The period between 1800 and 1900 was filled with historical events that shaped modern-day America. Christianity played a significant role in these events either directly or indirectly. Major events that occurred in this period are the Mexican War, the Civil War, increased Mission activities in various parts of the world and formation of the Confederate states. This was also the period when slavery thrived. The period between 1850 and 1870 was referred to as the Era of Evangelism. The church converted many people to Christianity during this time, mainly through revival meetings. This paper will explore the role of Christianity in historical events of the 1800s.
The 19 th century saw the rapid growth of Protestant movements in America. This was the period of steady growth for Presbyterian, Baptists, and Methodists. This occurred before 1940, the Second Great Awakening period. Other smaller Christian faiths like Mormonism also arrived in America and grew significantly. The Second Awakening played a major role in converting many Americans from Unchurched to full time Christians. The number of Christians soared by a factor of 50. The conversions mainly occurred through revival meeting meetings in states like Kentucky and Ohio. Presbyterians organized the revivals. The Second Great Awakening was concerned about the personal salvation of new Christians. The Methodists, on the other hand, domesticated the revivals and introduced them to Eastern states. The 1800s saw the conversion of majority Americans to Christianity.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
The 1800s was a period of thriving slave labor and slave trade. One in seven Americans at the time was a slave worker. They provided free labor in cotton fields. The invention of the cotton gin had led to a great demand for slave labor mainly in the south, where a majority of those enslaved were of African descent (Reid, 2014). The Congress outlawed slave trade in 1908, but the Southern States continued to use slave labor in the cotton industry (Reid, 2014, p. 12). At the time, all the North states had abolished slavery. Christians took various stands on slavery in the 19 th Century. The Bible was used as a reference by both pro-slavery and abolitionist advocates. Pro-slavery advocates leaned towards the Old Testaments in a bid to justify their arguments. In Genesis, Noah condemned Canaan to servitude. Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will be to his brothers (Genesis 9:23). The abolitionists, on the other hand, claimed that the New Testament teaches about treating others like brothers in Christ. Their view was that the slave masters were against the Christian value of compassion, love, and generosity. These two contradictory opinions sharply divided Christians in the 19 th Century.
The Protestants were strong mainly in the Northern States. Majority of them held influential positions against slavery. The Methodists and Baptists too strongly supported the war against slavery. The Catholic church, however, took a neutral stand on the issue to avoid splitting the church into two (A+E Networks, 2009). Most importantly, Christians played a major role in the abolishment of slavery in the 1800s and also later in the rehabilitation of former slaves.
The American civil war was mainly influenced and fueled by Christians. Presbyterians made their stand known on the slavery issue in 1818; they provided a unanimous statement say that enslaving of one race of the population by the other is inconsistent with God's laws (Hardman, 2017). Ironically, the supported the deposition of priests who held anti-slavery views. The Presbyterians, Baptists, and Methods were all divided about the slavery issue, hence dividing the country in the lead up to the civil war. During the period of the civil war from 1961 to 1965, Christianity continued to influence the battle. The revivals led to the conversion to Christianity of about 200000 Union forces while about 150000 Confederate troops were converted. Chapels were built in soldiers’ places of residence during the Civil War (Hardman, 2017).
Christians who refused to take part in the war were often persecuted. Later they would be exempted from the army at a fee (Hardman, 2017). Civil War generals strictly observed the Sabbath with some attributing defeats to failure to observe the Sabbath. Many Christians, especially in the North believed that after the war the final glorious reign of God would commence. Churches believed that the Union has to be preserved because it brought more hope for a liberal future. The South, on the other hand, believed that they are God’s chosen people. They claimed to be uniquely Christian and often invoked the name of God. Eventually, the Union won the war, and a government of national unity was formed.
1800 was also a period of increased missionary activity in third world countries. The numbers of missionaries exploded from an initial a few hundreds to thousands by the end of the 19 th Century. The powerful revival meetings were a major contributing factor. The revivals contributed to a large number of Christians who were willing to be missionaries in Africa and other parts of the world. The Second and Third Great Awakenings which occurred in succession from 1830 also contributed to the increased number of committed Christians. The missionaries opened up Africa for colonization.
In conclusion, the role Christianity in history can’t be ignored. Major events like the American Civil War had Christianity as a contributing factor. It is, therefore, no surprise that the American Civil War is the most studied historical event. Christianity also had crucial influence on the abolishment of slavery. The part played by Christianity in society in the 19 th Century led to its history being intertwined with secular history.
References
A+E Networks. (2009). American civil war history - American civil war . A&E Television Networks, LLC. . Retrieved on 26 November 201`7, from http://www.history.com/topics/american-civil-war/american-civil-war-history.
Andrews, J. C. (2015). South reports the civil war. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Hardman, K. (2017). Christianity and the civil war: Did you know? History of Christianity . Retrieved on 26 November 2017, from http://www.christianitytoday.com/history/issues/issue-33/christianity-and-civil-war-did-you-know.htm
Hummel, J. (2013). Emancipating slaves, enslaving free men: a history of the American civil war. New York: Open Court.
Reid, B. H. (2014). The Origins of the American Civil War. Abingdon-on-Thames: Routledge.
