Social Gospel 22

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THE SOCIAL GOSPEL IN AMERICA

Introduction: Individualistic conversion vs. the social significance of The Gospel (The Churchand The Kingdom; Missions and Politics). The story of the rise spread influence and decline of

the social gospel in !merica is one of the most distinctive and fascinating chapters in the historyof Protestant social concern. The social gospel reached its pea" of influence in the #nited $tatesin the first t%o decades of the &'th century. Protestants %ere facing the ne% century %ith highe pectation that the nation and Christianity %ould oth richly prosper.

($ee the follo%ing i liography* Kenneth Cauther The Impact of !merica+s ,eligious-i eralism ( / 012&); 3. P. 4odein The $ocial Gospel of alter ,auschen usch and Its,elation to ,eligious 5ducation (0166 vol. 73I /ale $tudies in ,eligious 5ducation); P. !.Carter The 8ecline and ,evival of The $ocial Gospel* $ocial and Political -i eralism in!merican Protestant Churches (01&'9016') Ithica / 01:6; C. . op"ins The ,ise of The$ocial Gospel in !merican Protestantism ( e% aven 016'); ,. !. Miller !merican

Protestantism and $ocial Issues 0101901


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characteristic of !merican Protestantism. The !merican climate of optimism %as largelycreated y remar"a le scientific and technological advances %hich gave to the movement its airof e citement and e pectation ($ee !aron ! ell !merican Catholicism and $ocial !ction* !$earch for $ocial Austice 0B2:901:' (Garden City / 012') and his The #r an Impact of!merican Protestantism (Cam ridge 016


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!nother pressure upon social thought %as the a%areness that e panding cities %ere reeding poverty misery vice and crime. Ene of the po%erful early voices of the social gospel %as thatof Aosiah $trong (0B6&90102) %hose %idely read oo". Eur Country discussed seven perilsthreatening the !merican land of promise. e argued that the last and greatest of these perils%as the city %hich had ecome a serious menace to civili>ation and all concentrated in the city

(of. Eur Country / 0BB:; on $trong see 8orothea ,. Muller The $ocial Philosophy ofAoslah $trong; $ocial Christianity and !merican Progressivism Church istory , viii (01:1)0Bed and enlightened men %ould %or" for thegood of all. enry P. 3an 8usan sees li eralism as ridge theology %ith one foot firmly

planted in modern thought the other deeply rooted %ithin Christian e perience. (The3indication of -i eral Theology* ! Tract for the Times ( / 012


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the movement for cooperative Christianity and for the social gospel. Many advocates of thesocial gospel %ere conspicuous among the pioneers of Christian unity (cf. ,estoration eritagein vie% of these influences99Gladden $trong Graham Taylor ,auschen usch 4attenMatthe%s @. Mason orth and Charles $tei>e). !t the first meeting of the @ederal Council ofchurches a report %as adopted on the Church and Modern Industry containing the famous

social creeds of the churches. This %as a declaration that the church must stand for the rightsof %or"ers for principles of conciliation and ar itration in industrial dissension for the a olitionof child la or for reduction of the hours of %or" for a living %age as a minimum in everyindustry. @or the most e?uita le division of the products of industry and for the a atement of

poverty (cf. A. !. utchison De !re ot 8ivided ( / 0160).

The social gospel entered a different and difficult phase after DDI (compare Gladden+s first%or" in 0B=' to ,auschen usch+s Theology for The $ocial Gospel 010=). 4y the nineteent%enties the contagious enthusiasm %hich had een poured into the $tudent 3olunteerMovement the $unday $chool Movement the Men and ,eligion @or%ard Movement the-ayman+s Missionary Movement The Interchurch Dorld Movement and other organi>ed

activities of the churches had largely evaporated. (D.$. udson The Great Tradition of the!merican Churches ( / 01:< P. 012). In the early 01


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C. $ettled on an uncle+s farm. The uncle %as an avid reader and greatly influenced Gladden(Gladden ,ecollections / 0101).

