Second Great Awakening

This was a revival movement of the protestant reformers within Christianity in America.  The movement was led by Methodists and Baptists around 1790s and became popular by 1800. The revival attracted great number of followers around 1820s and became well established ideology in 1840s.

The reform was motivated to change the ills of society through improvement of morality of individuals.  The revival raised incentives over social reforms as abolitionism, poverty alleviation, checking of corruption, temperance, and women's right in America.

The reforms were incorporated into the national politics of United States of America.

Belief Of The Revival

The early 19th century in American Christian tradition was dominated by the postmillennials who held that Yahoshea Meshiyach will return to earth after the millennium of thousand years. This anticipation promoted many revivals and reforms towards preparation of believers for this expected advent.

This spurred many acclaimed restorationists who began to prophesy or divine on the particular year of Yahoshea's advent. Though the predictions did not actualize but the awareness gave rise to many denominations whereby some of the reformers extended their missionary works to social reforms.

The reformers of the Second Great Awakening raised their abilities upon the social sermons with the concept that converts were not only meant to seek for their salvation through repentance to sin but also to work for moral perfection of the society.

The reform became a rally point for religious and educational institutions that galvanized the activities of social networks, journalism and theological schools. This gave room for establishment of publication and educational societies that included the American Bible Society that was founded in 1816.

Locations And Methods Of The Revivals

In the early 19th century, numerous revivals took place at the Upstate New York. The territory was called the “Burned-over district” for sake of the continuous revivals.

Again, the American Frontier denominations sent preachers to the people at the back country which ignited the revival at those areas.

The missionaries used the method of “camp meetings” and such increased membership of Methodists, Baptists and Presbyterianism at the back country of Pennsylvania and its environs.

The camp meetings helped to extend the revivals to newly settled frontier region as settlers gather at the camps for worship and fellowship. Through activities of these camps, converts return home and establish local churches which later grew up.

The revivals later gave rise to traditional sacramental occasions. The revival equally created non-denominational churches as well as restorationalists movement that target at a church that will fit the status of the original and fundamental Yahosheanity.

In search of such model of Yahoshean tradition, they developed churches that includes the Churches of Christ, Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) etc. Other major churches that were influenced by the restorational attitude of the Second Great Awakening includes the Mormons, Baptists and Quakers.

Social Activities And Volunteerism

The Second Great Awakening supplemented the First Great Awakening on improvement of social equality of all human beings. The central theme of the revival was for the equality of all mortals before Yahweh and such attracted many slaves and Freed Africans into the movement.

The Baptists and Methodists in the South were authorized to preach to the slave holders and slaves alike.

By the orientation, the African American and salves began to be acceptable into the society and Christianity. One of the prominent Freed Slave was Black Harry Hosier who was credited to be the first African or freedman to have delivered sermon in a white congregation at Thomas Chapel in Chapel Town Deliverance in 1704.

The activities of the slaves and freedmen as well influenced the denominations that were rolling the Second Great Awakening in regards to increased membership. This equally led to establishment of local churches by the blacks. Such churches included the African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME) in Philadephia, the Independent African-American denomination in the United States in 1816 and the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church (AME-Zion) that was founded in New York City.

Through those formations, the African Americans began to produce preachers and missionaries that established the congregations to some cities in the South America.

The awareness created by the revivals of the Second Great Awakening inspired the slaves to seek for their freedom. In 1800, there was attempt of slave rebellion as was proposed by Gabriel Proser after an African Americans revival meetings in Virginia.

Although the rebellion was botched, it gave way for Nation Turner uprising of 1831 which instigated the white to place control of independent African congregations.

This was an evidence that the revival of the Second Great Awakening instigated the slaves to work toward abolitionism and improvement to other ill-social activities.

Another aspect or contribution of the revival was on women rights improvement in the Christian and secular society of America. Some of the established volunteer groups at the era were made up of women majority. Societies like the Female Missionary Society and the Maternal Association in New York were established by powerful women activists for support of evangelical activities in New York.

Some of the women organized volunteer societies took care of morality in the society, Abolitionism, Temperance Movement, Prison Reforms, Philanthropy, care of the less privileged and challenged persons.

The women's social benevolent works as well as their activities in the revival was gingered by their interest to tackle sinfulness amongst the youths, interest of religiosity amongst women, reaction to imbalanced gender activities and interest of applying religious methods to set moral spiritual foundation in the family etc.

More than ever, the revival increased the chances of women's participation in Christian churches as well as secular societies. The women characters and approach penetrated into the Christianity that influenced it to wear a “feminization” gown that was opposed by the traditionist Christianity.

Politically, the Second Great Awakening laid good foundation for many social reforms in America. Such reforms include the abolition of slavery, poverty alleviation, rights of women as well as checking corruption. By the efforts of the revivals, the American society began to shift from the old church polity to a more progressive congregational movements that included social reforms to their curriculum.

The revival gave rise to a new political spirit of the Second Party System that gave room for more percentage of the population engaging in politics and such helped the revivalists to enforce their interests through politics.

Conclusion

The Second Great Awakening helped to address the issues of social imbalance in the global setting. It helped to upgrade women's participation in both religious, political and social activities.

It equally helped the religious workers to seek for a more traditional reform of Yahosheanity in the way of restorationalism.

These are some of the noted values of the revivals or reforms. But the truth is that the revivals did not address the quest for primitive Yahosheanism because it relied on the foundation of Grecian theology that is opposed to theology of legalism (law-keeping) that was held by the primitive Yahosheanity.

For these reasons, the rivals did not address the proper issues relating to restorationalism. It can be viewed as growth to the practices of libralism, pietism, revivalism and Protestantism that go with the Grecian theology.

Since it did not address the issues of traditional Yahosheanism, it is never suitable for seekers of Yahoshea Meshiyach, his apostles and their works.