The Spiritual Movement : The Great Awakening

While new religious ideas fanned out and denominations proliferated, social activism, in response, also began to escalate. The Second Great Awakening stirred the initiation of

The First Great Awakening, also known as The Great Awakening, was a religious movement that swept the American colonies in the early 1700s, leaving a permanent impact on American beliefs and contributing to the kindling of the American Revolution.

To begin, the Great Awakening took place during the early 1730’s. It was a period where religious revivals were spreading along the Atlantic coast. Preachers such as Jonathan Edwards would go around and try to get people back into Christianity. One reason why colonist turned away from Christianity was because of the Enlightenment. He would describe hell and heaven trying to convince colonist to rejoin christianity.

In essence, the Great Awakening was a religious awakening. It started in the South. Tent camps were set up that revolve around high spirited meetings that would last for days. These camp meetings were highly emotional and multitudes of people were filled with the Spirit of God. These meeting, were sponsored mainly by Methodist, Baptist, and Presbyterians, and met social needs as well as spiritual needs on the frontier. Since it was hard for the Baptist and Methodist to sustain local churches,

A product of the religious revival in Western Europe from late 17th century to early 18th century, the First Great Awakening was a period of religious growth throughout the British American colonies from approximately 1720 to the 1740s. This awakening was led by many religious figures such as John Wesley - a founder of Methodism in the Church of England, George Whitefield - an Anglican who preached throughout the colonies from 1739 to 1740, and Jonathan Edwards - an Apologist of the Great Awakening who led the revival in Northampton, Massachusetts. Although this period of religious high is referred to as “The First Great Awakening,” historians still debate whether or not this grandiose title is deserved.

The First Great Awakening was a religious movement that took place between 1720 and 1750, affecting every colony and greatly affecting history (Garrigus). People started feeling that religion was dull and not as significant as it once was seen (Ppt). Preachers began to feel like people were not putting their emotions on their faith. They wanted people to be physically and emotionally involved (Garrigus). This is where Christians began to turn away from the standard approach of worship. The Great Awakening created a substantial change on how early American’s viewed worship, social standards, political standards, economical standards, and Christianity.

Between 1820 and 1860, Americans constructed 40,000 new churches compared to the 10,000 they constructed in the 40 years before 1820. At the end of the revival period, ”one-third of all Americans attended church regularly.”(P.400) Many of the early revival preachers embraced Christian evangelicalism, the established groups sought to take advantage of the popular enthusiasm to build their particular denominations. Methodists and the Baptists established themselves as leading American denominations as a result of the Second Great Awakening. The two faiths had a mutual sense of affinity with regard to doctrine, but the Baptists created a radically decentralized hierarchy that empowered local ministers and individual churches.

Some called it the Second Great Awakening because it “raised people’s hopes for the second coming of the Christian messiah and the establishment of God’s kingdom on earth.” (Norton, et. al., Mindtap, 10-7) With industrialization on the rise and new cities in development, many people began to take certain aspects of culture as symbols of evil. The Second Great Awakening was a way to prevent evil in American cities in the hope of creating a perfect Christian society. “Revivalists strove for large-scale conversions. Rural women, men, and children traveled long distances to camp meetings, where they heard fiery sermons preached day and night from hastily constructed platforms and tents in forests or fields.” (Norton, et. al., Mindtap, 10-7) Many people were traveling great distances to hear sermons because they were persuaded to believe that society needed to be cleansed before the messiah’s return. The most popular preachers of this revival were Lyman Beecher and Charles G. Finney. These two preachers “argued that evil was avoidable,” and anyone could be cleansed from sin. (Norton, et. al., Mindtap, 10-7a) Charles G. Finney was a law-turned-Presbyterian minister who conducted revivals in towns along the Erie Canal. Finney was most successful in conversions in New York. New York at the time was experiencing a high level of technologic change. Along with technologic advancement

A restructuring of religious doctrine, beliefs, and social practices during the 17th and 18th centuries in England, and in North America, infused with Calvinistic religious doctrine initiated the beginning of The Great Awakening. Following this further, according to Christine Leigh Heyrman, The First Great Awakening: Divining America,” a New Age of faith rose to counter the currents of the Age of Enlightenment. Ultimately reaffirming the view that being truly religious meant trusting the heart rather than the head, prizing feeling more than thinking, and relying on biblical revelation rather than human reason. After a while, several religious revivals sprung forth appeasing the colonists in America desire for a deep and significant personal relationship with God. Thus, this dogma spread to other denominations throughout the colonies in America (Heyrman).” As a result, The Great Awakening spread throughout the middle colonies in America by notable revivalist preachers instituting moderate Calvinistic doctrinal theology especially for the Presbyterians and the Congregationalists, and opened the door to unprecedented world societal changes.

