Religion
Women of the WCTU at a meeting, 1924
As industry grew during the Progressive Era, women continually turned to religion to rid the home of the filth and grime of the industrial world.1
Whether the Christian influence came through dressing modestly or prayer before dinner women were expected to live in a way that honored God. These Christian values were central to the stability of the home. When it came to issues of “evils,” such as divorce Christianity became even more important in maintaining a moral home.
Religion influenced attitudes towards divorce. While divorce was available since at least the colonial era it was not practiced frequently. Tradition and religion led to a stigma and lack of the practice of divorce.2 As marriage started to become more popular in the Progressive Era, divorce was denounced as evil and blasphemous. This was a direct response to the changing social practices of the time.3 A major agent in the fight for the traditional societal values was religion, which was thought to help fight against the “evils” of urbanization and liberalization that were perceived to threaten society at the time.
1 Elizabeth D. Blum, “Women, Environmental Rationale, and Activism During the Progressive Era,” In To Love the Wind and the Rain: African Americans and Environmental History (University of Pittsburgh Press, 2006), 1.
2 Kristin Celello, Making Marriage Work (Chapel Hill, US: The University of North Carolina Press, 2009), 18.
3 Fass, “Introduction: Youth in the 1920’s,” 5.