"Laicus; Or, the Experiences of a Layman in a Country Parish" by Lyman Abbott Lyman J. Abbott was an American Congregationalist theologian, editor, and author. He often wrote about the evolution and elements of Christianity from the perspective of a man, usually in the pulpit. In this book, instead, he has given that up and describes life as a lay person, a parishioner in a small country church in the rural US.