8. e sought the Calvinistic personal e perience of salvation in vain.

5. Influence of Aedadiah 4urchard %ho had een associated %ith Charles @inney (see D. ,.Cross The 4urned9over 8istrict (Ithaca / 01:').

@. !fter a year and a half of hard study he %as ready to enter the sophomore class at DilliamsCollege in $eptem er of 0B:2. T%o men especially influenced him intellectually the presidentMar" op"ins (0B'&9B=) and Aohn 4ascom (0B&&90100)

G. In his early years of gro%th he fell under the spell of @rederioh D.,o ertson (0B029:


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some%hat childish notion of design in nature %hich Paley unfolded . . .nature as Paley sa% ite hi ited intelligence order purpose. Therefore he elieved in an intelligent creator. ature as8ar%in sa% it e hi its a grander order a mere far9reaching and comprehensive purpose. Dhythen should %e cease elieving in an intelligent creationJ (cf. 4urning uestions of The -ifeThat o% Is and of That Dhich is to Come ( / 0BB1 pp. : &B9&1; Din. Paley (0=6ed e tensively theargument from design.). !gain and again Gladden e plained ho% a person could accept theteachings of modern science and the theory of evolution and emerge %ith faith intact purifiedand stronger than efore (cf. as in o% Much Is -eft of The Eld TestamentJ ! 4oo" for thePeople (4oston 0B11); Present 8ay Theology (ling 4i le 4oo"s (4oston0B1=); and op"ins The ,ise of the $ocial Gospel pp. 066 06B.

M. $hall Ill Gotten Gains 4e $ought @or Christian PurposesJ Confrontation %ith money forAohn 8. ,oc"efeller and $tandard Eil Company and Ida Tar ell+s & volume documentation.

istory of The $tandard Eil Company (01'6). Gladden responded to ,oc"efeller+s 0'' ''' giftto missions 9 The Church %hich accepts the $tandard Eil Company as its yo"efello% can hardlyhope to "eep the respect of right9minded young men and %omen. ($tandard Eil and @oreignMissions see The Eutloo" 0B1:). The Eutloo" e ploded* If one has ac?uired his moneyunLustly he is to e condemned for the inLustice. If he is spending his money eneficently he isto e commended for eneficence. Audge ot The Eutloo" =1 (01':)* B=09=


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. The !merican 4oard (cf. policy of the Prudential Committee) prepared a $tatement ofPrinciples. Gladden countered %ith a resolution %hich %as rought efore the oard at the sametime. En $eptem er 0: 01': in defense of his resolution. Gladden made efore the oard theaddress reprinted here. !fter some discussion the oard dodged the issue y ta ling oth the

$tatement of Principles and Gladden+s resolution. Gladden later elieved that his protest helped

clear the air recalling %ith especial gratitude the hundreds of letters he received (see,ecollections p. 6'1). Dhat should the Church+s response to this economic disease eJ (cf.$te%ardship and Missions in the &0st Century) The safe appeal of truth to time.

E. The ation and The Kingdom (!nnual sermon efore the !merican 4oard of Commissionersfor @oreign Missions 4oston 01'1). In many respects the sound gospel %as an effort to reali>ethe 01th century dream of a Protestant nation (Isa 2'. 69:) in the ne% !merica of e pandingindustry and urgeoning cities. It %as the old concept of Christendom refur ished to fit therealities of a voluntaristic pluralistic li erty loving Protestantism. The advocates of the socialgospel hungered and thirsted for a Christian !merica in an evangeli>ed %orld. ,eared in theintense missionary atmosphere of 01th century evangelical Protestantism they put special

