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Revivalism
during the Second Great Awakening:
Characteristics and connections with sports.
By Cindy Bledsoe
Research focus:
In this paper I will look at particular characteristics of Revivalism
and the Second Great Awakening. I will look specifically at social
conditions and connections with sports to see what, if any, impact
these elements had on Revivalism during the Second Great Awakening.
Implications can then be related to evangelism in current terms.
Introduction
A wave of revivalism swept over the United States during the First
Great Awakening that took place between 1734 and 1750. Many people came
to accept the Christian faith during this time. This acceptance of the
faith however was not a permanent fixture and “by the end of the 18th
century, many educated Americans no longer professed traditional
Christian beliefs. In reaction to the secularism of the age, a
religious revival spread westward in the first half of the 19th
century. This ‘Second Great Awakening’ consisted of several kinds of
activity, distinguished by locale and expression of religious
commitment.” (Outline of American History).
Revivalism – The Second
Great Awakening.
The Second Great Awakening was marked by a sudden earnestness in
Christian devotion and Christlike imitation of life. It was not
anti-intellectual in nature nor was it overtly emotional. The movement
was characterized by the involvement of highly intellectual people; the
establishment of societies to make the gospel known, many opportunities
for women leadership, and a broad appeal that was not limited only to
intellectuals but extended to people of less education and financial
means. The success of the movement was great indeed with literally
thousands of people coming to faith in singular evangelical events.
“The immense success of the Second Great Awakening was also
furthered by evangelical churches’ innovative organizational
techniques. These were well suited to the frontier conditions of newly
settled territories. Most evangelical churches relied on itinerant
preachers to reach large areas without an established minister and also
included important places for lay people who took on major religious
and administrative roles within evangelical congregations.”
(USHistory.org) Camp meetings and revivals emerged as key avenues for
sharing the gospel message. Many people were drawn to these camp
meetings where the gospel was presented in a very simple and easily
understood manner. As time progressed professional revivalists came to
the fore and shared the gospel message not only in camp meeting
settings but also in urban settings. “Professional revivalists served
principally as supplements to the regular ministry, appearing on call
to provide a shot in the arm, for a church, a denomination, or city
where religious life was at low ebb.” (McLoughlin: 127)
The message of the revivalists was not only limited to sharing the core
message of the gospel, but also extended to the realm of social reform.
“Billy Sunday was one of the first evangelists to tie the gospel’s
spiritual message to helping to eliminate social problems.” (Djupe,
Olson: 429) “Railing against sin, alcohol, and vice, his theatrical
style and verbal broadsides garnered immense publicity and newspaper
coverage wherever he preached. Often Sunday’s campaigns lasted
for several weeks at a time in such cities as New York, Chicago and
Philadelphia. Committees of local citizens and businessmen
seeking to fight crime, promote clean, sober living and the development
of responsible, hard-working employees frequently issued the
invitation-and footed the bill–to get Sunday to come to town.”
(Institute for the Study of American Evangelicals) Revivalists stressed
the concept of a Christian belief system that was evident by the
actions of Christians in their everyday lives. Thus the gospel needed
to be lived out in the real world.
“Revivals also carried a sense of social equality that was the result
of the evangelical notion that all people are sinners and in need of
salvation.” (Hankins: 14) That equality concept did much to bring
people from different backgrounds to the same place before God in
seeking salvation during revivals.
Response to Societal
Conditions
It is important to take a look at the societal conditions of the era
during which revivals flourished and how the revival movement responded
to these conditions. During the 19th century, America experienced a
period of rapid urbanization. Cities grew rapidly, mainly from the
swelling population of immigrants who wanted work. The growth,
however, was much faster than the city infrastructure could adequately
handle. Population density was very high with large numbers of
people living in over-crowded and unhealthy conditions. This was the
setting in which many revivalists including Moody and Sunday shared the
Christian message.
America was not the only country to battle difficult conditions;
Britain had faced many of the same unhealthy social conditions which
led to the founding of the YMCA. “In 1844, industrialized London was a
place of great turmoil and despair. For the young men who migrated to
the city from rural areas to find jobs, London offered a bleak
landscape of tenement housing and dangerous influences.
