I agree wholeheartedly with Susan Dorman's expressed sentiments regarding
Twain and "Letters from the Earth."  Twain certainly was a seeker, perhaps a
tormented seeker, but undisguised in a manner which makes his writings more
personally credible to those of us not yet privy to the Answer.  His open
questioning of the nature and purpose of a God per se, especially in his
later writings, underscore the still persistent remnant of his childhood
faith he seemed incapable of rejecting completely.  In a sense, he is the
St. Thomas of his age, having writings like those included in "Letters" or
"What is Man?" excluded from the main body of his work, just as Thomas'
written doubts and questions were excluded from the "final" draft of the
Bible.  Perhaps the ancestors of Harpers, Osgood or Elisha Bliss were active
in exercising their editorial skills to protect future generations from
unnecessary tormented wanderings.

martin zehr
kansas city, missouri (a blue island)