The Social Gospel

  Throughout the history of America, Christianity has had a noticeable impact. While other religions have left their own mark, Christianity has had probably the largest. One of the greatest movements to come out of American Christendom has been what is called the Social Gospel Movement.

  With the advent of industrialization in the late 19th century, American city populations expanded rapidly. With this rapid expansion also came rapid changes in life. Suddenly, human beings were living in cramped, dark conditions. Disease and crime were rampant in these locations and poverty effected many.

Picture depicting the unsanitary living conditions of the industrial revolution

  From this struggle of the common man came the Social Gospel Movement. This movement was spear headed by Protestant ministers at the time who interpreted the Kingdom of God as requiring social work to help their fellow man. Authors like Walter Rauschenbusch and Charles Monroe Sheldon wrote great essays discussing the ideals of the Social Gospel Movement. This movement also had a great effect on politics, helping create the famous Progressive movement of the early 1900s, of which President Theodore Roosevelt himself was a member of. The movement brought many reforms for the betterment of society; one of the most important being the establishment of Settlement Houses. This housing gave opportunity to many poor citizens, providing access to better education and living standards. Along with the Settlement Housing also came the abolition of child labor, shorter work weeks, and better wages for workers.

Portrait of Washington Gladden

  In the late 19th Century, Washington Gladden was an ordained Protestant minister preaching throughout Ohio. Gladden was a firm believer in the Social Gospel, preaching that Christians must live their life like Christ by helping their fellow man. When Gladden arrived in Columbus, Ohio in the late 1890s, he was shocked at the ardent corruption of the government and the crime that infested the city. Gladden quickly ran for City Council and won, serving from 1900 to 1902. Though he went into the office with ideas of making the government more pure, he was unfortunately overwhelmed by the job and unable to achieve many of the goals he had originally set forth. Once his term ended, Gladden never ran for office again, though he became popular as a community leader. He would continue to lobby politicians to become more moral and to pass legislation for the betterment of the people.
  The Social Gospel Movement was a serious change for Christianity in America. Suddenly, Christians went from staying locked in their churches to out in the streets trying to live a life like their savior. This movement brought reform and change to society that saw many poor citizens given a better life.