February 3, 1999
Baptist children gave only
Bible found in O'Hair's home
___By Art Toalston
___Baptist Press
___PFLUGERVILLE (BP)--Apparently, the only Bible owned by Madalyn Murray O'Hair was sent to her in 1968 by a Sunday school class of 12-year-olds from Winnetka Heights Baptist Church in Tulsa, Okla.
___The small white children's Bible was among the possessions of the famed atheist--who mysteriously vanished in 1995--sold at a Jan. 23 auction in Pflugerville to payback taxes and creditors. It was the only Bible found among her possessions.
MADALYN MURRAY O'HAIR
___Bidding for the Bible started at $500 and ended at $2,000.
___The inscription said it was presented to O'Hair "by the 12-year-old girls class at Winnetka Heights Baptist Church, Tulsa, Okla., Dec. 15, 1968."
___Janet Elliott of Tulsa was one of those 12-year-olds in a class taught by Kit Oldfather, now deceased. News of the Bible's auction last week sparked a flood of memories.
___Elliott remembers Oldfather telling the class of O'Hair's efforts to get state-sanctioned prayer and Bible reading removed from public schools.
___"I can remember her talking about how, if she's successful, that would be the start of the decline of the United States," she said. Oldfather also told the class that because many children did not live in Christian homes, prayer and a few verses of Scripture at school "would be the only exposure to God's word they would have."
___The girls' class never got a response from O'Hair, Elliott said, but she kept the Bible.
___O'Hair was last seen at her American Atheists office in Austin in September 1995. Since that time, neither she nor one of her sons, Jon Garth Murray, and a granddaughter, Robin Murray-O'Hair, have been seen. O'Hair's 1985 Porsche was found at the Austin airport.
___The O'Hair trio was traced through cell phone calls and bank records to San Antonio, where $500,000 was withdrawn from one of American Atheists' bank accounts, The New York Times recounted Jan. 25. Speculation over what happened to O'Hair and her son and granddaughter ranges from robbery and murder to fleeing overseas, perhaps to New Zealand, where they reportedly had bank accounts. O'Hair was 76 at her disappearance.
___The successful bidder for O'Hair's Bible, Austin lawyer Jimmy Nassour, said it eventually may be sold to a museum.
___Among other personal items of O'Hair's sold Jan. 23: the Porsche and a penny and several $2 bills with "In God We Trust" crossed off. Bidders also picked through her needlepointing, collectible whisky bottles, bags full of clothing, dozens of boxes of books, stacks of videotapes and souvenirs from O'Hair's trips around the world.
___Yet to be sold, however, are O'Hair's diaries, which officials hope will bring up to $100,000.
___"Somebody, somewhere, love me," she wrote at least a half-dozen times in the diaries, which were written from 1959-72 and 1989-95, according to various news reports.Frontpage / Contents/ Masthead / Why We're Here / Links / Archive / E-mail us/ SUBSCRIBE!