Early in the eighteenth century in Northampton, Massachusetts Jonathan Edwards served as pastor of the most important church outside of Boston. Mystical in temperament, sensitive to sin wherever he found it, and distrusting the means of grace used by his predecessors, he aroused his people with a fear of future punishment for their sins. The result was an emotional upheaval (c. 1735) that brought large numbers of people to his church. From Northampton revival spread down the river and along the coast, primarily through the work of an Englishman who had associated with the Wesley brothers at Oxford named George Whitefield. Sailing to America in 1740, he landed at Philadelphia and made preaching tours among the colonies from New Hampshire to Georgia. Thousands were drawn by his eloquence and many left their occupations at a moment’s notice when they heard of his coming, crowding the buildings in which he spoke. Thirty thousand were said to have gathered to hear him on Boston Common. He made repeated journeys back and forth between England and America and proved a powerful religious force in both countries. Tens of thousands of persons joined the churches, and many became evangelistic ministers.
Impact: The Great Awakening on the whole set in motion currents that affected deeply the future of American Christianity. It revived personal religion, prompted the Protestant missionary enterprise somewhat later, gave an impetus to education, and kindled a new humanitarian spirit.