the Meat Inspection Act of 1906. This is just a glimpse as to the key role that muckrakers had in the Progressive society. Another key element of the Progressive Era was the Social Gospel. The Social Gospel sought to bring religious ethics into industrial relations and everyday life. Several followers of the Social Gospel questioned the accuracy of the bible and instead focused more on the basic moral and ethical lessons it entailed. As a result of the Social Gospel and the feelings that were engulfing the nation, Charles Sheldon, a Kansas minister wrote a book entitled In His Steps. The novel tells the story of upper class minister who challenges the members of his congregation to live their lives according to “what Jesus would do”. Throughout the novel, many inferences are made and several parallels exist between the novel and the actual time period in which it was set. The most obvious link between In His Steps and the actual Progressive Era is that the entire plot of the novel is based on the theory of the Social Gospel. The small town minister challenges a handful of willing congregates to base their every decision on what they feel Jesus would do in the situation. As a result, those who pledged to abide by the idea were then placed in the predicament of taking old fashion stances on modern issues, for Jesus was never confronted with such issues, which therefore diminished any possible guidelines. Their lives became consumed by the actions that Jesus would take, and as a result changed forever. Another parallel existent in the novel is the idea of the tenements or ghettoes. Those who accepted the minister’s challenge were of strong backgrounds-both financially and morally. They were each citizens of the well to do town of Raymond, and few of them had ever taken the time to see exactly what existed beyond their safety blanket. Once Rachel Wilson accepted the offer to sing to people whom lived near the ...
