Inventing the Great Awakening

Frank Lambert sets out to prove in this book that the Great awakening was the creation of a particular group of evangelical Christians who saw themselves as pioneers and promoters of the work of God. He contends that fiery preaching alone cannot account for the legendary status of the religious awakenings that permeated the transatlantic area of the United States fromj 1735-1745. Credit must also be given to revivalists like Jonathan Edwards, George Whitefield and John Gillies, who knew how to use the printed word as a medium to spread their interpretation of what was happening in the colonies. Lambert also notes the indefatigable work of Old Light clergymen such as Charles Chauncy, who vigorously opposes the revivals and their emotional excesses. These excesses, along with Whitefield's excoriating missives against parish ministers, and the eloquent anti-revivalist propaganda, helped to cool off the revival fires burning across the American landscape. Lambert writes well and holds the attention of the reader, and he is right that the revival narratives of Prince and Edwards and others played a role in establishing the "legendary status" of these awakenings. But Lambert does not give enough credit to the Spirit of God, nor enough accolades to men like Whitefield and Edwards, who crafted compelling pieces of theological rhetoric that were used by the Lord. I recommend this book as interesting history, but would also direct the reader to the primary source documents of the Great Awakening, namely, the sermons of Whitefield and the writings of Edwards. Rev. Marc Axelrod

This is a very thorough and well written analysis of the first Great Awakening. Lambert's point of departure is a fairly narrow point of historiography, the existence of the Great Awakening. Some scholars have argued recently that the Great Awakening was actually only one of a series of local revivals in Colonial America and that the concept of an inter-colonial Great Awakening was imposed retrospectively by 19th century American evangelicals looking for a 'usable' past. Lambert examines the evidence for a Great Awakening as traditionally conceived, its origins, dynamics, and conclusion. Lambert reasserts the existence of the Great Awakening as an inter-colonial event. While it was triggered by and preceded by local revivals in parts of New England and the middle colonies, several features, including the important role of itinerant preachers like the famous George Whitefield, the use of proto-modern publicity, the sense of a general phenomenon, and its trans-Atlantic character, were all novel. Lambert shows well how the Great Awakening began with groups with well established revival traditions, notably New England Puritans and some Presbyterian groups of Scots origin. These movements became linked with a broader reform movement in England led by the Oxford Methodists and with revival movements in Scotland. The trans-Atlantic character of these movements served to reverberate and amplify the significance of events on each side of the Atlantic. The robust print culture of the greater British world made possible the linkages and innovations characteristic of the Great Awakening. Lambert shows well how the Great Amakening was a planned, not spontaneous event. Implicit in his narrative is the sense that the Great Awakening was a crucial factor in the development of an American religous marketplace in which the laity play the key role of discriminating consumers. Recommend strongly for those interested in colonial America.

This is a well-written analysis of a much misunderstood event in western history. Lambert attempts to explain the establishment and perpetuation of the First Great Awakening in the American colonies and effectively argues his case that the event was one of deliberate planning and execution rather than a spontaneous, pervasive religious revival. The reader is drawn into Lambert's discussion of the causes and effects of the Awakening on both sides of the Atlantic and can not help making comparisons to modern evangelists attempts to spread their messages to the masses. While not of interest to all, this book is a rewarding and entertaining read. I eagerly await his next opus.