CE - The Great Awakening (Lesson)

The Great Awakening

Awakening- A shift in awareness

Did you ever see a cartoon where the “lightbulb” goes off? That moment they have become aware of something. We have all had that similar moment of an “a-ha!”.

So how does this play into our content and the Great Awakening?

The Great Awakening was a religious revival that existed in the colonies during the 1730s and 1740s. It prompted colonists to question their previously held thoughts. It encouraged colonists to question authority. Together those two ideals promoted the movement for independence.

The Great Awakening

To first understand the Great Awakening you must understand a period of increased learning known as the Enlightenment. The Enlightenment stressed logic and reason in scientific study. But, most importantly it stressed the importance of the individual and their role in understanding the world around them. The Enlightenment ideal of the importance of the individual was then amplified within principles of the Great Awakening. Ministers such as Jonathan Edwards and George Whitefield preached on a concept of personal salvation. With this understanding, followers were told to study the Bible and gain a personal understanding of their faith. Now instead of relying on clergy from Christian sects (including the Church of England), individuals pursued their own understanding and questioned the authority of the Church. Because individuals need to pursue their own understanding, many colonists became literate. In fact, the American colonies were some of the most literate in the British Empire. To show you where this all leads, let’s put this information into an equation: 

Increased desire to learn + The importance of the individual + Question Authority +

Question previously held beliefs + Increased literacy

= Revolutionary Thought

Portrait of George Whitefield

IMAGE COURTESY OF NATIONAL PORTRAIT GALLERY, SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. “SMITHSONIAN LEARNING LAB RESOURCE: GEORGE WHITEFIELD.” SMITHSONIAN LEARNING LAB, SMITHSONIAN CENTER FOR LEARNING AND DIGITAL ACCESS, 31 OCT. 2015.