In swearing-in ceremony, President Trump's hand wasn't on his Bible. Does it matter?

WASHINGTON – President-elect Donald Trump had his left hand down at his side – and not on one of the two Bibles his wife, Melania, held up for him – during his swearing-in ceremony.

Does it matter? Not according to the Constitution.

Article II of the Constitution says the incoming president must swear an oath of office, saying: "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."

But the Constitution also protects religious freedom and holds that "no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States."

As a result, presidents – and other public officials ? do not have to use a Bible when taking their oath of office for it to be official. Many oath ceremonies don’t require any document at all for swearing the oath, just that the person being sworn in recite the words of the oath.

Some suggested on social media that the way Trump handled his swearing-in, so to speak, was a slap in the face to evangelical Christians who have so staunchly supported Trump. Others suggested it was unintentional.

The Onion satire site even joked that a “confused Trump” autographed the swearing-in Bible before handing it back to Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, who was administering the oath.

USA TODAY has reached out to Trump’s transition team for comment.

What is an oath of office and who takes one?

The Freedom Forum, whose mission is to foster First Amendment freedoms for all, says various federal and state laws require civil servants, members of the military, and people who work for the federal, state, or local government to take an oath of office.

Such formal oaths traditionally have been sworn with one hand on a religious book like a Bible, Koran, Torah, or a hold book in other religions, which can suggest that there is a moral component to the process, the Freedom Forum says on its website.

But it emphasizes that while the Constitution and other laws define the words of the oath of office, no specific book or document actually is required to take it. It even suggests that “swearing on Dr. Seuss,” the popular children’s book author, would suffice.

What have other presidents done?

Historically, most incoming presidents have raised their right hand and placed their left on a Bible while taking the oath of office.

In 1789, George Washington took the oath of office with a Bible borrowed from a Masonic Lodge, according to the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies. Most presidents followed suit, with some kissing Christianity’s holy book afterward.

But Thomas Jefferson and Calvin Coolidge reportedly did not use a Bible when taking their oaths, according to an old Washington Post report from 1967. Theodore Roosevelt didn’t use one either when taking the oath in 1901, according to the Freedom Forum. And John Quincy Adams swore on a book of law.

Like Trump, Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower, Richard Nixon, George H. W. Bush, Barack Obama and Donald Trump each swore the oath on two Bibles, the Joint Congressional Committee said.

Constitutions, prayer books, Bhagavad Gita – and Kindles

In 2014, Suzi LeVine, President Barack Obama’s ambassador to Switzerland, swore the oath of office using a Kindle displaying the 19th Amendment of the Constitution, which says that citizens can’t be barred from voting because of their sex.

Kyrsten Sinema, at the time a Democratic senator from Arizona, was sworn in to Congress using a copy of the Constitution in 2019.

Religious books remain more commonly used, though, according to the Freedom Forum.

President Lyndon Johnson reportedly was sworn into office with a Catholic church missal book containing mass prayers ? believed to be owned by John F. Kennedy ? moments after Kennedy was assassinated on Nov. 22, 1963.

Rep. Keith Ellison, D-Minn., became the first Muslim member of Congress in 2007 and was sworn into office with a Quran once owned by Thomas Jefferson, The Washington Post reported at the time. In 2019, Reps. Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib, the first two female Muslim lawmakers, also reportedly took their oaths using the holy book of Islam.

And in 2013, Tulsi Gabbard, D-Hawaii, became the first member of Congress known to use the Bhagavad Gita for her swearing-in.  She’s now Trump’s pick for director of National Intelligence.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump's hand wasn't on his Bible during swearing-in. Does it matter?