emphasis on the role of their nation in the saving of the %orld (cf. 8ar%inian evolutionism andinevita ility of progress the ,estoration eritage 4i lical criticism. 5cumenical mind setli eralism and missions). Their faith in progress gave them hope that their dreams %ould soon elargely fulfilled. Gladden+s sermon on Ecto er 0< 01'1 at Minneapolis e pressed theconviction that the spiritual movement and national movement %ere converging to%ard aglorious clima throughout the %orld (cf. Changing vie%s of eschatology and the relationshipof church and $tate; Conservatism and -i eralism) This %as to e the era of humani>ation theera of rotherhood (li eral theme 4rotherhood of all). Gladden assumed that a considera le partof the life of civili>ed society is controlled y Christian principle. De have come to a day in%hich it does not seem ?ui otic to elieve that the principles of Christianity are soon to prevailand all social relations are to e Christiani>ed (cf. for criti?ue of the 011'+s to &''0 seeChandler+s ,acing To%ards &''0 0110) 5volutionary optimism %as every%here apparent at theturn of the century (cf. this evolutionary optimism holds until DDI and II; %orld politics andresurgent non9Christian religions and cults) Eld Testament prophecies concerning the nation ofIsrael in %orld domination %ere replaced y !merica as the ne% Israel. The tides ofimmigration pouring into our har ors tests this optimism ased in the values of our Christiancivili>ation. 8efective as our national performance is %hen measured y the high standards ofChristian morality it yet em odies principle aid forces and products results %hich appeal %ithirresisti le po%er to the heart of universal humanity (cf. cultural relativism and cross9culturalcommunication). In Loining 8. !. Gordon (0B:


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P. The Incarnation : (see my Christ The Incarnational Paradigm (on oth ,itschl and arnac")and !merican Theology* @aith and Criticism on the development of doctrine; also my

ermeneutical ,evolution of 8avid @riedric" $trauss). Central to the understanding of Gladden+sversion of the social gospel is his Christocentric li eral theology. Central to his understanding ofChristian faith %as his Christology set forth in Matthe% 02. In it Gladden+s heavy dependence

on the ,itchlian theology see Present 8ay Theology (


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elper (see Dm. !. 4ro%n The 5ssence of Christianity pp. &1B9ation of the ne% historical ethical approach to economics as against the older+classical+ lai>>e9faire vie%s (teacher of Doodro% Dilson). There %as pro a ly no other man ofthe period Aohn ,. 5verett has %ritten %ho has as much influence on the economic thin"ingof persons and the general religious community. (,eligion in 5conomics ( / 016:) p. =:).

!. 5ly the son of a civil engineer and a school teacher %as orn in ,ipley e% /or" on !pril0< 0B:6. In 0B=& the young man entered 8artmouth College. !T his graduation in 0B=2 5ly%on a fello%ship in letters %hich he used for graduate study in Germany. is study a road

egan at the #niversity of alle %here he too" up philosophy in search of the a solute truth.$oon he chose instead the fields of economics and political science as they %ere eingdeveloped at eidel erg. There in the spring of 0B=B he net Karl Knies and concentrated his%or" under that scholar+s direction. Knies (0B&091B) %as one of the founders of the historicalschool of economic thought. 5ly ?uic"ly appropriated Knies+ vie%s and challenged thea solutism of theory in economics and emphasi>ed the doctrine of relativity. Correct economic

policy for a particular state %ould have to e ased on analysis of its situation past and present.5ly ecame deeply interested in the aspirations of the %or"ingmen (see 5ly The Past and ThePresent of Political 5conomy (4altimore 0BB6; 5riel ,oll ! istory of 5conomic Thought ( /01ation (: vols / 01629:1;and $trauss Paradigms and Proposals of Milton and ,ose @riedman @or 5conomic,evitali>ation.

