Madam, - Minister Eamon O'Cuív claims (April 26th), in relation to the Dáil following the 1922 election, that "to believe that Fianna Fáil took the oath means that you believe that a person can take an oath without taking the Bible in their hand and swearing by almighty God to uphold some matter".
I do believe that; and the Collins English Dictionary agrees with me, defining an oath as "a solemn pronouncement to affirm the truth of a statement or to pledge a person to some course of action, often involving a sacred being or object as witness".
Invoking God or a Bible is not an essential element of an oath, and indeed many people today prefer to affirm their oaths rather than swear them by God. - Yours, etc,
KEITH MARTIN, Thorncastle Street, Ringsend, Dublin 4.