M. M. (Mangasar Mugurditch) Mangasarian

Born in the Ottoman Empire in 1859, Mangasar Mugurditch Mangasarian later built his career in the United States as a writer, lecturer, and outspoken secularist. He studied for the ministry and was ordained, but moved away from orthodox Christianity and became one of the best-known freethinkers of his era.

In Chicago, he founded the Independent Religious Society in 1890 and led it for many years, using the platform to deliver lectures on religion, reason, and public life. He wrote widely on biblical criticism and skepticism, including works such as The Bible Unveiled, The Truth About Jesus: Is He a Myth?, and A New Catechism.

What makes his work interesting now is its blend of preacher's training and rebel energy: he knew the religious tradition from the inside, then turned that knowledge into clear, forceful criticism aimed at ordinary readers rather than specialists. He died in 1943, leaving behind a substantial body of freethought writing from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.