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Originally Posted by Hawk
I once had to give testimony in court when I was like, 16 or something. I was told before going in that I'd be able to swear on this particular oath (dunno what it's was actually called now), not the usual religious one that courts here make you swear on normally for some reason. Then when I actually got in there they told me I had it wrong and I had to swear on the catholic holy holy god is great oath and was in fact, forced to swear on that oath.
I don't think they realised what a massive athiest I actually am, and therefore all of my testimony from then on was pretty much meaningless. I still told the truth obviously, but I could have made up all kinds of bullshit and gotten away with it.
So yeah, I don't really see the point of it.
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Are you from the U.K.?
I believe the only difference between the two here in the United States is the phrase "so help you God" is added to the end. So it goes "do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth", and then they added "so help you God" onto it in certain jurisdictions. The difference is the difference between an oath and an affirmation:
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Originally Posted by Wikipedia
Various religious groups have objected to the taking of oaths, most notably the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) and Mennonites. This is principally based on Matthew 5:34-37, the Antithesis of the Law. Here, Christ is written to say "I say to you: 'Swear not at all'". The Apostle James stated in James 5:12, "Above all, my brothers, do not swear—not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. Let your "Yes" be yes, and your "No," no, or you will be condemned." Beyond this scriptural authority, Quakers place importance on being truthful at all times, so the testimony opposing oaths springs from a view that "taking legal oaths implies a double standard of truthfulness...."[6]
Not all Christians understand this reading as forbidding all types of oaths, however. Opposition to oath-taking among some groups of Christian caused many problems for these groups throughout their history. Quakers were frequently imprisoned because of their refusal to swear loyalty oaths. Testifying in court was also difficult; George Fox, Quakers' founder, famously challenged a judge who had asked him to swear, saying that he would do so once the judge could point to any Bible passage where Jesus or his apostles took oaths. (The judge could not, but this did not allow Fox to escape punishment.) Legal reforms from the 18th century onwards mean that everyone in the United Kingdom now has the right to make a solemn affirmation instead of an oath. The United States has permitted affirmations since it was founded; it is explicitly mentioned in the Constitution. Only two US Presidents, Franklin Pierce and Herbert Hoover (who was a Quaker), have chosen to affirm rather than swear at their inaugurations.
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It's kind of like the pledge of allegiance thing where "under God" was added in back in the '50s. It doesn't mean that people weren't pledging allegiance to the United States prior to that. Atheists usually have a problem with the religious phrase added into it, not the pledge itself, which would be separate from atheism. I don't think it's meaningless to tell the truth or not even if you are asked to swear on God or something by a court system apparently unable to come up with a secular oath. It's possible to have morals without being religious, obviously, so it would still be morally imperative to not lie in a trial if you take the oath.
Here in the U.S., the ability to deliver an affirmation instead of the oath is explicitly mentioned in the Constitution so it makes no sense when people decry the removal of "so help you God" from the oath in various courts as some kind of anti-religious movement in the country. It's been in place from the beginning to allow affirmation for religious reasons (for example, Quakers would not give the oath but would instead give the affirmation, as they don't believe in oaths. And I don't think anybody can accuse Quakers of being non-religious).
I believe what you may be referring to is the difference between the Oath, Affirmation, and Promise in the U.K.?
If you are from the U.K. this may shed light on it:
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Originally Posted by Wikipedia
Oath:
I swear by [substitute Almighty God/Name of God (such as Allah) or the name of the holy scripture] that the evidence I shall give shall be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
Affirmation
I do solemnly and sincerely and truly declare and affirm that the evidence I shall give shall be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
Promise
I promise before Almighty God that the evidence which I shall give shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
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People 17 and over can choose between the Oath or the Affirmation, but for some reason there is no secular version of the Promise. Since you were 16 you had to say the Promise which doesn't have a secular version for some reason I can't figure out, since they have one for adults.
If you were in the U.S. I guess they weren't using the one from the movies where you were brought into testify, since it's always like the one I mentioned before, they must be using the U.K. version.
Anyway, like I said, I think it's important to testify truthfully in court. Unfortunately, people can be subpoenaed to testify whether they want to or not, and be forced to take the oath whether they want to or not. So the oath becomes rather meaningless if the person is being forced to give the testimony, as perjury laws make it illegal to lie on the stand. Whether you take the oath or not your hands are pretty much tied, so the oath is rendered meaningless.
Personally, I would treat it as important and wouldn't lie. There are usually laws in place preventing spouses from being forced to testify on each other, anyway, though I don't think it extends to immediate family such as sons, daughters, mothers, fathers, etc. as it
probably should, since forcing people to commit perjury to not witness againts their loved ones doesn't really help anybody, you get false testimony most of the time, the person breaks their oath, and can be prosecuted for perjury.