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The '''Social Gospel''' movement was a [[Protestant]] intellectual movement that was most prominent during the the time period of 1880-1940 in the [[United States]] and [[Canada]], during the [[Third Great Awakening]]. It applied [[Christian]] principles to social problems, especially poverty, inequality, liquor, crime, racial tensions, slums, bad hygiene, poor schools, and the danger of war. Theologically, the Social Gospel leaders were energized by the [[Third Great Awakening]] and were overwhelmingly "[[Post-Millenialism|post-millennialist]]." That is they believed the Second Coming of Jesus Christ could not happen until humankind rid itself of social evils by human effort. For the most part, they rejected pre-millennialist theology (which was predominant in the South and among Fundamentalists), according to which the Second Coming of Christ was imminent, and Christians should devote their energies to preparing for it rather than addressing the issue of social evils. While many of the leaders of the Social Gospel openly opposed the full [[socialism|socialist doctrine]], they were generally inclined to favor bigger government, the rights of labor, and a number of socialist ideas.<ref>[https://spider.georgetowncollege.edu/htallant/courses/his338/students/kpotter/theology.htm Social Gospel Theology]</ref> Several of the most prominent leaders were ardent and outspoken believers in [[Christian Socialism]].
The '''Social Gospel''' movement was a [[Protestant]] intellectual movement that was most prominent during the the time period of 1880-1940 in the [[United States]] and [[Canada]], during the [[Third Great Awakening]]. It applied [[Christian]] principles to social problems, especially poverty, inequality, liquor, crime, racial tensions, slums, bad hygiene, poor schools, and the danger of war. Theologically, the Social Gospel leaders were energized by the [[Third Great Awakening]] and were overwhelmingly "[[Post-Millenialism|post-millennialist]]." That is they believed the Second Coming of Jesus Christ could not happen until humankind rid itself of social evils by human effort. For the most part, they rejected pre-millennialist theology (which was predominant in the South and among Fundamentalists), according to which the Second Coming of Christ was imminent, and Christians should devote their energies to preparing for it rather than addressing the issue of social evils. While many of the leaders of the Social Gospel openly opposed the full [[socialism|socialist doctrine]], they were generally inclined to favor bigger government, the rights of labor, and a number of socialist ideas.<ref name="Social Gospel Theology">[https://spider.georgetowncollege.edu/htallant/courses/his338/students/kpotter/theology.htm Social Gospel Theology]</ref> Several of the most prominent leaders were ardent and outspoken believers in [[Christian Socialism]].
==History==
==History==
==In Britain and Canada==
==In Britain and Canada==
The Social Gospel movement in the United States was parallel to the [[Christian socialism]] movement in Britain at about the same time.<ref> See Latta, (1936); Hutchison (1975)</ref> The two movements came together in Canada, where they were especially influential. Many ministers became active in the socialist movement in the form of the [[Cooperative Commonwealth Federation]] (CCF) and later the [[New Democratic Party]]. [[Tommy Douglas]], a Baptist minister, was leader of the CCF from 1942 and the premier of Saskatchewan from 1944 to 1961, where he led the first socialist government in North America and introduced universal public medicare to Canada. From 1961 to 1971 he led the [[New Democratic Party]] at the federal level.<ref> See Fraser (1990)</ref>
The Social Gospel movement in the United States was parallel to the [[Christian socialism]] movement in Britain at about the same time.<ref>See Latta, (1936); Hutchison (1975)</ref> The two movements came together in Canada, where they were especially influential. Many ministers became active in the socialist movement in the form of the [[Cooperative Commonwealth Federation]] (CCF) and later the [[New Democratic Party]]. [[Tommy Douglas]], a Baptist minister, was leader of the CCF from 1942 and the premier of Saskatchewan from 1944 to 1961, where he led the first socialist government in North America and introduced universal public medicare to Canada. From 1961 to 1971 he led the [[New Democratic Party]] at the federal level.<ref>See Fraser (1990)</ref>
