Abstract

It Seems to Heywood Broun

The United States is a pagan country, the Reverend Selden P. Delany, rector of the Protestant Episcopal Church of St. Mary the Virgin, asserted yesterday in his sermon. He declared 50,000,000 of the no pulsation were in Catholic or Protestant churches against 70,000,000 outside. Denominational bookkeeping is notoriously liberal and many names are carried on the rolls though the individuals in question may have allowed the franchise to lapse through years of non-attendance. Even the most humble representative in Congress takes pains to identify himself with some religious body and atheists in this land are practically disfranchised. Indeed in certain States they are even deprived of their rights in courts since certain judges will not accept testimony from witnesses who are not peculiarly impressed by an oath sworn on the Bible.