Transcript Charles Finney - West Morris Mendham High School

Charles Grandison
Finney
Raja Atluri, Danny Bernt
Biography
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Born 1792 in Warren Connecticut
Parents were both farmers, lacked collegiate education
Hardly any access to religion or books as a child
Lawyer in the office of Benjmain Wright in Adams, NY
In 1821 experienced a religious awakening, felt like “waves of liquid
love” surging through his body.
Quit his job as a lawyer to become a preacher of the gospel.
Licensed to preach in December 1823, launching of his career
Early meetings held mixed reception, overshadowed by prevailing
Calvinism
However, in other parts of NY, known as the “Burned Over District”
(for all the religious fervor of the area), his revivals were wellreceived
One of the most well-known revivalists of the Second Great
Awakening
2nd Great Awakening
• Marked by an emphasis on personal piety rather than
schooling or theology
• New England: social activism was most prominent
• New York: growth of new denominations
• West (Appalachians): Energized Presbyterians, Methodists,
and Baptists
• Gave rise to a camp meeting (revivals) so that isolated frontier
folk could experience sermons
• Greatly increased church membership
• Led to formations of new denominations (Mormons,
Adventists)
• Stimulated many reform movements (i.e. Temperance Society)
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Contributions to 2 Great
Awakening
• Helped convert thousands to Evangelism (made 500
converts in Utica, NY and Rome, NY)
• He was the helm of the revival of the 2nd Great
Awakening, he was asked to sermonize at various major
Eastern cities.
• To aid him, he used various strategies:
New Measures: Increased accessibility to religion by:
praying for persons by name, allowing women to pray
and testify, encouraging people under conviction to
come forward, holding special services each evening, and
letting groups of workers visit homes. This strategy was
highly controversial, however very successful.
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Contributions to 2 Great
Awakening
Taught that awakening was a use of human choice, different
from contemporaries such as Edwards and Whitefield, who
believed in predestination.
Finney suggested that if Christians did the “right things,”
revival would come, not a miraculous concept.
One of his main messages: do not wait on God, you must take
initiative.
Changed American religion from God-centered to individualcentered.
Finney’s background in law aided him in effectively delivering
his sermons by allowing him to form a cohesive, logical
argument grounded in reason.
Preached hundreds of sermons and gave 22 lectures.
Contributions to Social Reform
• Sought to expand the role of women, strengthen churches
• Allowed and encouraged women to speak at prayer meetings
• Both men and women had a moral obligation to be active in
social reform.
• His college, Oberlin, founded in 1833, was the first to admit
both women and blacks.
• Social reform ideas seen in his New Measures (mentioned
previously).
• Emphasized human responsibility to improve
• “Can Two Walk Together Except They Be Agreed?”
Effects of His Contributions
• Organized religion branched to both men and women.
• “Father of Modern Revivalism”
• His scientific approach to revivals and New Methods have
remained a part of Revivalism.
• His converts, mainly as a result of his messages of human
improvement, supported and generated many social reform
movements, such as:
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Anti-tobacco
Anti-prostitution
Better treatment of prisoners, insane, handicapped
Women’s rights
Abolition of slavery