4. In the summer of 0BB' he returned to the #nited $tates. The ne t year he egan his professional teaching career in the department of political economy at The Aohns op"ins#niversity. 5ly ?uic"ly appropriated Knies+ vie% eagerly defending his teacher %ho conceivedof economics as elonging neither to the natural nor to the mental sciences ut to the group ofhistorical disciplines %hich have for their o Lect the study of man in society in terms of itshistorical gro%th (Ground #nder Eur @eet p. 66)

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In his oo". The Past and Present in Political 5conomics %ritten in 0BB6 he attac"ed theclassical individualists+ laisse>9faire version of economics still so strong in !merica at the timein favor of the historical approach to economics he had rought from a road. is ne t oo"%hich dre% heavily on his research overseas surveyed the various "inds of 5uropean socialismand sho%ed a sympathetic a%areness of the gro%th of internationalism (see his @rench and

German $ocialism in Modern Times ( / 0BB


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principles comes from Matthe% &&.


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the e pression human rotherhood. There is no such thing as individual sin or righteousness.,ighteousness e alts a nation.

The Church is one in the spirit and %e are one ody (An 0690= and 5ph 6). De shall pursuenaturalistic efforts at solidarity and Christian fello%ship (see my The Christian Dorld 3ie% and

$olidarity* Dorld 3ie% and @ello%ship 9#nity of 4elief and 4ehavior). ,esponsi ility of theindividual increases %ith age. The individual is first a result ut later ecomes a cause. 5arlyindividual irresponsi ility is recogni>ed y the courts of all civili>ed lands e?ually %ith gro%ingresponsi ility (see my 5thics; Changing -egal Paradigms; and Theories of -e%is). De live

et%een t%o %orlds heredity and environment. $ocial solidarity does not occurindependently of either a conscious or unconscious %orld vie%. Paradigm shifts occur

ecause %e see" to understand more of the %orld than that %hich %e received at irth familyeducation or pu lic9cultural education (see my 5ducation and 5nemies of Permanent Things).5ach one of us develops our o%n individuality not in isolation ut in society and y ringingourselves in ody and mind into harmony %ith the la%s of social solidarity (this is possi le only%ith a conscious Christian %orld vie% and fello%ship in the Church).

A. The $tate* @amily Church and $tate (Kingdom of God and The Christian $tate). 5ly thoughtthat the $tate %ould only increase. Those steeped in 01th century individualism %ere critical of5ly+s vie%s. (@or his defense of private property in the private industry see Eutline of5conomics ( / 0B1


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and history Christianity and secular culture theology and sociology. The "ingdom of God ecame for him the unifying force %hich %ould ind all these things together as he e plained thegreat change that too" place in him in 0B10. $o Christ+s conception of the "ingdom of Godcame to me as a ne% revelation. . . . Dhen the "ingdom of God dominated our landscape the

perspective of the life shifted into a ne% alignment. I felt a ne% security in my social impulses. ..

The saving of the lost the teaching of the young the pastoral care of the poor and frail the?uic"ening of starved intellects the study of the 4i le Church union political reform thereorgani>ation of the industrial system international peace it %as all covered y the one aim ofthe reign of God on earth. (Christiani>ing the $ocial Erder p. 1


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denomination %hile %e remain apathetic in saving men. @irst of all and a ove everything comesevangelical Christianity. This is the primary aim of Christian missions first in order ofimportance first also in order of time. (Conceptions of Mission)

Dhat %as Paul+s conception of missionsJ e elieved that God had in Aesus Christ %or"ed a

great J of salvation %here y remission of sins and a life of grace %as possi le. @aith is the po%er of the risen Christ that I ta"e for J the central conviction of the evangelical conceptions ofmissions and on that foundation it %ill e %ell for us to uild %hatever edifice Christ has calledus to erect in this generation.

