The Democratization Of American Christianity

The Second Great Awakening laid the foundations of the development of present-day religious beliefs and establishments, moral views, and democratic ideals in the United States. Beginning back in late eighteenth century and lasting until the middle of the nineteenth century,1 this Protestant awakening sought to reach out the un-churched and bring people to a much more personal and vivid experience of Christianity. Starting on the Southern frontier and soon spreading to the Northeast, the Second Great Awakening has also been associated as a response against the growing liberalism in religion - skepticism, deism, and rational Christianity.2 Although the movement is well-known to be

The word “God” or “Christianity” is often thrown around in the political world today. Candidates often can be seen supporting the invasions of other nations, but then claiming a strong devotion to God only a few moments later. The question is, “how has America become such a broken nation with such distorted views of the role of Christianity?” The emergent idea of America as a Christian nation is an important and relevant issue with many possible consequences. In reality, there are many cultural and religious influences in the nation, but many people have internalized the idea that the Christian religion is not solely an influential aspect of our society, but instead helps to construct the society itself. Personally, before reading

America’s economic success brought about a series of societal and cultural changes which impacted many aspects of citizens lives, ranging from family life, gender roles, social class, and religion. At the time of the Second Great Awakening, Americans turned to religious revivalists to provide them with resolutions to these fundamental problems facing the United States. While most of these revivalists preached of constructive changes, Johnson and Wilentz highlight the dangers behind our nation’s tolerance of fundamentalists, enthusiasts and visionaries of all sorts. They display our nation's susceptibility to volatile cults and revivals. Motivated by his desire to protect the “ancient truth” and "Despite all of his protestations of faith, [Matthews] was violating the most basic precepts of evangelical manhood, with his unsteady work habits, his self-glorification, and his domestic tyranny" (Johnson and Wilentz

In the seventeenth and eighteenth century, religious toleration in the American colonies increased steadily. This was due in part to numerous factors like tolerant ideas and practices expressed and practiced by religiously communities, economic necessities, and The Great Awakening. The Great Awakening occurred in the early 18th century and can be depicted by enthusiastic and fervent worship in a series of revivals that spread throughout the American colonies. The type of revivalism that was found within the colonies during the Awakening was not necessarily the intended outcome of religious freedom, but nonetheless it produced a train of thought that opposed the idea of an act or a church as a single truth for all. As preachers visited town after town, sects, moved by the oration of these reverends and ministers, began to break off from larger churches and a multitude of Protestant denominations sprouted. As we see in Nathan Cole’s description of the excitement in hearing George Whitefield preach at Middletown, “ [he] felt the spirit of God drawing [him] by conviction; [he] longed to see and hear him and wished he would stay.” During the eighteenth century, uncertainty in politics and the economy depicted life in the New World and, in doing so, shifted attention away from Puritanism and other religious duties. Cole’s description serves to demonstrate the anticipation and open-mindedness of many to hear and accept what was being preached to them. The Great Awakening promoted an individualistic way of life. We see this in Reverend Charles Woodmason writing- that among the congregation he visited, “not one had a Bible or common prayer.” Of what he witnessed in the backcountry of South Carolina, people were “educated in the principles of [his faith]” but, because of how individualistic each person of faith was,

A lot has happened over the this course learning everything from music in the 1960s to interrogation techniques of the current. The last ting we learned about our country is how Christians played a role in it. The history of we came to be in America, how we have an influence and the social enigmas with wanting it in politics. The main things we covered in the past eight weeks is how different events have effected or influenced the United States. We begin in the sixties and worked our way through the major events and crises of our country.

From the first settlers in the New World, religion had a place in this country. While Puritans had a foothold, it wasn’t until the mid-eighteenth century that religion became tightly woven into the fabric of the fledgling Nation. This essay will address the rise of Methodism in the United States; the growth of the evangelicals and the highlights of the politically charged aspects of religion in America from the mid-18th century to the Civil War. While there have been many events occur around politics and religion in America, the two that hold the most significance were African Americans being brought into the fold of the evangelical Church and the Civil War.

Hatch’s book is one of an era and a topic that I had never studied before. Hatch’s book covers the period from the end of the American Revolution through the mid-1840s. However, I believe the topic should be considered through today’s rise of the televangelist and the mega-churches of America. Hatch outlines the rise of churches (as egalitarian based) based on the belief, which coincided with the rise of the American population and its expansion westward.

From the initial formation of the American colonies, there has been tension between Protestant and Catholic religious ideology. In his book Who Are We, Samuel Huntington discusses the importance of the early American settler’s dissenting Protestant values. Without the Protestants, Huntington claims, American culture as we know it would not exist (Huntington, 59). Huntington is right that American culture was formally designed by dissenting Protestants, although that history is fraught with prejudice against opposing religious groups. This tension is most notable within the concept and application of religious freedom throughout American history.

