Revival Movements and Evangelical Awakenings (1800–1900 CE)

Introduction: A Century of Revival

The 19th century was one of profound transformation in global Christianity. In the wake of the Enlightenment, revolutions, and the Napoleonic wars, Western society experienced rapid industrialization, urbanization, and political upheaval. At the same time, Christianity entered what historians often call the “Great Century” of missions and revivals. Across Europe and North America, waves of spiritual renewal—known as revival movements or evangelical awakenings—reinvigorated Protestant faith, produced new denominations, and inspired a massive expansion of missionary activity around the world.

Revival movements were characterized by intense preaching, emotional conversion experiences, mass gatherings, and renewed emphasis on personal holiness. They were transatlantic in scope, with revivalism in the United States and Britain mutually reinforcing one another. Evangelical awakenings not only revitalized churches but also fueled social reform movements, including abolition, temperance, and education. They also laid the foundations for Pentecostalism in the early 20th century.

This lesson examines the major revival movements of the 19th century, with a focus on the Second Great Awakening in America, the Evangelical Revival in Britain, the spread of revivalism globally, and their theological and cultural impact.

1. Roots of Revivalism

The First Great Awakening

The revivalist tradition had earlier roots in the 18th century with the First Great Awakening, led by figures like Jonathan Edwards in New England, George Whitefield in Britain and America, and John and Charles Wesley among the Methodists. This movement emphasized heartfelt religion, the necessity of conversion, and the power of preaching. By the 19th century, revivalism was an established mode of religious renewal.

Enlightenment and Romanticism

The intellectual climate of the late 18th and early 19th centuries set the stage for revival. Rationalism had challenged traditional belief, but Romanticism reacted by valuing emotion, experience, and imagination. Revivalism resonated with this cultural mood, offering experiential religion in an age of rapid change.

2. The Second Great Awakening (1790s–1840s)

Early Phase: Camp Meetings

The Second Great Awakening began in the United States around 1790, spreading rapidly across frontier regions. In places like Cane Ridge, Kentucky (1801), massive camp meetings drew thousands, with fiery preaching, ecstatic responses, and mass conversions. These gatherings democratized religion, emphasizing that salvation was available to all.

Charles Finney and the New Measures

In the 1820s and 1830s, revivalism moved to urban centers. Charles Grandison Finney, a lawyer turned evangelist, pioneered “new measures” of revival: the anxious bench (where seekers came forward for prayer), extemporaneous preaching, and public calls for decision. Finney emphasized human responsibility in conversion, contrasting with Calvinist predestination. His theology of revival as a technique contributed to the rise of modern evangelicalism.

Social Reform

Revivalism inspired reform movements. Evangelicals became leaders in the abolition of slavery, the temperance movement, prison reform, and women’s education. The link between revival and social activism became a hallmark of American evangelicalism.

3. British Evangelical Awakenings

Methodism and Wesleyan Legacy

In Britain, Methodism grew rapidly, spreading the revivalist spirit beyond the Anglican Church. By the 19th century, Methodists were a powerful force in British society, combining evangelical fervor with social reform.

Evangelical Anglicans

Within the Church of England, evangelical leaders such as William Wilberforce and the Clapham Sect combined piety with activism, spearheading the campaign to abolish the slave trade (1807) and slavery itself (1833).

D. L. Moody and Transatlantic Revival

American evangelist Dwight L. Moody (1837–1899) brought revivalism to Britain in the 1870s, holding large campaigns that attracted thousands. His partnership with musician Ira Sankey set the model for evangelistic crusades combining preaching and music.

4. Revivalism and New Denominations

Revival movements generated new denominations and renewed old ones.

• Methodists grew dramatically in both Britain and America.

• Baptists expanded through revival preaching and believer’s baptism.

• Restorationist movements, such as the Disciples of Christ, sought to restore New Testament Christianity.

• Holiness movements within Methodism emphasized sanctification and laid groundwork for Pentecostalism.

5. Global Spread of Revivalism

Missions and Evangelical Zeal

Revivalism was inseparable from the missionary movement. Inspired by the revivals, evangelicals founded missionary societies such as the London Missionary Society (1795), the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (1810), and the Church Missionary Society (1799). Missionaries carried revivalist piety to Asia, Africa, and the Pacific.

Indigenous Christianities

Revivalist methods resonated with non-Western contexts, where emphasis on conversion, testimony, and lay leadership adapted to local cultures. In Africa, Asia, and the Pacific islands, revivalist spirituality contributed to dynamic indigenous churches.

6. Theology of Revival

Revivalism reshaped Protestant theology in several ways:

• Conversionism: Emphasis on personal decision and new birth.

• Biblicism: Authority of the Bible in preaching and devotion.

• Activism: Linking faith to social reform and mission.

• Holiness and Sanctification: Movements within Methodism developed a doctrine of “entire sanctification,” preparing the way for Pentecostalism.

7. Critiques of Revivalism

Not all welcomed revivalism. Critics argued that emotional excess undermined theological depth. Some feared that Finney’s emphasis on human choice compromised divine sovereignty. Others lamented fragmentation into multiple denominations. Yet revivalism’s energy could not be denied; it reshaped Christianity in the Atlantic world.

8. Revivalism and the Modern World

Revival movements responded to modernization. Industrialization uprooted traditional communities, and urbanization created social dislocation. Revivalism offered belonging, moral discipline, and hope. It also democratized religion, empowering laypeople, women, and marginalized groups to lead and participate actively.

Conclusion

The revival movements and evangelical awakenings of the 19th century represent one of the most dynamic chapters in church history. From camp meetings in Kentucky to crusades in London, from abolitionist campaigns to global missions, revivalism redefined Christianity for the modern era. It was both deeply personal—transforming individual lives—and profoundly social—reshaping communities and fueling reform. Revivalism’s legacy endures in evangelical and Pentecostal movements today, making it one of the most consequential religious phenomena of modern times.

Suggested Assignments

1. Research Essay (6,000 words): Analyze the role of Charles Finney’s “new measures” in shaping modern evangelicalism.

2. Comparative Study (5,000 words): Compare the Second Great Awakening in America with British evangelical awakenings.

3. Case Study (4,500 words): Examine the link between revivalism and abolition. How did evangelical piety translate into political reform?

4. Theological Reflection (3,500 words): Reflect on the doctrine of sanctification in 19th-century Holiness movements. How did it prepare the way for Pentecostalism?

5. Creative Assignment: Write a fictional diary entry from a participant at the Cane Ridge Revival of 1801.

References

Bebbington, D. W. (1989). Evangelicalism in Modern Britain: A History from the 1730s to the 1980s. Routledge.
Hankins, B. (2004). The Second Great Awakening and the Transcendentalists. Greenwood.
Hempton, D. (2005). Methodism: Empire of the Spirit. Yale University Press.
Marsden, G. M. (2006). Fundamentalism and American Culture. Oxford University Press.
Noll, M. A. (2001). America’s God: From Jonathan Edwards to Abraham Lincoln. Oxford University Press.
Porterfield, A. (1997). The Transformation of American Religion: The Story of a Late-Nineteenth-Century Awakening. Oxford University Press.
Stout, H. S. (1991). The Divine Dramatist: George Whitefield and the Rise of Modern Evangelicalism. Eerdmans.