![Picture](/uploads/3/0/0/9/30099703/1401378292.jpg)
Many religious authorities in the Progressive Era, most notably the Catholic Church disagreed with the liberal idea of faith and politics, but these progressive notions triumphed due to the fact that most Americans came to accept the fact that one could freely practice their faith while keeping specific religious beliefs. Others believed that religious values should be applying to the teachings of the public. American Protestant ministers and theologians during the 19th century such as Walter Rauschenbusch espoused this belief. To Rauschenbusch, what the horrible state of the cities needed was a rebuilding of society. "God is acting, and Christ is here now," Rauschenbusch proclaimed. It was up to men and women like him to act on the message of Christ and help create the kingdom of God on earth. He believed that people should question God before believing in everything by uncovering the true message of Christ. Rauschenbusch believed that the authentic message of Jesus had been corrupted by Gospel writers, Christian apologists and the apostle Paul. Rauschenbusch also welcomed biblical criticism, which he believed allowed scholars to recover the true message and real personality of the historical Jesus. Stripping away this literary debris, Jesus emerged as a revolutionary fighter, a man dedicated to social reform.