Frank Lambert, Frank Lambert - Inventing the 'Great Awakening'

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Frank Lambert, Frank Lambert

Inventing the 'Great Awakening'

English · Paperback / Softback

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This book is a history of an astounding transatlantic phenomenon, a popular evangelical revival known in America as the first Great Awakening (1735-1745). Beginning in the mid-1730s, supporters and opponents of the revival commented on the extraordinary nature of what one observer called the "great ado," with its extemporaneous outdoor preaching, newspaper publicity, and rallies of up to 20,000 participants. Frank Lambert, biographer of Great Awakening leader George Whitefield, offers an overview of this important episode and proposes a new explanation of its origins.

The Great Awakening, however dramatic, was nevertheless unnamed until after its occurrence, and its leaders created no doctrine nor organizational structure that would result in a historical record. That lack of documentation has allowed recent scholars to suggest that the movement was "invented" by nineteenth-century historians. Some specialists even think that it was wholly constructed by succeeding generations, who retroactively linked sporadic happenings to fabricate an alleged historic development. Challenging these interpretations, Lambert nevertheless demonstrates that the Great Awakening was invented--not by historians but by eighteenth-century evangelicals who were skillful and enthusiastic religious promoters. Reporting a dramatic meeting in one location in order to encourage gatherings in other places, these men used commercial strategies and newly popular print media to build a revival--one that they also believed to be an "extraordinary work of God." They saw a special meaning in contemporary events, looking for a transatlantic pattern of revival and finding a motive for spiritual rebirth in what they viewed as a moral decline in colonial America and abroad.

By examining the texts that these preachers skillfully put together, Lambert shows how they told and retold their revival account to themselves, their followers, and their opponents. His inquiries depict revivals as cultural productions and yield fresh understandings of how believers "spread the word" with whatever technical and social methods seem the most effective.

List of contents

List of Illustrations
Pt. 1 Opening Events: The "Great Awakenings" of the 1730s
Ch. 1 "... that Religion may revive in this Land"
Ch. 2 "the first fruits of this extraordinary and mighty Work of God's Special Grace"
Pt. 2 Wider Connections: An Intercolonial Great and General Awakening, 1739-1745
Ch. 3 "imported Divinity"
Ch. 4 The "Revival at ..."
Ch. 5 "... similar facts ... are now united": Constructing a Transatlantic Awakening
Pt. 3 Contested Inventions, 1742-1745
Ch. 6 The "grand delusion" or "great Mistakes of the present Day"
Ch. 7 "This is the Lord's Doing"
Epilogue. "The late Revival of Religion"
Notes
Selected Bibliography
Index

About the author

Frank Lambert is Associate Professor of History at Purdue University and the author of "Pedlar in Divinity:" George Whitefield and the Transatlantic Revivals, 1737-1770 (Princeton).

Summary

This book is a history of an astounding transatlantic phenomenon, a popular evangelical revival known in America as the first Great Awakening (1735-1745). Beginning in the mid-1730s, supporters and opponents of the revival commented on the extraordinary nature of what one observer called the "great ado," with its extemporaneous outdoor preaching, newspaper publicity, and rallies of up to 20,000 participants. Frank Lambert, biographer of Great Awakening leader George Whitefield, offers an overview of this important episode and proposes a new explanation of its origins.

The Great Awakening, however dramatic, was nevertheless unnamed until after its occurrence, and its leaders created no doctrine nor organizational structure that would result in a historical record. That lack of documentation has allowed recent scholars to suggest that the movement was "invented" by nineteenth-century historians. Some specialists even think that it was wholly constructed by succeeding generations, who retroactively linked sporadic happenings to fabricate an alleged historic development. Challenging these interpretations, Lambert nevertheless demonstrates that the Great Awakening was invented--not by historians but by eighteenth-century evangelicals who were skillful and enthusiastic religious promoters. Reporting a dramatic meeting in one location in order to encourage gatherings in other places, these men used commercial strategies and newly popular print media to build a revival--one that they also believed to be an "extraordinary work of God." They saw a special meaning in contemporary events, looking for a transatlantic pattern of revival and finding a motive for spiritual rebirth in what they viewed as a moral decline in colonial America and abroad.

By examining the texts that these preachers skillfully put together, Lambert shows how they told and retold their revival account to themselves, their followers, and their opponents. His inquiries depict revivals as cultural productions and yield fresh understandings of how believers "spread the word" with whatever technical and social methods seem the most effective.

Additional text

"Replete with tables outlining revival events and publications, Lambert's book is a highly accessible account for specialists and nonspecialists alike. His attention to the importance of print, his appreciation of the role of transatlantic revival networks, and his sensitivity to the nuances of cultural 'invention' make this a model of historical scholarship."---Peter J. Thuesen, The Catholic Historical Review

Product details

Authors Frank Lambert, Frank Lambert
Publisher Princeton University Press
 
Languages English
Product format Paperback / Softback
Released 23.01.2001
 
EAN 9780691086910
ISBN 978-0-691-08691-0
No. of pages 320
Subjects Humanities, art, music > History > Regional and national histories
Non-fiction book > History > Miscellaneous

USA, Modern history to 20th century: c 1700 to c 1900, HISTORY / Social History, Social & cultural history, RELIGION / Christian Ministry / Missions, RELIGION / Christian Ministry / Evangelism, RELIGION / Christianity / General, HISTORY / United States / 19th Century, RELIGION / Christianity / Denominations, 19th century, c 1800 to c 1899, Christian mission & evangelism, Christianity, 18th century, c 1700 to c 1799, Social and cultural history, United States of America, USA, History of the Americas, Religious mission and Religious Conversion, C 1700 To C 1800, Other Nonconformist & Evangelical Churches, Other Nonconformist and Evangelical Churches

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