Josiah Strong: Difference between revisions

From Citizendium
Jump to navigation Jump to search
imported>Richard Jensen
No edit summary
imported>Larry Sanger
(If only "much," not all, of the material is by RJ, then we must check "Content is from Wikipedia?")
Line 1: Line 1:
'''Josiah Strong''' (1847-1916) was a Protestant clergyman, missionary leader and author. He was a leader of the [[Third Great Awakening]] and a founder of the [[Social Gospel]] movement that sought to apply Protestant religious principles to solve the social ills brought on by industrialization, urbanization and immigration. He served as General Secretary (1886-1898) of the Evangelical Alliance for the United States, a coalition of Protestant missionary groups. After being forced out he set up his own group, the League for Social Service (1898-1916), and edited its magazine ''The Gospel of the Kingdom''.  
'''Josiah Strong''' (1847-1916) was a Protestant clergyman, missionary leader and author. He was a leader of the [[Third Great Awakening]] and a founder of the [[Social Gospel]] movement that sought to apply Protestant religious principles to solve the social ills brought on by industrialization, urbanization and immigration. He served as General Secretary (1886-1898) of the Evangelical Alliance for the United States, a coalition of Protestant missionary groups. After being forced out he set up his own group, the League for Social Service (1898-1916), and edited its magazine ''The Gospel of the Kingdom''.


His most well-known and influential work was [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=11531335 ''Our Country: Its Possible Future and Its Present Crisis'' (1885)], intended to promote domestic missionary activity in the American West. Historians suggest it may have encouraged support for imperialistic American foreign policies among American Protestants. He pleaded as well for more missionary work in the nation's cities, and for reconciliation to end racial conflict. He was one of the first to warn that Protestants (most of whom lived in rural areas or small towns) were ignoring the problems of the cities and the working classes.  
His most well-known and influential work was [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=11531335 ''Our Country: Its Possible Future and Its Present Crisis'' (1885)], intended to promote domestic missionary activity in the American West. Historians suggest it may have encouraged support for imperialistic American foreign policies among American Protestants. He pleaded as well for more missionary work in the nation's cities, and for reconciliation to end racial conflict. He was one of the first to warn that Protestants (most of whom lived in rural areas or small towns) were ignoring the problems of the cities and the working classes.  

Revision as of 04:40, 20 July 2007

Josiah Strong (1847-1916) was a Protestant clergyman, missionary leader and author. He was a leader of the Third Great Awakening and a founder of the Social Gospel movement that sought to apply Protestant religious principles to solve the social ills brought on by industrialization, urbanization and immigration. He served as General Secretary (1886-1898) of the Evangelical Alliance for the United States, a coalition of Protestant missionary groups. After being forced out he set up his own group, the League for Social Service (1898-1916), and edited its magazine The Gospel of the Kingdom.

His most well-known and influential work was Our Country: Its Possible Future and Its Present Crisis (1885), intended to promote domestic missionary activity in the American West. Historians suggest it may have encouraged support for imperialistic American foreign policies among American Protestants. He pleaded as well for more missionary work in the nation's cities, and for reconciliation to end racial conflict. He was one of the first to warn that Protestants (most of whom lived in rural areas or small towns) were ignoring the problems of the cities and the working classes.

He believed that all races could be improved and uplifted and thereby brought to Christ. In the "Possible Future" portion of Our Country, Strong argued that the superior Anglo-Saxon race (that is, the British and American peoples) had a responsibility to "civilize and Christianize" the world. The "Crisis" portion of the text described the numerous "perils" that America faced – Mormonism, Socialism, intemperance, excessive wealth, Popery (the Roman Catholic Church), urbanization, and unassimilated immigrants. Conservative Protestants argued that missionaries should spend their time preaching the Gospel; they allowed for charitable activity, but argued it did not actually save souls.

In 1891 a revised edition was issued based on the census of 1890. The large increase in immigration during this period led him to conclude that the perils he outlined in the first edition had only grown.

Primary sources

Secondary Scholarly Sources

See also

Retrieved from "https://citizendium.org/wiki/index.php?title=Josiah_Strong&oldid=262022"