Religious Reforms. Second Great Awakening New religious fervor swept through US in 1830s...
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Transcript of Religious Reforms. Second Great Awakening New religious fervor swept through US in 1830s...
Religious Reforms
Second Great Awakening
• New religious fervor swept through US in 1830s
–Concentrated in upstate NY
What caused it?• Reaction to changing times
–Industry & growth of cities–Immigration–Transportation–Communications
Evangelism• Responsibility to share religion
by giving testimony/witnessing
• Highly emotional type of religion
Revivalism• Large religious gatherings
–Often too many people there for town – go out to a campmeeting
• Argued for political change–Led to reform movements
Religions that began then
• Mormons (Latter-Day Saints)• Church of Christ• Jehovah’s Witnesses• 7th Day Adventists
African-American Church
• Churches & revivals (in north) often open to whites & blacks–Children of the same God
• Slaves in S often went to church with master (but sat separately)
African Methodist Episcopals
• Founded by free blacks• Fought for end to slavery• Became center of black culture
• 1st national black convention–Looked at how to help escaped
slaves to freedom
Transcendentalism
• Appealed to people turned off by revival religions – too public
• Philosophical movement–Simple life–Truth & beauty in nature–Personal emotion & imagination
Transcendentalism
• Ralph Waldo Emerson• Henry David Thoreau
–Optimism / freedom / self-reliance–Follow your “inner voice”–Civil Disobedience – follow your
conscience
Unitarianism• Popular with northern rich, well
educated people
• No emotion – only calm reason–Also believed in political reform
Utopian communities
• Experimental settlements–Trying to create perfect society
• Most places didn’t last–People had to work more than
they thought they would
Shakers• Men & women equal
–But couldn’t marry or have kids
• Died out pretty soon–Members only converts & orphans
Prison reform• Earlier, jails were very brutal
–Lots of abuse–Solitary confinement for very
long periods of time–Kept mentally ill with prisoners
Dorothea Dix • Prison reformer
• Move mentally ill to hospitals
• Try to rehabilitate–Train prisoners to
return to society
Public schools• PA – set up first state public
elementary schools
–Rich against it – they could pay for private school for their kids
– Immigrants against it – ethnic pride
Public schools• Most states didn’t have well run
public schools until late 1800s
• Most kids in 1 multi-grade class• Most dropped out by age 10