Seeks Maryland Ban on Religious Oaths for Non-believer, Religious Minorities

An amendment to the Maryland Constitution whereby religious oaths would not be required of non-believers and religious minorities is being advocated here by B. H. Hartogensis, Baltimore Jewish lawyer. In a recent letter to the local press Mr. Hartogensis says:

“Many a disability of religious minorities and non-believers in this miscalled free state can be effected by a change in the statutes. Thus we compel a non-believer to have a religious ceremony for his marriage; again despite the Constitution of the United States, we require here the oath of office on the ‘faith of a Christian’ with exception to the Jew, who must proclaim his creed, with exclusion from office of non-believers and believers in exotic religions, Moslems, Hindus, Confucianists and the like, and all the hundreds of non-believers in our midst, distinguished alike by their learning and good morals. But since our Court of Appeals has elaborated the Constitutional provision ‘the duty to worship God,’ by saying ‘this is a Christian community’ and further adding ‘it is a duty to foster and encourage Christianity,’ by enforcing Sunday as a Sabbath for religious reasons, a new Constitution should say this union of church and state is unconstitutional, as decided by a Federal Court in the District of Columbia 22 years ago.”