5. The Ideals of $ocial ,eformers* Ene of the special tas"s of our generation is the %or" of%edding Christianity and the social movement. They are divorced no%. De of The4rotherhood of The Kingdom elieve that such a separation is unnecessary un%ise andundesira le detrimental to the full success of oth parties concerned and perilous to the future ofhumanity. De have no desire to see evangelical Christianity led to death; to see the Church ofChrist turned into a reform clu ; to see the hidden life of the elievers toned do%n to a mild and

hapless altruism and to have Christian theology changed into a modern gnosticism into a systemof evolutionary philosophy %ith a place for Christ as one of the evolutionary forces. E thecontrary %e find fault %ith modern Christianity ecause it is not Christian enough. (cf. Aas.,ussell9-o%ell 0B01910) Ence to every man and nation comes the moment to decide ... This%as set to music and ecame a social gospel hymn.

@. 8angers to Those 8evoted to $ocial Progress*

0. ,eal menace to individual li erty in the schemes of socialism (our present individualism is noreal individualism).

&. Threatens the sta ility and importance of family life. $ocialists also fre?uently aim at aneasing of the marriage ond ecause they recogni>e in the family the great ul%ar" ofindividualism.


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6. Three possi ilities* (a) 5conomic individualism; ( ) state o%nership; (c) socialism. -aissefaire is passed.

:. 5vils on oth sides caused y human nature (Prevention or cure)2. De shall never go ac" to laisse faire=. $tate must interfere against industrial e ploitation of children (gro%th and education)

B. $tate must interfere on ehalf of helpless single %omen.1. $tate must loo" after the sanitary conditions of all places %here larger num ers of people%or" together.

0'. There must e state inspection of important articles on the safety or genuineness of %hichthe pu lic is not competent to pass; egs. ?uality of mil" lighting gas %ater safety of oilersetc.

00. $elf is ineffective against corporations holding natural monopolies. The individual cannotcheapen carfares etc. y refusing to ride nor compel purer or cheaper gas y urning"erosene.

0&. Constant state interference is ir"some to the corporations corrupting to the state and notal%ays satisfactory to the pu lic.

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0&. Dhat %ill happen if 5ngland proves una le to con?uer the 4oer repu licJ Dhat %ill happenif she does con?uer and anne es themJ

. 8ogmatic and Practical $ocialism*

0. 4y dogmatic socialism I mean those %ho do not elieve in an immediate JJJ&. ,auschen usch %as interested in the socialist movement ecause of its concern for social Lustice. In 010& he could call it far and a%ay the most po%erful force for Lustice democracyand organi>ed fraternity in the %orld. e opposed scientific and doctrine socialism.


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(Cf. Christianity and The $ocial Crisis ecame a est seller)

The interest in the ne% evangelism is almost %holly an e pression of dissatisfaction %ith theold evangelism the %aning po%er of %hich %as generally conceded. There is no ne%

evangelism efore us %hich %e might adopt; %e are only %ishing that there might e. De are

today passing through an historical transition as thorough and important as any in historyHthelast one hundred t%enty9five years have s%ept us through profound changes in every direction.Dorld %ide commerce and the imperialistic policy of the Christian nations have made the

pro lems of international and interracial relations urgent.

The present paralysis of the churches affects all Destern civili>ation and only a causecoterminous %ith modern civili>ation %ill e plain it. There are t%o "inds of evangelism* (0)one proclaims ne% truth and (&) one summons men to live and act according to the truth. Thetongue of fire %ill descend on the t%entieth century and give them great faith Loy and oldnessand then %e shall hear the ne% evangel and it %ill e the old gospel.

I. The e% !postolate (see Christianity and the $ocial Crisis ( / 01='); and ,. 8. CrossCertainty Christianity and The $ocial Crisis).

