The Low Value Set Upon Human Life in the United States: a Discourse Delivered on Thanksgiving-Day, November 24Th, 1853

The Low Value Set Upon Human Life In The United States: A Discourse Delivered On Thanksgiving-Day, November 24Th, 1853 by Henry Augustus Boardman. This 19th?century sermon analyzes how American society often treats human life as less valuable than convenient progress or economic advantage. Boardman argues that the sanctity of life is a central moral and religious obligation, and that widespread hazards in transportation, public policy, education, and law reflect a deeper cultural undervaluing of life. He urges improvements in public safety, reform of educational and religious institutions, and a renewed ethical commitment to protect the vulnerable. Throughout, the discourse intertwines theological reflections on Providence, creation, redemption, and providential care with calls for civic virtue, personal responsibility, and national renewal grounded in religion and moral obligation. It is a polemical appeal for reform rooted in Christian ethics and the belief that national prosperity and righteousness are inseparably linked.