In the state of Tennessee, laymen and churchmen were hotly debating a point of law: May a minister of the Gospel properly refuse to testify to statements made to him in confidence and in his capacity as a minister?
The Rev. James Glisson, 33, was minister of the tiny Baptist church in McLemoresville (pop. about 300). Among the town's inhabitants was a stormy young couple, Mr. and Mrs. Donald Casey. Their marriage was marked by continual quarreling, and, though they seldom attended his church, the Rev. Mr. Glisson offered them counsel and tried "to get them in the right relationship with God."...