''The Profits of Religion: An Essay in Economic Interpretation'' is a nonfiction book, first published in 1917, by the American novelist and

muck-raking The muckrakers were reform-minded journalists, writers, and photographers in the Progressive Era in the United States (1890s–1920s) who claimed to expose corruption and wrongdoing in established institutions, often through sensationalist publ ...

journalist

Upton Sinclair Upton Beall Sinclair Jr. (September 20, 1878 – November 25, 1968) was an American writer, muckraker, political activist and the 1934 Democratic Party nominee for governor of California who wrote nearly 100 books and other works in seve ...

. It is a snapshot of the religious movements in the U.S. before its entry into

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. The book is the first of the “Dead Hand” series: six books Sinclair wrote on American

institution Institutions are humanly devised structures of rules and norms that shape and constrain individual behavior. All definitions of institutions generally entail that there is a level of persistence and continuity. Laws, rules, social conventions a ...

s. The series also includes ''

The Brass Check ''The Brass Check'' is a muckraking exposé of American journalism by Upton Sinclair published in 1919. It focuses mainly on newspapers and the Associated Press wire service, along with a few magazines. Other critiques of the press had appeared, ...

'' (journalism), ''The Goose-step'' (higher education), ''The Goslings'' (elementary and high school education), '' Mammonart'' (art) and ''Money Writes!'' (literature). The term “Dead Hand” ironically refers to

Adam Smith Adam Smith (baptized 1723 – 17 July 1790) was a Scottish economist and philosopher who was a pioneer in the thinking of political economy and key figure during the Scottish Enlightenment. Seen by some as "The Father of Economics"——— ...

’s concept that allowing an "

invisible hand The invisible hand is a metaphor used by the British moral philosopher Adam Smith that describes the unintended greater social benefits and public good brought about by individuals acting in their own self-interests. Smith originally mention ...

" of individual self-interest to shape economic relations provides the best result for society as a whole. In this book, Sinclair attacks institutionalized religion as a “source of income to parasites, and the natural ally of every form of oppression and exploitation.”

Overview

Most

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

men are hypocrites, but they are not entirely to blame. Like other men, they are victimized by “the competitive wage-system, which presents them with the alternative to swindle or to starve.” Sinclair savages the Episcopal establishment for transforming the

proletarian The proletariat (; ) is the social class of wage-earners, those members of a society whose only possession of significant economic value is their labour power (their capacity to work). A member of such a class is a proletarian. Marxist philoso ...

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

into a defender of wealth and privilege, and for a long history of alliance with political power in England and the United States. Turning to the “nonconforming”

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

sects, adherents of "The Church of the Merchants" are focused on achieving prosperity within the existing economic system. So are the devotees of the mostly

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

-based ‘new religions’ or ‘cults’, including

New Thought The New Thought movement (also Higher Thought) is a spiritual movement that coalesced in the United States in the early 19th century. New Thought was seen by its adherents as succeeding "ancient thought", accumulated wisdom and philosophy from ...

. Sinclair wants to rescue the true message of Jesus, the friend of the poor and brother of all men.

Style

The writing is fluent, vivid and personal. At the same time, almost every paragraph is built upon evidence that includes historic and contemporary quotations, articles, events, and anecdotes. It is not meant to be objective, but to present a compelling case. It reads like the exhaustive oral argument of a very able prosecuting attorney.

Divisions of the book

Note: The chapters of Book Six are listed to give a flavor of Sinclair's writing style. * Book One: The Church of the Conquerors (Priesthoods living off the wealth produced by workers) * Book Two: The Church of Good Society (

Protestant Episcopal The Episcopal Church, based in the United States with additional dioceses elsewhere, is a member church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. It is a mainline Protestant denomination and is divided into nine Ecclesiastical provinces and dioces ...

) * Book Three: The Church of the Servant Girls (

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

) * Book Four: The Church of the Slavers (how institutionalized religion, particularly in Germany, oppresses the people) * Book Five: The Church of the Merchants (nonconformist

) * Book Six: The Church of the Quacks ** Tabula Rasa ** The Book of

Mormon Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into several ...

** Holy Rolling ** Bible Prophecy **

Koreshanity Koreshanity is the set of religious pseudoscientific beliefs put forth by Cyrus Teed (also known as Koresh). Followers of this belief were called "Koreshans", and most of them formed a utopian communal society called the Koreshan Unity. Main bel ...

Mazdaznan Mazdaznan is a neo-Zoroastrian religion which held that the Earth should be restored to a garden where humanity can cooperate and converse with God. Founded at the end of the 19th century by Otoman Zar-Adusht Ha'nish, born Otto Hanisch, the rel ...

** Black Magic ** Mental Malpractice ** Science and Wealth ** New Nonsense ** "Dollars Want Me!" ** Spiritual Financiering ** The Graft of Grace * Book Seven: The Church of the Social Revolution (based on Jesus the proletarian and brother of all humankind)

Critical reception

Reviewing several of the Dead Hand series, a contemporary critic wrote, "These great pamphlets…are storehouses of laborious research. They are indispensable to any student of present American life. I have heard Upton Sinclair charged with reckless, inaccurate and indiscreet use of his material. I am glad to say here that in my own experience I have found him scrupulously anxious, at whatever trouble to himself, to report the exact facts and to weigh carefully his judgments upon them. Why, then, have not these books the authority which they should have?…His explanation is oversimplified; he tends to see his facts in the light of a single motive." Lovett, Robert Morss, "Upton Sinclair," ''The English Journal'' 17 (9) (Nov., 1928), 706–14. In ''The Brass Check'' (1919), Sinclair wrote, "''The Profits of Religion'' was practically boycotted by the capitalist press of America. Just one newspaper, the ''Chicago Daily News'', reviewed it—or rather allowed me space in which to review it myself. Just one religious publication, the ''Churchman,'' took the trouble to ridicule it at length. Half a dozen others sneered at it in brief paragraphs, and half a dozen newspapers did the same, and that was all the publicity the book got, except in the radical press."

References

External links

*Th
first edition
an
fifth edition
are available free at Project Gutenberg. * *See quotes from ''The Profits of Religion'' at

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*Sinclair’s papers for ''The Profits of Religion'' are at th
Lilly Library

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