Christian History Magazine #151 - Revivals II
Second in our series on revival, this issue of CH covers historical revivals from the sixteenth through eighteenth centuries, with a special focus on First and Second Great Awakenings.
- Item number: 4924
- Media type: Magazine
- Running Time: 56 pgs
- Region: All
- Production Year: 2024
- Producer:
Description
Join CH as we unfold historical revivals from the sixteenth through eighteenth centuries, a second issue in our series on revival. Revival, as defined in CH’s first issue in this series (#149), is 1) popular– a widespread occurrence; 2.) transformative– resulting in conversion and recommitment to Christ; 3.) institutionally unsatisfied and critical– movements that question, reform, and renew institutions; and 4.) devotional– emotionally charged.
This issue details movements that certainly fit these criteria, focusing extensively on the First and Second Great Awakenings. Both awakenings swept through America and transformed her church. We take a deep dive into the revival preachers and gatherings of that specific time, highlighting the lives and ministries of influential revivalists: George Whitefield, John and Charles Wesley, Jonathan Edwards, and later, Charles Finney, Barton W. Stone, and A.B. Simpson, among many others. These awakenings resulted in the renewal of many people and in many ways, the conversion of a nation.
But before we jump into the heart of these awakenings, we start as CH often does: in unexpected places. From the institutionally critical English Puritans, whose reform movement made waves in the Church of England, we move to Reform Catholics of the Early Modern period, whose desire to more deeply encounter Jesus transformed the Catholic church. Around the same time, Pietism would change local communities and influence figures well beyond its beginnings within German Lutheranism. In this issue, you’ll see how God used these movements as perhaps unlikely vectors of revival.
Through stories and people you may be familiar with, to those figures less often recognized and easier to miss within the big “Awakening” picture, we invite you to follow the threads that spanned continents and faith traditions to weave a fascinating tapestry of spiritual revival.