Abbott worked variously in the publishing profession as an associate editor of Harper's Magazine, and was the founder of a publication called the Illustrated Christian Weekly,[9] which he edited for six years.

[4] From 1881 Abbott was editor-in-chief of The Christian Union, renamed The Outlook in 1891;[8] this periodical reflected his efforts toward social reform, and, in theology, a liberality, humanitarianism and nearly unitarian.

Abbott was a religious figure of some public note and was called upon on October 30, 1897, to deliver an address in New York at the funeral of economist, Henry George.

In 1913 Lyman Abbott was expelled from the American Peace Society because military preparedness was vigorously advocated in The Outlook,[13] which he edited, and because he was a member of the Army and Navy League.

The issue asked readers for understanding as the paper "wait[ed] until [the] next week to give to his friends, known and unknown, a record of his life and of the tributes which marked his passing.

"[15] The many diverse and prominent author who contributed tributes "demonstrated the scope and magnitude of Lyman Abbott's influence within American religious and intellectual culture during his long career.

"[17] Dr. Henry Sloane Coffin noted at a later memorial service, "Measured by the number of people he reached, Dr. Abbott was unquestionably the greatest teacher of religion of this generation.

[20] Abbott influenced hundreds every week through his sermons at the prestigious Plymouth Avenue Congregationalist Church.

"[21] The magazine "was a prominent news source for Protestant ministers and laypeople all over the United States, demonstrating Abbott's lasting influence.