==Theology and Ideology==
==Theology and Ideology==
Washington Gladden and Walter Rauschenbusch argued the most forcefully and clearly about this.<ref name=McGerr /> Gladden wrote "I do not believe that political society or industrial society or any other society will endure on a purely individualistic basis.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z_JUqFAXzKkC&pg=PA181|last=Gladden|first=Washington|title=The Church and the Nation|publisher=The Homiletic Review, Volume 50|year=1905}}</ref> Rauschenbush was the most clear and concise: "individualism means tyranny."<ref>{{cite book|author=[[Jonah Goldberg]]|title=Liberal Fascism: The Secret History of the American Left, From Mussolini to the Politics of Meaning|publisher=Crown Publishing Group|year=2008|pages=87}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=p7g_AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA202|last=Rauschenbusch|first=Walter|title=The Ideals of Social Reformers|publisher=The American Journal of Sociology, Volume 2|year=1897}}</ref>
Washington Gladden and Walter Rauschenbusch argued the most forcefully and clearly about this.<ref name=McGerr /> Gladden wrote "I do not believe that political society or industrial society or any other society will endure on a purely individualistic basis.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z_JUqFAXzKkC&pg=PA181|last=Gladden|first=Washington|title=The Church and the Nation|publisher=The Homiletic Review, Volume 50|year=1905}}</ref> Rauschenbush was the most clear and concise: "individualism means tyranny."<ref>{{cite book|author=[[Jonah Goldberg]]|title=Liberal Fascism: The Secret History of the American Left, From Mussolini to the Politics of Meaning|publisher=Crown Publishing Group|year=2008|pages=87}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=p7g_AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA202|last=Rauschenbusch|first=Walter|title=The Ideals of Social Reformers|publisher=The American Journal of Sociology, Volume 2|year=1897}}</ref>
With the individual rejected and the collective embraced, the State becomes the primary agent for coercion,<ref name=realAgenda /> especially for the most ardent socialists in leadership roles.<ref>[https://spider.georgetowncollege.edu/htallant/courses/his338/students/kpotter/theology.htm Social Gospel Theology]</ref>
With the individual rejected and the collective embraced, the State becomes the primary agent for coercion,<ref name=realAgenda /> especially for the most ardent socialists in leadership roles.<ref name="Social Gospel Theology"/>
==Criticism==
==Criticism==
One of the sharpest critics was [[Neo-Orthodox]] theological [[Reinhold Niebuhr]], who in 1936 defined the assumptions of the Social Gospel in terms of six propositions:<ref>Niebuhr, "The Blindness of Liberalism," ''Radical Religion,'' (Autumn, 1936), quoted in ''Reinhold Niebuhr: His Religious, Social, and Political Thought. Volume: 2. Contributors: Charles W. Kegley and Robert W. Bretall, eds (1956). pp 130-131. </ref>
One of the sharpest critics was [[Neo-Orthodox]] theological [[Reinhold Niebuhr]], who in 1936 defined the assumptions of the Social Gospel in terms of six propositions:<ref>Niebuhr, "The Blindness of Liberalism," ''Radical Religion,'' (Autumn, 1936), quoted in ''Reinhold Niebuhr: His Religious, Social, and Political Thought. Volume: 2. Contributors: Charles W. Kegley and Robert W. Bretall, eds (1956). pp 130-131.</ref>
# That injustice is caused by ignorance and will yield to education and greater intelligence.
# That injustice is caused by ignorance and will yield to education and greater intelligence.
* Ahlstrom, Sydney E. ''A Religious History of the American People'' (1974)
* Ahlstrom, Sydney E. ''A Religious History of the American People'' (1974)
* Curtis, Susan. ''A Consuming Faith: The Social Gospel and Modern American Culture'' (1991)
* Curtis, Susan. ''A Consuming Faith: The Social Gospel and Modern American Culture'' (1991)
* Dorn, Jacob H., ed. ''Socialism and Christianity in Early 20th Century America'' Greenwood Press, (1998) articles by scholars[http://www.questia.com/library/book/socialism-and-christianity-in-early-20th-century-america-by-jacob-h-dorn.jsp online edition]