Before moving to the division within society, there were many important ministers who spread the Great Awakening messages to the colonies. The first minister was Jonathan Edwards, who was a Congregation minister in Massachusetts, spread the message in 1735. He escalated the message to new levels by making God as an angry God who held a person over the pit of Hell (Gillon, pg.144).

By the 18th century, there were concerns about the declining religious devotion and the increase of secularism emerging in the United States. The result of these changes was the Great Awakening, the first major american revival. There were many preachers that were outspoken from their religion. George Whitefield was one of many of those preachers. Whitefield was very compassionate during his speeches, preaching the words of God, weeping with sorrow, spreading the word of God, and hitting people on an emotional standpoint. He made numerous evangelizing tours through the colonies and attracted large crowds. Nathan Cole, like thousands of others, came to see George Whitefield. Nathan Cole wrote in “The Spiritual Travels of Nathan Cole” and said, “When I saw Mr. Whitefield come upon the Scaffold he lookt almost angelical; a young, Slim, slender, youth before some thousands of people with a bold undaunted Countenance, and my hearing how God was with him every where he came along it Solemnized my mind; and put me into a trembling fear before he began to preach; for he looked as if he was Cloathed with authority from the Great God; and a sweet sollume solemnity sat upon his brow And my hearing him preach, gave me a heart wound…” Cole had just described that hundreds upon hundreds of people came to see Whitefield and speakers like him. This greatly revived religion in many peoples’ lives. Cole said that the speech given touched him in the heart as it did with thousands of others.

The First Great Awakening, was a religious revitalization movement that came through the Atlantic region, and even more so in the American colonies in the 1730s and 1740s, forever impacting American religion & is widely known as the most important event for American religion during the eighteenth century. The First Great Awakening was inspired by an English Methodist known as George Whitefield along with other ministers, when many people in the rural areas rejected the Enlighted and rational religion that came from the Cosmopolitan pulpits and port cities. George Whitefield began this movement with speaking tours through the colonies (“The Great Awakening”).

The Great Awakening was a revival of conviction. People woke up from apathy and began to act on their faith. It was a new approach to religion. George Whitfield, in particular, demonstrated this innovative style in his preaching. The PBS episode “A New Adam” notes that Whitfield would “speak from his heart,” and that he appealed more to the imagination rather than to reason and understanding. This was unique at the time when established denominations demanded strict adherence to conventional systems. These sermons captured listeners’ attention by vibrantly descriptive language and animated delivery. It brought a fresh perspective to leading a Christian life.

The “Spiritual warfare Movement” is a movement that intensely focuses on the movements of the Holy Spirit in evangelistic and spiritual warfare. Pentecostal in nature, their focus is not on the physical war which is seen, but the spiritual war, which is unseen. It is written, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (NIV, Ephesians 6:12). Dan Jorgenson writes, “Third wave approaches draw on a series of theological and practical innovations prominently associated with evangelists such as C. Peer Wagner, John Wimber, Benny Hinn, George Otis, and John Dawson). Wagner coined the term ‘Third Wave’ as a shorthand designation for a Spirit-based movement that succeeded earlier Pentecostal forms (Wagner 1988:15).” A great deal of this movement began in the 1980’s and has proliferated since this time. Before it were two other Pentecostal and Charismatic waves. While many of this movements aficionados seek to separate their persons from the Pentecostal and Charismatic movements to appear more balanced in nature, having academic backing John MacArthur writes, “If you look very closely at the

Pentecostalism has its roots in Wesleyan notions of conversion and the higher-life advocates. Both of these brought out a belief in a second experience that happened after salvation. They, John Wesley and John Fletcher, called this baptism in the Holy Spirit. It also has its origins in the evangelical faith healing movement that was lead by Charles C. Cullis. This movement focused on healing and the physical well being through miraculous acts. Another was the early church of Corinth and the Day of Pentecost. The Great Awakening was also apart of the beginning of this movement through its “heartfelt salvation through Jesus Christ.” The baptism of the Holy Ghost streamed out of England through John Wesley’s thoughts on entire sanctification. Another group, Calvinist, who emphasized on a total transformation in their life after conversion.