Mitchell+-+PA+-+FA12

Name: Josiah Strong Occupation: Protestant clergyman, editor, author and organizer Position on Annexation: For

-Josiah Strong was all about missionary work and spreading the Protestant word. -Strong’s main goals were to solve social problems caused by immigration and urbanization. -His most influential work, “Our Country: Its Possible Future and Its Present Crisis” was originally intended for missionary work in the West US but ended up being a major support for the imperialistic movement for Protestants. -He was one of the Social Gospel founders; this group mainly advocated the need for redemption from sin. -Strong’s largest belief was of how the Anglo-Saxon race was fast expanding and should attempt to civilize and Christianize all other races. -Strong also believed that America was extremely corrupted; among these impurities he believed were other sects of Christianity, intemperance, wealth, and urbanization. -Strong’s Anglo-Saxon superiority complex can be justified through his idea of what that race represents. -One representation is of civil liberty. Most English descendants enjoyed civil liberty throughout the world, namely in America and Britain. -The other representation is pure spiritual Christianity. This means that those of Anglo-Saxon descent are naturally blessed with higher divine favor and are meant to spread this holiness.
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"Josiah Strong - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." //Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia//. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Nov. 2012. .

-Josiah Strong argued in favor of imperialism under the assumption that the US was in a race with other countries to gather the last of the resources the world had to offer. -Strong essentially revived the Manifest Destiny mindset through his strongly worded writings on how it was God’s will that America should try to dominate the world. -He also viewed America as one of the most powerful nations at the time. -“ // It seems to me that God, with infinite wisdom and skill, is training the Anglo-Saxon race for an hour sure to come in the worlds future. The lands of the earth are limited, and soon will be taken. Then will the world enter upon a new stage in its history- the final competition of the races. Then this race of unequaled energy, with the majesty of numbers and the might of wealth behind it- the representative of the largest liberty, the purest Christianity, the highest civilization... will spread itself over the earth.” // --Minister Josiah Strong, 1885 -In this excerpt, Josiah Strong strongly states that this “final race” of races is essentially the survival of the fittest. -Along with that he argues that America needs to be at the top of the list because of its abundance of the blessed Anglo-Saxon race.
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"Justification for Imperialism." //Learn Social Studies and American History//. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Nov. 2012. .

-Josiah Strong ended up fusing Darwinism with his own beliefs on society; the result was social Darwinism. -The basis of this was the philosophy of “survival of the fittest.” -Strong believed that the Anglo-Saxons were superior because their race could be traced back to many successful nations and empires such as Rome and Greece. This set the mentality that this race was the only one suited for democracy. -He believed that the Anglo-Saxons were growing fast and, being the superior race, would conquer new lands. Starting southward, they would wrap around to Africa and onto Asia. -Strong was also a stickler on social reform. His philosophy also pertained to America itself. He wanted to create a completely equal society where everyone would be the “fittest.” -Strong’s beliefs were a strong influence upon society, mainly because it was one that would appeal to many people naturally and because Protestants were abundant in the country and that only helped to spread the seed of imperialism.
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"SocialDarwinismAndRacialMotives." //Modern America//. N.p., 26 Apr. 2007. Web. 13 Nov. 2012. .