* Dorn, Jacob H., ed. ''Socialism and Christianity in Early 20th Century America'' Greenwood Press, (1998) articles by scholars [http://www.questia.com/library/book/socialism-and-christianity-in-early-20th-century-america-by-jacob-h-dorn.jsp online edition]
* Dorn, Jacob H. "The Social Gospel and Socialism: A Comparison of the Thought of Francis Greenwood Peabody, Washington Gladden, and Walter Rauschenbusch," ''Church History'' 62 (March 1993): 82-100 [http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0009-6407(199303)62%3A1%3C82%3ATSGASA%3E2.0.CO%3B2-9 in JSTOR]
* Dorn, Jacob H. "The Social Gospel and Socialism: A Comparison of the Thought of Francis Greenwood Peabody, Washington Gladden, and Walter Rauschenbusch," ''Church History'' 62 (March 1993): 82-100 [http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0009-6407(199303)62%3A1%3C82%3ATSGASA%3E2.0.CO%3B2-9 in JSTOR]
* Dorrien, Gary. ''The Making of American Liberal Theology: Imagining Progressive Religion, 1805–1900'' (2001); ''The Making of American Liberal Theology: Idealism, Realism, and Modernity, 1900–1950'' (2003);''The Making of American Liberal Theology: Crisis, Irony, and Postmodernity, 1950–2005'' (2006), the standard history of mainline theology
* Dorrien, Gary. ''The Making of American Liberal Theology: Imagining Progressive Religion, 1805–1900'' (2001); ''The Making of American Liberal Theology: Idealism, Realism, and Modernity, 1900–1950'' (2003);''The Making of American Liberal Theology: Crisis, Irony, and Postmodernity, 1950–2005'' (2006), the standard history of mainline theology
* Handy, Robert T. "George D. Herron and the Kingdom Movement," ''Church History'' 19 (June 1950): 97-115, [http://www.jstor.org/stable/3162192 in JSTOR]
* Handy, Robert T. "George D. Herron and the Kingdom Movement," ''Church History'' 19 (June 1950): 97-115, [http://www.jstor.org/stable/3162192 in JSTOR]
*Hopkins, Charles Howard. ''The Rise of the Social Gospel in American Protestantism, 1865-1915.'' (1940), the standard history; [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=87098233 online edition]
*Hopkins, Charles Howard. ''The Rise of the Social Gospel in American Protestantism, 1865-1915.'' (1940), the standard history; [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=87098233 online edition]
* Hutchison, William R. "The Americanness of the Social Gospel: An Inquiry in Comparative History," Church History, Vol. 44, No. 3 (Sep., 1975), pp. 367-381 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/3164037 in JSTOR]
* Hutchison, William R. "The Americanness of the Social Gospel: An Inquiry in Comparative History," Church History, Vol. 44, No. 3 (Sep., 1975), pp. 367–381 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/3164037 in JSTOR]
* King, William McGuire. "History as Revelation" in the Theology of the Social Gospel," ''The Harvard Theological Review,'' Vol. 76, No. 1 (Jan., 1983), pp. 109-129 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/1509439 in JSTOR]
* King, William McGuire. "History as Revelation" in the Theology of the Social Gospel," ''The Harvard Theological Review,'' Vol. 76, No. 1 (Jan., 1983), pp. 109-129 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/1509439 in JSTOR]
* Latta, Maurice C. "The Background for the Social Gospel in American Protestantism," ''Church History'' , Vol. 5, No. 3 (Sep., 1936), pp. 256-270 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/3160788 online at JSTOR]
* Latta, Maurice C. "The Background for the Social Gospel in American Protestantism," ''Church History'' , Vol. 5, No. 3 (Sep., 1936), pp. 256–270 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/3160788 online at JSTOR]
* Lindley, Susan H. "Women and the Social Gospel Novel," ''Church History'', Vol. 54, 1985 [http://www.questia.com/googleScholar.qst?docId=95150417 online edition]
* Lindley, Susan H. "Women and the Social Gospel Novel," ''Church History'', Vol. 54, 1985 [http://www.questia.com/googleScholar.qst?docId=95150417 online edition]
*Luker, Ralph E. ''The Social Gospel in Black and White American Racial Reform, 1885-1912.'' (1991)[http://www.questia.com/library/book/the-social-gospel-in-black-and-white-american-racial-reform-1885-1912-by-ralph-e-luker.jsp online edition] ; also [http://www.amazon.com/Social-Gospel-Black-White-1885-1912/dp/0807847208/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1197517741&sr=8-6 excerpt and text search]
