Having witnessed the terrible conditions of debtors prison, as well as the results of releasing penniless debtors onto the streets of London, James Oglethorpe, a member of Parliament and advocate of social reform, petitioned King George II for a charter to start a new colony. While the movement unified the colonies and boosted church growth, experts say it also caused division among those who supported it and those who rejected it. In many ways, religion was becoming more formal and less personal during this time, which led to lower church attendance. Boston Evening-Post, July 15, 1745 To George Whitefield, You have sown the harmful seeds of separation and disorder among us. PDF GEORGE WHITEFIELD, HERO OF THE FAITH - Columbia International University Part of The Great Awakening: A History of the Revival of Religion in the Time of Edwards and Whitefield (1842) describing the New Lights. George Whitefield on Slavery: Some New Evidence Textbook content produced by OpenStax is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License . Most of New England belonged to congregational churches. Dec 15, 2022 OpenStax. Write DO above each direct object and IOI OIO above each indirect object. He published the first of many sermons in 1737, titled "The Nature and Necessity of Our Regeneration or New Birth in Christ Jesus.". This article was most recently revised and updated by, https://www.britannica.com/biography/George-Whitefield, The Victorian Web - Biography of George Whitefield, George Whitefield - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up). When he retired in 1748, he devoted himself to politics and scientific experiments. The Science of Sound: Whitefield's Massive Crowds - The Gospel Coalition George Whitefield (1714-1770), probably the most famous religious figure of the eighteenth century, passed through what is now Horry County, S.C. Whitefield was an English Anglican cleric and evangelist who was one of the founders of Methodism and the evangelical movement. He then took off his own pants and threw them into the fire, but a woman saved them and tossed them back to Davenport, telling him he had gone too far. Edwards is credited for inspiring hundreds of conversions, which he documented in a book, Narratives of Surprising Conversions.. These new churches gained converts and competed with older Protestant groups like Anglicans, members of the Church of England; Congregationalists, the heirs of Puritanism in America; and Quakers. Whitefield was a minister who traveled around England and the colonies and contributed to the Great Awakening through his powerful sermons, which called on personal committment to God and inticed moral guilt. The following is closely based on an article published in the Southern Baptist Journal of Theology, Volume 18, number 2 (Summer 2014), with selected references.The Trust's publications on Whitefield include The Life and Times of George Whitefield by Robert Philip, 1 George Whitefield by Arnold Dallimore, Volumes 1 2 and 2, 3 and Select Sermons of George Whitefield, 4 which includes an . In one year, Whitefield covered 5,000 miles in America and preached more than 350 times. He worked best in outdoor environments, where his flamboyant style and emphasis on the new birth necessary to become a Christian would mesmerize the masses who had gathered to hear him. He made seven preaching tours of the colonies between 1738 and 1770. This theme would characterize Whitefield's preaching content and style for the remainder of his life. Several ideas dominated Enlightenment thought, including rationalism, empiricism, progressivism, and cosmopolitanism. In the 1730s, it even prompted the founding of a new colony. An error occurred trying to load this video. On September 29, he prayed for strength to deliver one last sermon. At Oxford, Whitefield met John and Charles Wesley and participated in their Holy Club organization.