How does Kate Bowler explain the prosperity gospel's view of sickness?

Kate Bowler, a historian of American religion, traces the prosperity gospel to late 19th-century New Thought ideas about the power of the mind. Believers hold that right thinking and right speaking can create a new reality, including good health and wealth. Applied to illness, that logic says symptoms are lies to be overcome and a sick person has not used their power well. Bowler says this makes suffering feel like personal failure.

• Bowler says New Thought spread from elite circles into Good Housekeeping magazine.
• She describes it as a cousin of Christian Science that accepts the body but wants it tamed by positive words.
• Speaking negatively about one's condition is called negative confession in this tradition.

▸In their words

“So there's no exception. But if there's no exception, that means there's no excuse.” Kate Bowler · at 32:31 — open in the transcript →

Source: our own transcription of the episode. The full conversation is on Hidden Brain (2026-10-05). Read the whole episode summary →

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