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Court witnesses have promised to tell \u2018the whole truth\u2019 since the 13th century; but, on 19th August, 1992, the U.S. Appeals Court permitted Wallace Ward to stand trial under his own oath - pledging not \u2018truth\u2019, but \u2018fully integrated honesty\u2019.\nWard, the president of a Nevada-based mail order company, had coined the phrase himself when he devised Neothink, a cultish belief system structured around charging hundreds of dollars for self-help advice.\nIn this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly weigh up whether Ward\u2019s bizarre convictions really were equivalent to religious faith; trace back the origins of oath-taking in English-speaking courtrooms; and uncover the surprising history of raising your hand when swearing to tell the truth\u2026\xa0\nFurther Reading:\n\u2022 \u2018United States of America, Plaintiff-appellee, v. Wallace Ward, Defendant-appellant, 973 F.2d 730 (9th Cir. 1992)\u2019 (Justia): https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/973/730/386559/\n\u2022 \u2018How the courtroom got its oath\u2019 (Slate, 2004): https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2004/04/how-the-courtroom-got-its-oath.html\n\u2022 \u2018Secret society mailing mysterious invitations\u2019 (Good Morning Maryland, 2020): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZvdfabaIOo\n\u2026 And, if you enjoyed this episode, there\u2019s an additional three-and-a-half minutes of material about oath-taking available to our supporters, in which the Retrospectors discuss the strangest books that have been used as a prop, and reveal the times when it wasn't a book at all, but a saucer, a candle, a dog, or a chicken! To unlock this content - and a bonus bit like it each week - subscribe to the show via Apple Podcasts, or support our Patreon: https://patreon.com/Retrospectors\nWe'll be back on Monday! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts:\xa0podfollow.com/Retrospectors\nThe Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.\nTheme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Sophie King.\nCopyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.\xa0\n Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices