Obama prayed with his father at the mosque

Submitted by Daren (United States), May 7, 2008 at 18:36

...

You wrote:
"'Obama occasionally followed his stepfather to the mosque for Friday prayers, a few neighbors said'" – confirming that he did pray in the mosque."

The phrase did not say that Obama prayed with his father at the mosque. It said essentially that he went to the mosque with his father, the father being the one who prayed at the mosque. That's a lot like saying that because my child accompanied me to church that my child prayed at the church. What if my child accompanied me to church but did not pray--that is he accompanied me for some other reason (i.e. out of respect for me, or because he was too young to stay alone) but did not actively worship or pray? Heck, I've seen Atheists sit through religious services at a wedding, out of respect for the bride and groom. Did that mean those Atheists were worshipping?

Could this sentence mean what you claim it means? Sure, but it also could mean exactly what I posited. Given the way people speak, I think it's more likely that my interpretation is correct. If those neighbors meant to say that Obama prayed, they could have simply said those words. ...

Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome but not comments that are scurrilous, off-topic, commercial, disparaging religions, or otherwise inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the "Guidelines for Reader Comments".