Great Awakening
1730s - 1740s
What was the Great Awakening?
 Religious revival movement.
 Evangelicalism-- “new birth” is the ultimate
religious experience.
 Followers accept that they are sinners and ask for
salvation.
Before the Great Awakening
 Before 1730s, most colonies had established
religions:
 Congregationalists in New England
(basically Puritans)
 Anglicans in New York and Southern
Colonies (same as Church of England)
“Old Lights” vs. “New Lights”
 Churches that grew as a result of the Great
Awakening: Presbyterianism, Methodism, Baptism
(“New Lights”)
 Great Awakening challenged authority and
hierarchy of established churches (“Old Lights:”
Congregationalists and Anglicans).
 Great Awakening said anyone could be converted
or “born again”; you didn’t need traditional church
leadership to decide whether or not you belong.
Leaders of the Great Awakening
George Whitefield
Jonathan Edwards
Today’s Question:
Why was George
Whitefield so
popular?