The first apostolate of Christianity %as orn from a deep fello%9feeling for social misery andfrom the consciousness of a great historical opportunity. Aesus sa% the peasantry of Galileefollo%ing him a out %ith their poverty and their diseases li"e shepherdless sheep that have eenscattered and harried y easts of prey and his heart and compassion %ent out to them. Pasthistory had come to its culmination ut there %ere fe% %ho understood the situation and %ere

prepared to cope %ith it. The situation is repeated on a vast scale today (Chandler+s ,acingTo%ards &''0 0110). Dould Aesus create a ne% apostolate to meet the ne% needs in a ne%harvest time of historyJ Can there e a ne% Christian social order (Kingdom of God) in thiscontemporary %orldJ /ou are the salt of the earth; you are the light of the %orld. Thus Aesuse pressed the consciousness of a great historic mission to the %hole of humanity. The apostolateof a ne% age must do the %or" of the savior (cf. ,o ert E%ens (0=&0O0B:B) started e%

armony Indiana; see The Camp ellOE%en de ate; also Aames ,ussell -o%ell+s Colum us ;also A. !. ,iis Theodore ,oosevelt The Citi>en ( / 01'6). In as"ing for faith in the possi ilityof a ne% social order %e as" for no #topian delusion. In the intellectual life there has een anunprecedented leap for%ard during the last hundred years (cf. more since 012'9011'+s). If at this

Luncture %e can rally sufficient religious faith and moral strength to snap the onds of evil andturn the present unparalleled economic and intellectual resources of humanity to the harmoniousdevelopment of a true social life the generations yet un orn %ill ma"e this as that great day ofthe -ord for %hich the ages %aited and count us lessed for sharing in the apostolate that

proclaimed it (The Gospel and $ocial 5thics; 8iscipleship and 5thics) (cf. Dorld Dars I and IIchaos in the streets of -os !ngeles %ars and rumors of %ars in 5urope since the collapse ofCommunism (see ,. . 4ellah a its of The eart and his (eds) The Good $ociety ( / Knopp0110; also all of $chaeffer+s %or"s).

A. Eur $emi9Christian $ocial Erder*

0=


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. . .%hile four great sections of the social order had een largely Christian one maLor area 9 usiness 9 remained unredeemed. Christianity has een tried oth in private and in social lifeand the ?uestion is in order %hether anything in the history of humanity has succeeded e ceptChristianity.

It is true enough that there has never een a social order %hich %as Christian from top to ottom.4ut large domains of our social life have come under the s%ay of Christ+s la% in their spirit andin their fundamental structure and these are y common consent the source of our happiness andthe o Lects of our pride %hile those portions of the social order %hich are still un9Christiani>edare the source of our misery and the cause of our shame.

It is unLust to Christianity to call our civili>ation Christian; it is unLust to our civili>ation to all itunchristian. It is semi9Christian. Christiani>ing the social order means ringing it into harmony%ith the ethical conviction %hich %e identify %ith Christ.

0. Christiani>ing sections of our social order* the simplest and most familiar social organi>ation

is the family (cf. @amily in Crisis in the 011'+s)&. @amily in Eld Testament social structure* Patriarchal structures (Genesis ation. It %as ruled y a monarchical and aristocratic hierarchy%hich used its immense po%ers to lord it over the people and to enrich itself. It %asChristiani>ed %hen it lost its po%er and its %ill to tyranni>e.

2. Christiani>ation of The Church and Its -eadership* ,eformation ,estoration ,ene%almovements (from the lust to rule to the %ill to serve).

=. Christiani>ation of 5ducation* @rom Christian to $ecular 5ducation 9$cientific ,evolutionand 8esacrali>ation of 5ducation. Profit ma"ing is not un"no%n in education; satisfaction is%idespread. The prohi ition of negro education in some slave states efore the %ar %as ane pression of non9Christian influence even %hen the Church agreed. Ditness $ha"espeare+s

. . .%hining school oy. . . creeping li"e a snail un%illingly to school. (cf. 8emocracy and progress in education). In the case of the school as in the case of the family organi>edChristianity contri uted a large part of the forces %hich %or"ed the change.

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B. $ocial Erder of the Political -ife* @undamental redemption of the state too" place %henspecial privilege %as ta"en out of the constitution and it %as ased on the principle of personalli erty and e?ual rights.