Twenty-two-year-old George Williams, a farmer-turned-department store
worker, was troubled by what he saw. He joined 11 friends to organize
the first Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA), a refuge of Bible
study and prayer for young men seeking escape from the hazards of life
on the streets.” (YMCA) Thus the formation of the YMCA in Britain was a
Christian evangelical response to the societal conditions of the day.
The success of the YMCA in Britain was soon heralded by Christians in
America and this led to the founding of the YMCA in Boston in 1851. A
number of American Protestant ministers from various denominations came
together to form the YMCA on American soil. The formation of the YMCA
in America was based on the British model and led to the development of
the YMCA in numerous major American cities. Soon after its
establishment in the United States, sport became a key strategy for the
organization. Participation in different sports activities were offered
at YMCA venues as a means of appealing and catering to men. New sports
were also birthed through the YMCA and this included basketball and
volleyball. The organization became very popular and drew the interest
of many influential people who believed in its mission. “The lay
evangelists Dwight L. Moody and John Mott (1865-1955) were heavily
involved with the American YMCA during the latter half of the
nineteenth century.” (Watson, Weir, Friend: 8). Moody saw great value
in the work being done by the organization and he was elected president
of the Chicago branch of the YMCA in 1865. “The national
association tried to elect him president in 1879, but Moody declined.
In his speech, he lauded the organization's "gymnasium, classes,
medical lectures, and social receptions" as effective arms in "the work
of reaching young men." (Armstrong: 2)
Thus the establishment of the YMCA in America, much like Britain, was
in response to the social conditions of the time. It sought to minister
to and bring the Christian message to men through various avenues, one
of which was sports. During this time sports was in the process of
becoming increasingly important to Americans and it established a firm
place in American culture. As such the move of the YMCA to embrace a
sporting strategy in fulfilling its mission turned out to be a vital
decision. The organization and its use of sports as a means of reaching
and ministering young men with the gospel would be a frontrunner for
the concept of sports ministry.
Society and leisure
A great shift was taking place in America at the time which would not
only impact society at large but also revivalism in particular.
“Mechanization and labor-saving assembly-line production cut the
average manufacturing workweek form sixty-six hours in 1860 to sixty in
1890 and forty-seven in 1920. This meant shorter workdays and freer
weekends. As the economy shifted from production to consumption, more
Americans engaged in recreation, and a substantial segment of the
economy provided for – and profited from leisure.” (Norton et al: 513)
The average American had much more leisure time at their disposal and
recreation and sports became important ways for Americans to spend
their new found leisure time. The impact and growth of leisure and its
accompanying activities is clear to see in the following
statement. “Americans in the 1920s embraced commercial
entertainment, spending $2.5 billion on leisure in 1919, by 1929
spending topped $4.3billion. Spectator amusements – movies, music and
sports- accounted for 21 percent of the 1929 total; the rest involved
participatory recreation, such as games, hobbies and travel. (Norton,
Sherriff, Blight, et al: 644) Leisure activities however, were not
limited to only wholesome sports and recreation activities; there were
many other activities available that did not always reflect a Christian
faith.
This great societal shift (availability of leisure time) was taking
place in the midst of revivalism and the second great awakening. Thus
many revivalists spoke about leisure activities, recreation and sport
in relation to the Christian faith and life. “The call to colonists to
awaken from their religious slumber came together with the clergys’
powerful mid-eighteenth-century message that people should engage in
moral pastimes and sports instead of vulgar and frivolous activity.
Popular revivalism thus carried social and political implications that
were reflected, amongst other things, in viewpoints on sports and the
use of leisure time.” (Gems et al) DL Moody, Billy Sunday and Billy
Graham extensively used sports in their revivalism. According to
Martin, Billy Sunday became one of the first revivalists to incorporate
the national pastime of baseball extensively into his revivalism.
(Martin: 75) “Yet his reliance on baseball as a metaphor for life and
medium for conveying the gospel was by no means unique. When he
transformed the problems of life into the struggles of the diamond and
reduced the complexity of human existence to the simple symmetry of a
game, he was drawing analogies increasingly common in Christian
circles.” (Martin: 75) The pervasive place that sports and recreation
held in society together with the experiential nature of sports and
recreation made these concepts of great value to revivalists in
conveying certain truths of the Christian faith.
