The Enlightenment and Great Awakening

The Enlightenment The use of reason and logic in understanding the universe –Rational Inquiry –Scientific discovery –Individual Freedom Stated in Europe –Scientific Revolution –Heliocentric – Nicolaus Copernicus –Theory of Gravity – Sir Isaac Newton –Religion and Science

Enlightenment in America European Enlightenment flowed to the colonies American experience fitted Enlightenment principles The study of astronomy, mathematics, science, geology, ecology, and chemistry grew –Benjamin Franklin epitomized Enlightenment Printer and Publisher Poor Richard’s Almanac UPenn and American Philosophical Society Electricity & Inventor Favored Natural Law and Reason over Religion

Education in the Colonies Enlightenment encourage learning in colonies –Classical Education = Traditional –Scientific Education = New Colonial Schools –Family –Church –Free public education Universities – born out of the Great Awakening, increased professional education in Colonies –Harvard, William & Mary, Yale, Princeton, Columbia, Brown, Rutgers, and Dartmouth all religious schools

The Great Awakening Most Colonies (85%) had official Religion –Religious Decline Religious Beginnings Religion became to intellectual Mercantilism Rural Society Revival of Religion in the American Colonies and birth of Evangelism –Traveling Ministers –Evangelists – “Reborn”

The Great Revivalist Jonathan Edwards Money/Intellectualism had corrupted Christianity Vivid descriptions of hell, Delights of heaven Sparked Revival “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry god” George Whitefield Great public speaker True Catalyst of Revival Championed Individual salvation Ministers became lazy and dumb Restore the fires of religious conviction

American Religions Revivalist Success and Failure –Awakening the piety of many Americans –Encouraged fragmentation of spiritual life –Undermined state supported religion –Along with the Enlightenment, created a unique culture that challenged authority Puritan Decline –Rejection of Calvinism –Forbidding and Irrational –Fragmentation allowed other religions to challenge