Dhen the rich and the poor have Lustice meted to them in our courts %ith an uneven hand and

the fact is made plain and comprehensi le it is felt to e an outrage and a etrayal of the spirit ofour institutions.

@our great sections of our social order99the family the organi>ed religious life the institution ofeducation and the political organi>ation of our nationHhave passed through constitutionalchanges %hich have made them to some degree part of the organism through %hich the spirit ofChrist can do its %or" in humanity. The analysis of these redeemed parts of our social order hase plained y historical o Lect lessons in %hat sense %e can spea" of Christiani>ing the socialorder and has also rought home to us %ith %hat gradualness and through %hat comple forcessuch a process has to %or" its %ays. The presumption is that other portions of the social order%ill have to su mit to similar changes if they are to e Christiani>ed.

1. Eur Present 5conomic Erder* Eur usiness life is the seat and source of our present trou les.It is in commerce and industry that %e encounter the great collective inhumanities that shame ourChristian feelings such as child la or and the loody total of industrial accidents. To commerceand industry %e are learning to trace the foul stream of se ual prostitution poverty and politicalcorruption. 4usiness men themselves concede that it is; some y calmly denying that Christian

principles have anything to do %ith usiness; others y sadly confessing that Christianity oughtto govern usiness ut that it %ould mean loss or ruin to put Christian ethics into practice.

4usiness life is the un9regenerated section of our social order. Eur first need is to analy>e oureconomic system so that %e may understand %herein and %hy it is fundamentally unchristian.!merican pragmatism cannot understand the Great Industrial Transition of the T%entiethCentury. Gradually the machine has ecome a sort of ne% partner in production. The old hometool merely ached the hand that plied them and never made the hand unnecessary. The ne%machine tools tend to ecome the real %or"er. !n enlarged and diversified industrialorgani>ation is not an evil ut a good. The moral o Lection lies not against the si>e andcomple ity of the modern system. Production has gravitated into the o%nership and control of arelatively small class of men. The group is permanent and the men in it have ac?uired a

proportion of po%er over their fello%s %hich human nature eing %hat it is must lead toinLustice to ine?uality and to the frustration of the Christian conception of human fello%ship.

In the modern industrial order o%nership and control are not vested in the %or"ers ut in anentirely different social group %hich stands apart from them y its interests social status ha itsof life and modes of thoughtHthe group of investors or capitalists. The economic interests ofthe capitalists revolve around his profits and since the capitalist class is the controlling anddominant class the desire for profit dominates our %hole industrial organi>ation.

!nother feature of modern usiness life is that production is not in response to an actual demand ut in anticipation of a possi le demand (cf. advertisement). 4usiness has to forecast the future.This al%ays means ris" and venture. Dhen %e try to Ludge our economic system form the point

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of vie% of Christian morals %e must not forget that it has raised the modern Ludgment y %hichit is to e measured. Christian morals have put a deep impression on the ethical and religiousideas of the modern %orld (cf. see my %or" Paradigms and Proposals of Milton and ,ose@riedman for 5conomic ,evivali>ation ).

0'. The $ocial Principles of Aesus ( / 0102 pp. 0


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,auschen usch dismissed the maLor 5uropean theologians in these %ords* My o%n conviction isthat the professional theologians of 5urope . . .have overemphasi>ed the ascetic andeschatological elements in the teaching of Aesus. They have classed as ascetic or apocalyptic theradical sayings a out property and non9resistance %hich seem to them impractical or visionary(cf ! Theology for The $ocial Gospel p. 0:B).

!fter Dorld Dar I the $ocial Gospel moved to%ards a neo9orthodo theology %hich in the01


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fundamental conditions of religion %ithout %hich it can neither e rightly understood nor rightlylived (,itschl I p. 612). ote the first correlation around reconciliation then the 012=Confession and its #niversalism centers around ,itschl+s ,econciliation.

Aames 8. $trauss

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Social Gospel 22