The philosophies of Puritanism, the Great Awakening, and the Enlightenment provide much of the intellectual foundation for the establishment of the United States. ... The Great Awakening was, in part, an emotional effort to reassert the earlier extreme piety over the rationalism and optimism of the Enlightenment. ... From the standpoint of a scholar of the Enlightenment at the college of William and Mary in Virginia in 1765, God, "Watchmaker", was no longer present. ... Men of the Enlightenment viewed the universe as a great clock, created by God, but allowed to operate freely. ... The ei...

• Word Count: 768
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

The modern era in Jewish thought was established by the alarmingly radical figure of seventeenth century philosopher, Baruch Spinoza (1632-1677), who influenced Enlightenment thought throughout Europe as part of an international ideological movement. ... Spinoza highlighted the tensions of enlightenment. ... The laws of nature were equated with the laws of God in Enlightenment thinking. ... Locke is regarded by some as a representative of a moderate strand in Enlightenment thought compared to the politically and philosophically radical tradition stemming from Spinoza. ... Spinoza's pr...

• Word Count: 2438
• Approx Pages: 10
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

Augustine's Confessions is a personal recollection of his ascent from a life of sin and emptiness to one of fulfillment and higher understanding. He started his quest (from where we entered his voyage) rejecting God, but as his books are titled Confessions, Augustine begins to confess his sins and f...

• Word Count: 700
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

Man is in eternal conflict with himself and with his surroundings because of the coexistence of good and evil both within and around him. It is therefore necessary for him to encounter these evil forces to be able to make a distinction between the good and the bad in order to recognize and resist th...

• Word Count: 1164
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

Throughout the span of time humans have questioned many aspects of our existence, such as why we are here, what our purpose is and is there a greater plan? There is a shortcoming for the answers to these questions, therefore we look to religion for answers of the unknown. I truly believe it is the e...

• Word Count: 988
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

The fact that he finds that inspiration and enlightenment in the presence of a pagan God instead of at his Holy Communion rattles Antonio's beliefs to such an extent that he left unsure of what to believe. ...

• Word Count: 1348
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

Not only did these composers grow up in the age of Enlightenment (the dawn of a society that used science to describe the natural world), these composers saw the horrors of the French Revolution and this made people question the existence of a benevolent God. ...

• Word Count: 1085
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

In the second-century, the Christian Church strained for identity while being persecuted by the Roman authorities, confronted by Jewish and pagan hostility, and challenged by the internal dilemma of Gnostic adaptation. Gnostic sects arose not in direct opposition to the Orthodox Church, but with a h...

• Word Count: 2211
• Approx Pages: 9
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate