Dorough, C. Dwight2022-12-132022-12-1319762690924https://hdl.handle.net/10657/12837Man must maintain an open mind in his search for vital and meaningful religious truths. Preoccupation with traditional theology brought about the division of virtuous men into hundreds of hostile sectarian camps. Twain, who was not an atheist although he was radical in his personal religious attitudes and beliefs, could find no reason why all those who share a belief in such basic values as those of love, high ethics, freedom, integrity, and truth should not join together as members of a universal religion based on realism and freed from antiquated practices and beliefs. Far from being misanthropic, Twain sought throughout his lifetime to improve the human condition by provoking men to discard false values and conventional faith and look, not to institutions, but to themselves and their intuition for ethical principles and virtuous guidelines. He tried to promote betterment by creating an awareness of societal and religious oppression, sham, superstition, and hypocrisy.application/pdfenThis item is protected by copyright but is made available here under a claim of fair use (17 U.S.C. Section 107) for non-profit research and educational purposes. Users of this work assume the responsibility for determining copyright status prior to reusing, publishing, or reproducing this item for purposes other than what is allowed by fair use or other copyright exemptions. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires express permission of the copyright holder.ReligionThesisreformatted digital