Finding God in the Newspapers: How the use of the word “God” in the media perpetuated religious pressures in New Orleans in 1841.

Not chosen for publication

The religious communities in New Orleans today share a common theme with the rest of the population the city has housed throughout its history: They are diverse. Within New Orleans there are 140 recognized catholic churches and schools, over 330 baptist churches and baptist associated organizations, nearly 100 Spiritual churches, and around 38 Jewish synagogues and other organizations. This isn’t surprising considering the fact that 65% of the population in New Orleans is a regular practitioner of religion (specific demographic breakdown included in the hyperlink). Considering the fact that the city was only formally established in 1718, most of these vast religious communities have been around for the majority of the city’s life, though not all of them have always been widely accepted. The Catholic Archdiocese was established in 1793, Baptist militaries first entered the city in 1798, the Jewish Community was present as early as 1758 (however was not fully established until the middle of the eighteenth century), and the Spiritual Community (the religious continuation of American Spiritualism) has been present since the 1850’s. Despite the prevalence of different religions in modern New Orleans it is clear that since its inception the city has been built around catholicism. 

The tangible implications of this began early on in the history of New Orleans in the form of legal restriction. This is illustrated by the creation/implementation of the Code Noir which dictated the rights of slaves/free people of color and attempted to expel the Jews from within the city while also naming roman catholicism the only legitimate religion at the time. Physical and cultural remnants of this ideological pressure endure today. A physical example is the St. Louis cathedral, the oldest building in the city and a large hub for religious activity as well as tourist attraction. It has continued to grow and expand since the beginning of the city and is one of the few enduring buildings from the time. Much of the city is peppered with religious iconography; The Fleur-de-lis (a symbol associated with catholicism that was also utilized as a brand early on to mark slaves) is present in architectural design across the city and has become connected to the very culture of New Orleans. Much of the tourist industry including Mardi Gras stems from christian traditions and the commodification of Hoodoo is rooted in catholicism becoming the dominant religion in New Orleans. Hell even the football team is named the Saints! These modern incarnations are the legacy of the pressures of religious ideals in society, however I think it is an appropriate and interesting question to ask how these ideals were perpetuated before any of these modern examples were created. 

Before the modern incarnations there was still an overwhelming pressure by society to conform to these ideals that extended outside of the law, though the tools used to implement this pressure were more limited. One of the most interesting examples can be found within old newspapers. Control over language and the way information is presented can be a powerful tool for forwarding individual beliefs. On top of this access and distribution of information is one of the most impactful ways to influence societal ideals, which can be seen in modern day through the continued use of “fake news”. This was especially important before the growth of readily available information that the internet provided. This makes the press (in this case newspapers) a very interesting place to look at societal norms/controls because media outlets dictate both the presentation (in the form of specific language utilized and narratives told) and the distribution of information. The tailored use of religious terminology in the press is a prime example of how the newspaper was used as a tool to control the religious ideology of the masses. By examining the very specific uses of the word “God” in the media during the 1840’s, specifically the Times Picayune throughout September of 1841, I hope to illustrate the manner in which this newspaper operated as a subtle social control during the time, steering people towards catholicism. The tailored presence of the word “God” (as well as the absence of the term in certain locations) reveals the dominance of catholicism at the time, and illustrates how the press can utilize language and narrative to influence societal beliefs. 

In total the term “God” was only used around 17 times in the Times Picayune throughout the month of September in 1841 (A few images are included above). Around half of the instances the term was used happened to be in either an advertisement or in a published piece of poetry. In the instances it was utilized for advertisements the term was not used in order to convince an individual to purchase a product or service. In all of these instances the term was included because a concert was being advertised, and the included sample lyrics (which were religious hymns very clearly created for a Christian audience) contained the phrase. This is important because through this exclusion it forwards the belief that “God” was not meant to be commodified. The absence of the phrase in the numerous sales pitches in this paper throughout a month’s worth of newspapers demonstrates the belief that religion was supposed to be detached from commerce, an important point because this absence elevates religion to a place that operates above daily life. “God” was not utilized to sell anything in the Times Picayune, showcasing the belief that it would have been inappropriate to utilize religion in a commercial manner. This simple exclusion helps to assert the belief that religion is considered more important than mundane life, a narrative that elevates the importance of religion in the readers minds. This is especially interesting because some of the other uses of the phrase are used to dedicate mundane successes/failures to “God”. 

When the phrase was used in poetry it was only ever used to illustrate the gracious nature of “God”. The term was never utilized in a way that showcased “God’s” more biblical malicious nature. It was instead used endearingly to attribute partial or full success of an endeavor to “God” or to highlight their more accepting nature. Even in a poetry piece from the Times Picayune about mourning a lost love titled “Lines: On The Death Of His Wife” by F. A. L the author simply says, “Thy spirit has flown to the home of its god, and is free, forever, from harm”, demonstrating a deep belief in heaven and god’s protective nature. There is no mention of any other gods outside of the Judeo-Christian one in any of the newspaper articles, inadvertently making the statement this specific iteration of “God” is the only real version. While the Judeo-Christian god is given praise and is attributed accomplishments in the newspaper, one of the primary vectors for the distribution of information at the time, any other form of god is excluded and is therefore confined to mythology as opposed to reality. In this instance the use of language and narrative in the Times Picayune subtly asserts the claim that the christian god is real and doesn’t provide any alternative narratives. In this instance the absence of the term in other religious expressions may be more significant than its utilization. This is a prime example of how the newspaper perpetuated religious ideals through censorship.

The other uses of the term within the September articles of the times Picayune were used in anecdotes about the world, op-eds, or as a linguistic flourish in a recounting of daily events (such as slave rebellions). Nearly every use of the term is meant to shed positive light upon the Judeo-Christian god and showcase the significant power said god possesses. “God” is attributed with the credit for both the action and the end result, removing agency from the individuals involved and promoting the narrative that “God” is omnipotent and has a hand in all of our successes and failures. By intentionally including only positive illustrations of the Judeo-Chirsitan god in the newspaper the curators of the Times Picayune granted christianity sole legitimacy as a religion and ensured that everyone seeking news about the world was forced to interact with this extremely powerful and benign depiction of the religious figure. This bolstered christianity within New Orleans at the time and instilled a sense of religious Xenophobia.