Unit information: Revivals and Revivalism Past and Present in 2012/13

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Unit name Revivals and Revivalism Past and Present
Unit code THRSM0047
Credit points 20
Level of study M/7
Teaching block(s) Academic Year (weeks 1 - 52)
Unit director Dr. Scotland
Open unit status Not open
Pre-requisites

None
Co-requisites

None
School/department Department of Religion and Theology
Faculty Faculty of Arts

Description including Unit Aims

The unit examines a recurring theme in religion that of Revival and Revivalism. There is a particular focus on its historical origins in America, but the module will also consider the phenomenon more widely. It begins with an examination of the ways in which historians have sought to identify and define revival. This is followed by a consideration of the Great Awakening at Northampton, Massachusetts under Jonathan Edwards Subsequent sessions cover itinerant revivalists such as George Whitefield and William Tennent and rise of professional evangelism under Charles Finney and Dwight L Moody. This leads into a discussion of the emergence of Pentecostalism and the development of mass evangelism under Billy Graham, televangelism and militant fundamentalism. Throughout attention will be paid to the techniques employed by revivalists including the use of music, public decision, rhetoric and other methods of persuasion.

Intended Learning Outcomes

On completion of the unit students should be able to:

  • identify the social and political contexts in which revivals often occur;
  • explain the key figures and seminal texts relating to American revival and revivalism;
  • recognise and articulate the continuity between earlier revivals and contemporary revivalism;
  • engage both critically and empathetically in reflection on revivalist religion.

Teaching Information

Teaching will take place mainly through lectures, some small group discussion of key documents and texts. Viewing and evaluating film footage and DVD material will form part of the course as will student-led seminar papers.

Assessment Information

Formative assessment will be through preparation for, and participation in, class discussions and seminars.

Summative assessment will be through one essay of 3,500 words (50%) and a 2-hour written examination (50%).

Reading and References

  • Carwardine, R, Trans-Atlantic Revivalism: Popular Evangelism in Britain and America, (London, Greenwood Press, 1978; New Ed. Carlisle: Paternoster, 2008)
  • Edwards, J., On Revival, (Edinburgh: The Banner of Truth Trust, 1991)
  • Hoover, S., Mass Media Religion, (London: Sage Publications, 1988)
  • Kent, J, Holding the Fort: Studies in Victorian Revivalism, (London: Epworth Press, 1978)
  • Murray, I.H., Revival and Revivalism: The Making and Marring of American Evangelicalism 1750-1850, (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth Trust, 1994)
  • Noll, M., The Old Religion in a New World, (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2002)

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