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Great Awakening

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Submitted By stephani08
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I am going to describe the outbreak of revival during the Great Awakening. First of all the Great Awakening was a Christian revitalization movement that swept Protestant Europe and British America and especially the American colonies in the 1730s and 1740s, leaving a permanent impact on American religion. It resulted from powerful preaching that gave listeners a sense of personal revelation of their need of salvation by Jesus Christ. Some historians have speculated that the shift from rural and agricultural to urban and commercial styles of life may have engendered guilt in those leaving "the old ways" behind.
In a few towns the rapid spread of revival followed closely upon the heels of serious illness, especially the "throat distemper" (diphtheria) which carried away large numbers of New Englanders in the 1730s. In other awakened localities, economic problems had been a troubling source of tensions.
Some merchants worried about the effects of conflict following Britain's declaration of war on Spain in 1739. Many others joined the merchants in concern about the absence of an adequate currency. It deemphasized the importance of church doctrine and instead put a greater importance on the individual and their spiritual experience.
The Great Awakening arose at a time when man in Europe and the American colonies were questioning the role of the individual in religion and society. It began at the same time as the Enlightenment which emphasized logic and reason and stressed the power of the individual to understand the universe based on scientific laws. I want to talk more about the importance of the Great awakening. First of all it pushed individual religious experience over established church doctrine, thereby decreasing the importance and weight of the clergy and the church in many instances. Also New denominations arose or grew in numbers as a result of the emphasis on individual faith and salvation. It also unified the American colonies as it spread through numerous preachers and revivals. This unification was greater than had ever been achieved previously in the colonies. I truly hope you enjoyed reviewing my views of the Great Awakening!
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