*Luker, Ralph E. ''The Social Gospel in Black and White American Racial Reform, 1885-1912.'' (1991)[http://www.questia.com/library/book/the-social-gospel-in-black-and-white-american-racial-reform-1885-1912-by-ralph-e-luker.jsp online edition] ; also [http://www.amazon.com/Social-Gospel-Black-White-1885-1912/dp/0807847208/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1197517741&sr=8-6 excerpt and text search]
* Marty, Martin E. ''Modern American Religion, Vol. 1: The Irony of It All, 1893-1919'' (1986); ''Modern American Religion. Vol. 2: The Noise of Conflict, 1919-1941'' (1991)
* Marty, Martin E. ''Modern American Religion, Vol. 1: The Irony of It All, 1893-1919'' (1986); ''Modern American Religion. Vol. 2: The Noise of Conflict, 1919-1941'' (1991)
* Meyer, Donald. ''The Protestant Search for Political Realism, 1919-1941'' (1988) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=8470328 online edition]
* Meyer, Donald. ''The Protestant Search for Political Realism, 1919-1941'' (1988) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=8470328 online edition]
* Moorhead, James H. "Between Progress and Apocalypse: A Reassessment of Millennialism in American Religious Thought, 1800-1880," ''Journal of American History,'' Vol. 71, No. 3 (Dec., 1984), pp. 524-542 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/1887470 in JSTOR]
* Moorhead, James H. "Between Progress and Apocalypse: A Reassessment of Millennialism in American Religious Thought, 1800-1880," ''Journal of American History,'' Vol. 71, No. 3 (Dec., 1984), pp. 524–542 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/1887470 in JSTOR]
* Muller, Dorothea R. "The Social Philosophy of Josiah Strong: Social Christianity and American Progressivism," Church History 1959 v 28 #2 pp. 183-201] [http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0009-6407(195906)28%3A2%3C183%3ATSPOJS%3E2.0.CO%3B2-J online at JSTOR]
* Muller, Dorothea R. "The Social Philosophy of Josiah Strong: Social Christianity and American Progressivism," Church History 1959 v 28 #2 pp. 183–201] [http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0009-6407(195906)28%3A2%3C183%3ATSPOJS%3E2.0.CO%3B2-J online at JSTOR]
* Rogers, Jack B., and Robert E. Blade, "The Great Ends of the Church: Two Perspectives," ''Journal of Presbyterian History'' (1998) 76:181-186.
* Rogers, Jack B., and Robert E. Blade, "The Great Ends of the Church: Two Perspectives," ''Journal of Presbyterian History'' (1998) 76:181-186.
* Smith, Gary Scott. "To Reconstruct the World: Walter Rauschenbusch and Social Change," ''Fides et Historia'' (1991) 23:40-63
* Smith, Gary Scott. "To Reconstruct the World: Walter Rauschenbusch and Social Change," ''Fides et Historia'' (1991) 23:40-63
* White Jr. Ronald C. ''Liberty and Justice for All: Racial Reform and the Social Gospel (1877-1925)'' (2002) [http://www.amazon.com/Liberty-Justice-All-1877-1925-Rauschenbusch/dp/0664224938/ref=sr_1_18?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1197517922&sr=8-18 excerpt and text search]
* White Jr. Ronald C. ''Liberty and Justice for All: Racial Reform and the Social Gospel (1877-1925)'' (2002) [http://www.amazon.com/Liberty-Justice-All-1877-1925-Rauschenbusch/dp/0664224938/ref=sr_1_18?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1197517922&sr=8-18 excerpt and text search]
*White, Ronald C., Jr. and C. Howard Hopkins. ''The Social Gospel. Religion and Reform in Changing America'' (1975).
*White, Ronald C., Jr. and C. Howard Hopkins. ''The Social Gospel. Religion and Reform in Changing America'' (1975).
*Zald, Mayer N., and Patricia Denton. "From Evangelism to General Service: The Transformation of the YMCA," ''Administrative Science Quarterly'', Vol. 8, No. 2 (Sep., 1963), pp. 214-234 [http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0017-8160(198301)76%3A1%3C109%3A%22ARITT%3E2.0.CO%3B2-M in JSTOR]
*Zald, Mayer N., and Patricia Denton. "From Evangelism to General Service: The Transformation of the YMCA," ''Administrative Science Quarterly'', Vol. 8, No. 2 (Sep., 1963), pp. 214–234 [http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0017-8160(198301)76%3A1%3C109%3A%22ARITT%3E2.0.CO%3B2-M in JSTOR]
===Primary sources===
===Primary sources===
{{reflist|3}}
{{reflist|3}}
==External Links==
==External links==
* [http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/viewSubCategory.asp?id=1230 The Social Gospel], [[Discover the Networks]]
* [http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/viewSubCategory.asp?id=1230 The Social Gospel], [[Discover the Networks]]