William Dwight Porter Bliss (1856–1926) was an American Episcopal priest and one of the most famous and influential Christian socialists at the turn of 20th century. As a devout churchman, organizer, public speaker and an editor of numerous publications for over 40 years, Bliss became a central figure for the entire Christian socialist movement. Early life William Dwight Porter Bliss was born in Constantinople, Turkey, on August 20, 1856, the son of Edwin Elisha Bliss and Isabella Holmes (Porter) Bliss, who were Christian missionaries there. He was educated at Phillips Academy, Andover, Amherst College, and the Hartford Theological Seminary in Hartford, Connecticut. Religious and social influences Hartford Theological Seminary was where Bliss first learned about religion in relation to social problems. The most notable influencers during his time of theological study being Henry George and articles in the Christian Union. His immediate work after seminary also greatly impacted the trajectory of his future career as a socialist preacher who engaged in activism. Following his graduation from Hartford Theological Seminary in 1882, Bliss was ordained a Congregationalist minister where he was forced to deal with, first hand, the serious labor problems that faced working-class people in America. After witnessing the effects that working unbearably long hours had on family life, the limited amount of food, and the harsh conditions working-class people faced in Boston, Bliss was convinced that the church had a direct duty to improve such terrible conditions. According to Bliss, every person was a part of the kingdom of God regardless of religion and therefore should be treated as such. During this same time, Bliss also become interested in the writings of people such as Charles Kingsley, Frederick Denison Maurice, Edward Bellamy, the English Christian socialist, and most notably George E. McNeil. While all these writers were important to Bliss's foundational understanding of Christianity's role in social and economic life, it was George E. McNeil who had the greatest impact. According to Bliss “McNeil was the one man living from whom in spirit as well as economic wisdom he had learned the most”. These thinkers along with Bliss's experiences helping working-class folk eventually led him to christian socialism, a movement which sought to apply socialism principles to the teachings of Christ in order to address modern social difficulties, caused, by industrialization and urbanization. His radical views on Christianity eventually pushed him to leave Congregationalism to join the Episcopal Church