Dbq Great Awakening

Essay Question: What were the causes of the Great Awakening and to what extent did this intense religious revival affect those who experienced ¡°conversion¡± as well as those who did not? During Europe¡¯s period of Enlightment from 1687-1789, new scientific theories and ideas were proposed, changing the nature of how the world was looked at and questioned the very fundamentals of religion. The Great Awakening of the 1730s-1740s acted as a direct response to the Enlightment in order to revive the passion for religion, affecting greatly for those who experienced ¡°conversion¡± as well as those who did not. The causes of the Great Awakening came directly from the new liberal Enlightment ideas that greatly challenged the old-time religion. Many of these ideas questioned the Calvinist doctrine of predestination, for example, some worshippers now proclaimed that human beings were not necessarily predestined to damnation, and individual free will determined a person¡¯s eternal fate (Bailey 96). Along
Unlike the ¡°new lights¡± who believed in emotionalism, the ¡°old lights¡± were deeply skeptical of the emotionalism of the revivalists (Bailey 97). Eventually, the older clergy were undermined by the emphasis of direct, emotive spirituality of the ¡°new lights.¡± Therefore, the authority of the Anglican Church declined, in the process weakening royal authority in the colonies (Bailey 97). The Quaker faith, which believed in Enlightment ideas, also weakened as a result (5B1). Furthermore, as the Great Awakening promoted equality among people, aristocrats and the upper-class became worried of losing their established and privileged position in society. In addition, ¡°new light¡± institutions of higher learning such as Princeton, Brown, and Dartmouth were established, creating competition among American churches (Bailey