voting discrimination on the basis of sex. The on-going struggle of equal rights for women in the United States and around the world is also an effort to reaffirm the democratic outlook of Muhammad and the founding fathers. Muslims worldwide and Americans should commemorate their standpoint by treating women with the utmost courtesy and respect.
Vestiges of Islam:
Many would suggest that it be a stretch to advocate the idea that the Constitution of Medina, the Qur’an and “Islamic principles” were the main motivating factors in Jefferson’s writing of some of America’s most legendary documents. However, it is not necessarily a stretch in this claim as the most important documents in the Islamic tradition are indeed quite strikingly similar to similarly crucial documents in American history. This examination has only been a snapshot of the similarities in the founding documents of the United States and Islam, as additional research is needed to locate more similarities in order to provide new bridges between two entities which are often portrayed as fundamentally incompatible.
The Muslim presence in early America and its lasting impact are ignored in United States history. The role of Muslims in the discovery of America is seldom explored. Very few vestiges of Islam remain from this period, with the exception of portions of the Quran apparently transcribed from memory; personal narratives passed down person-to-person; and archeological artifacts, including letters, books, and manuscripts. The omission of the significant impact of Islam in America from history books is so out of keeping with reality that the lack of information appears to be either deliberate or negligent.
Despite the neglected history of Islam in America, the facts remain, that the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution contain similar clauses eerily mirroring that of Prophet Muhammad’s Constitution. I propose that Jefferson was familiar with the Constitution of Medina, and the Islamic document may have influenced his inclusion in the Declaration of Independence of the right to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” an almost dogmatic belief in American culture.
Lastly, I will include some notes pertaining to The Moors of the MSTA and their Prophet Noble Drew Ali. In a tract entitled “What is Islam?,” Prophet Noble Drew Ali states, 'The Koran, the Holy Book of Islam, tells us that the final abode of man is the 'House of Peace', 'where no vain word or sinful discourse will be heard'. He further states that: “The Koran should be of interest to all readers. It is the Bible of the Mohammedans, ruling over the customs and actions of over 200 millions of people. It is a work of importance whether considered from a religious, philosophical or literary viewpoint. “ According to Moorish literature of the MSTA, we are told that they derived “its authority and power from the Great Koran of Mohammad to propagate the faith and extend the learning and truth of the Great Prophet of ALI in America to appoint and consecrate missionaries of the prophet and to establish the faith of Mohammed in America."