Master of Arts, Miami University, 2020, History
This thesis is a case study in a Social Gospel approach to nature, human health and
environmental politics. Human health and non-human nature were mutually constitutive in
Washington Gladden's vision of health. In sermons from 1869 to 1910, Gladden argued
that human health was closely connected to the health of societies and cities, for the simple
fact that humanity was a part of nature. The local, urban aspects of Gladden's Social Gospel
vision of health were an important connective tissue to understand his broader moral and
economic arguments. Gladden's distinct notions of social morality and social harmony are
best understood at the intersection of religious histories of the Social Gospel, urban
environmental histories and public health histories. Gladden emphasized social morality
through scientific public health and the conservation movement. His vision of social health
was an ideal of social harmony supported by professionals who understood that human
beings were capable of ordering God's creation so that humanity could live healthy lives
in healthy places around the world.
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Committee: Steven Conn (Committee Chair); Amanda McVety (Committee Member); Marguerite Shaffer (Committee Member)
Subjects: American History; History; Religious History