Evangelical Christianity, Secular Humanism, and the Genesis of British Social Work

Reimagining the Relationship between Social Work and Information Communication Technology in the Network Society

“…As the speed of the Industrial Revolution increased so too did the number of social problems, as rural workers flooded to the major cities in search of a better life (Franklin, 1986;Young & Ashton, 1967;Zastrow, 2008). It was into this milieu that the earliest social organisations and social work pioneers, such as Mary Richmond and Jane Addams, began the development of what would become the modern social work profession (Bowpitt, 1998;Franklin, 1986;Young & Ashton, 1967;Zastrow, 2008).…”

‘No Room for Religion or Spirituality or Cooking Tips’: Exploring Practical Atheism as an Unspoken Consensus in the Development of Social Work Values in England

“…In a series of writings, Graham Bowpitt (1989Bowpitt ( , 1998Bowpitt ( , 2000 has emphasized the conflict between Evangelical philanthropists and the emerging forces of professional social work in the second half of the nineteenth century, principally the Charity Organisation Society (hereinafter, the COS), which he consistently characterizes as militantly secular and out to discredit the churches' philanthropic endeavors: 'While the iron fist [of the COS] sought to discredit Christian charity, the velvet glove sought its co-operation' (Bowpitt 1989, p. 15). For Bowpitt, this conflict was a crucial phase in the development of the social work profession and he laments everything that was lost by the churches being elbowed out of social work.…”

“…While keeping to the disclaimer that this article is not attempting to encapsulate or summarize the nature of secularism in social work, it is nevertheless important to point out that, just as the churches were not separate from the process of secularization, early professional social work was not a single uniform entity, defined by its secularism. Bowpitt (1989) characterizes the COS as 'secular storm troopers', and, indeed, some of the leaders of the COS in this early period were explicit in their humanism and secularism. Bernard Bosanquet (1899, p. 113) wrote about the need for an 'ethical faith' and penned what might be characterized as a rallying call for humanist social work: '[T]he means of grace are no longer magical or limited, but are as wide as the greater world exercises upon the individual human animal' (Bosanquet 1899, p. 119).…”

Social Care Work in the Recent Past: Revisiting the Professional/Amateur Dichotomy

“…Religiously motivated nonprofessionals operating on the basis of their emotions were replaced by those using a body of knowledge and a systematic, scientific approach (Graham, Coholic, & Coates, 2006;Witz, 1992). In the UK, the religious antecedents of professional social work, for example in the work of Canon Barnett's settlement at Toynbee Hall, are recognised and there has been some critical engagement with this legacy (Bowpitt, 1998;Forsythe, 1995;Parry & Parry, 1979). This contrasts with Australia, where professional social work arrived ''already formed'' with the overseas-trained pioneers (Lawrence, 1965).…”