Our forefathers came to this country seeking religious freddom from persecution in their homelands. Throughout American history, it has been the home to countless religious groups and sects - from the Pilgrims to the Protestants. And it is throughout our American history that times have been tough for some, leading to a series of religious revivals. .
In the 1730's and 40's, religious unrest was at its peak - the Puritan experiment was in decline, King Philip's war was going on overseas, and fires and crop failures were common occurances. The Great Awakening was born out of these unfortunate circumstances. The Great Awakening created several positive changes in the early American society. The First Amendment was fomed out of the need to seperate Church and state, and religious communication became a focus. Newspapers, pamphlets, and other prints became widely availabel and used to exchange ideas. New forms of preaching also arose out of the Great Awakening - one of spontaneous persuasive sermons and rhetoric. Finally, it brought a sense of democracy to the people; the idea that all could be saved, and elimanated the barrier between pastors and followers. This Great Awakening was able to stabilize the religious country only temporarily. Again, in the 1790's and through the 1840's, a second religious revival occurred. This time it was mostly because of the increase in liberalism in religion that the people resented, as well as the knowledge of a rowdy, wild life on the frontier, filled with alcohol, abuse and unwanted pregnancies. This became the focus of the Second Great Awakening, which was composed of three "theaters", or parts, in order to tackle these problems. After these 50 years intensified organized religion, things began to fall apart. And, once again, things would change. .
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Though that was the last of the "Great Revivals", many other unnamed ones would would occur when aspects of life became unpleasant for people.