Through out history religion has played a major role in history. For many people who settled in Northern New England came for religious freedom and the colonies were spread because of that. Believing in religion is often the spiritual thing that they lead their life with. Robert Putnam, in his book, American Grace; How Religion Divides and Unites Us claims that religion, when taken in high doses is toxic to civil life, this is true to an extent. Although many people can agree with his claim he isn’t completely right because religion can still be beneficial for people who truly believe in it. Its true religion has set back society a few steps with the prosecution of many innocent people and the deaths of thousands of people but, religion has also helped many people get through hardships they face.

When Protestants left Europe to move forever in America, they believed they followed God’s will leaving the corrupted England for a Promise Land in order to establish the Nation of God. They believed they were chosen by God to establish a New Israel into the wilderness that America was. They came in America with specific ideas in mind and specific plans to follow in order to complete the holy mission they had received. The importance of the immigration of the English Protestants in America, as the reader understands reading William Bradford’s “History of Plymouth Plantation”, John Winthrop’s “A Model of Christian Charity” and Mary Rowlandson’s The Narrative of the Captivity and the Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson, lays on the system of

There exists a long held belief that the United States of America was founded on the principles and doctrinal views of Protestantism. Modern age Christians have scoured historical documents in an effort to provide evidence for a Judeo-Christian foundation in the nation’s republican framework. Likewise, their opponents have written lengthy dissertations and argued over various media outlets that Christian conclusions are unfounded. Yet despite their endless debate, religion, especially Christianity, has and continues to play a fundamental element of America’s cultural, societal, and political makeup. The Second Great Awakening, the religious revivalist movement of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, ignited not only a

The promise of a fresh start is appealing to everyone, especially to those living in England in the early to mid-seventeenth century (Feldmeth, 2004). England was a thriving epicenter of worldwide influence in every aspect of life including: technology, arts, religion, and learning. Some people, however, were not satisfied with the social norm in England and were even less satisfied with the religion practices occurring there. This smaller dissatisfied group was known as the Puritans. Puritans were disgusted with the debauchery and self-centered practices of the Church of England, as a result they disassociated themselves. The Puritans were an offshoot of the typical church in England and in 1620, they migrated to Plymouth, New England (“Puritanism”, 1991). This migration signaled the beginning of the Church in America, and would define the moral basis of Americans for years to come. The Puritan migration to America in the 17th century was unique in the sense it was mostly family units. In contrast, typical migrations to America were younger single men (“Puritanism”, 1991). Another group seeking freedom from persecution in England was the Quakers. The Quakers shared many similar religious beliefs as the Puritans, but when the first Quaker missionaries reached New England in 1656, they were driven out by the Puritans (Tokarev, 2011). This event shows that even the early church strayed from Christian living, however not in the magnitude of the current generations. Both the Quakers and Puritans were persecuted by the Church of England because their religious beliefs did not line up. Without the persecution from the Church in England, the early church in America might not have the values and principles that this country was founded

Christianity and democracy share many basic assumptions that make them natural partners. The source of “modern democracy” was a supposedly Christian culture. So one would expect its political norms to replicate religious views. A noticeable illustration of Christianity’s impact on U.S. politics is the Declaration of Independence. This manuscript was intended to defend Colonial rebellion against the king of England. By itself, it refers to doctrines such as objective truth, a “Creator,” intrinsic value, personal responsibility and human equality. All of these are actually found in a single sentence from the Declaration: “We hold these facts to be irrefutable, that all men are created equal, that they are given by their Creator with certain unalienable

A few hundred years after the dawn of the Christianity movement during the first century, Christianity was confirmed to be a legal religion in 313 by emperor Constantine I and emperor Licinius. As a result of its legalization, Christians were more noticeable within society. Eventually, Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire in 380 AD under emperor Theodosius I. Its legalization also put an official end to the decades of intense persecution that began in 249 AD under emperor Decius. Unfortunately, by the time the persecution had ceased in 305 AD, the Christians were already facing several internal problems that caused divisions within the community and gave rise to the various schisms. Also, during this time, unification

Social categories are defined and maintained to establish a social hierarchy, and one of these social categories is religion (Adam, 2013). Thus, the dominance of one religious group over another creates a hegemony, which is defined as “unconscious reproduction of dominant group norms, values, beliefs, [and] cultural forms carried on as part of everyday life” (Adams & Joshi, 2013, p. 230). In the United States, Protestant Christianity is the dominant religion, and this dominance of Christianity creates Christian hegemony, which is “society’s unacknowledged adherence to a dominant religious worldview that…publicly affirms Christian observances” (2013, p. 230). This Christian hegemony also leads to Christian privilege in society (2013). Thus,