“Billy Graham, was instrumental in a new engagement with sports
by asking major professional athletes to testify about their faith
during his crusades. He also held his meetings in the biggest stadiums
throughout the world. People came to hear him and felt at home in
familiar surroundings. This helped him gain important credibility among
nominal Christians and sports minded people in general.”(Solc)
The use of sports and recreation in conveying the Christian message to
people has showed continued growth through the years following the
second great awakening. Many evangelical organizations established
sports outreach ministries to continue this concept. “The
Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA), Athletes in Action (AIA), and
Pro Athletes Outreach (PAO) are three of the largest, and are active in
nearly all intercollegiate athletic programs (Crepeau)- an approach
wholeheartedly sponsored by the famed evangelist Billy Graham. (Ladd
and Mathisen: 10)
Conclusion
Revivalism in terms of the Second Great Awakening had various unique
characteristics not least of which was dealing with an ever changing
American culture. It would seem that some of the effectiveness of
revivalists in reaching so many people with the Christian faith had
something to do with their adaptability and response to societal
conditions. Whether it was responding to social evils of the day, or
recognizing the impact and influence of sports within society,
revivalists spoke directly to the issues of the day. As such they
seemed to always be relevant to the audience which opened the door to a
clear and concise presentation of the Gospel message. The question to
ask modern day churches and evangelists is can they say the same about
their work? Are they relevant to society and are they responding to
societal conditions in such a way that the Gospel message is heard by
the audience? Another very important question to ask is whether
the church and sports ministries in particular are conveying the core
Gospel message or whether it is being watered down in efforts to be
relevant? Some sports ministries might even have to ask the question,
are they sharing the gospel message at all or if they have fallen into
a trap of being relevant to society but lacking in sharing the Gospel?
The Second Great Awakening was very successful, in part, because
evangelical churches used innovative organizational techniques. I would
argue that never before has it been as important for the church to look
at utilizing innovative techniques to reach out to people with the
gospel of Jesus Christ. For society at this day in age is extremely
complex in nature and religion is seen by many as completely
irrelevant. These are great obstacles that the church must overcome for
the Gospel message to be heard. In my opinion, sports ministry is one
of the most valuable tools available to the church, the final question
to be answered is to what extend the church will embrace and utilize
the field of sports
ministry.
Bibliography
Armstrong, Chris
2008 College Sports: Prodigal Son of "Muscular Christianity"
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ch/news/2003/aug15.html
Billy Sunday - Institute for the Study of American Evangelicals
http://isae.wheaton.edu/hall-of-biography/billy-sunday/
Crepeau, Richard C.
2001 Playing with God: The History of Athletes Thanking the “Big Man
Upstairs”.
Djupe, Paul, A. and Olson, Laura R.
2003 Encyclopedia of American religion and politics. Facts on file, Inc.
Gems, Gerald R, Borish, Linda, J. and Pfister, Gertrud
2008 Sports in American History. Human Kinetics
Hankins, Barry
2008 American Evangelicals: A Contemporary History of a Mainstream
Religious Movement. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Ladd, Tony, and Mathisen, James A.
1999 Muscular Christianity: Evangelical Protestants and the Development
American Sport. Michigan: Baker.
Martin, Robert Francis
2002 Hero of the heartland: Billy Sunday and the transformation of
American Society, 1862 – 1935. Indiana University Press
McLoughlin, William Gerald
1978 Revivals, awakenings, and reform. The University of Chicago
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M., Chudacoff, Howard, P., Logevall, Fredrik
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Volume 2. Wadsworth Cengage Learning
Religious Transformation and the Second Great Awakening
http://www.ushistory.org/us/22c.asp
Second Great Awakening - Religious revival movement had profound impact
in U.S.
(The following article is taken from the U.S. Department of State
publication, Outline of American History.)
http://www.america.gov/st/educ-english/2008/April/20080407113519eaifas0.3545038.html
Solc, Joseph
Effective outreach through sports evangelism.
http://www.jsev.org/index.php?c=articles&article_id=3
Watson, Nick, J., Weir, Stuart and Friend, Stephen. The Development of
Muscular Christianity in Victorian Britain and Beyond. Journal of
Religion and Society Volume 7, 2005
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