Revivalism and Separatism in New England: The First Society of Norwich, Connecticut, as a Case Study

Abstract

FTER I740, New England's religious and ecclesiastical life became increasingly disordered by schism, separations, and the ultimate rise of new religious denominations. The upheaval was caused in part by the introduction of a new and radical pietism into the thinking of large numbers of converts of the Great Awakening, which led them to reject many religious and ecclesiastical practices common in the established churches of New England. The analyses and explanations of the nature and strength of the pietistic impulse produced by the revival are full and impressive. In the hands of a recent generation of historians, the evangelical aspect of the Awakening has received a sympathetic and understanding treatment, and no one can doubt or question its great significance.' What has been frequently overlooked, however, in attempting to assess the precise role played by this new evangelical force, is the institutional framework in which it was produced and in which it operated. Pietism was not simply a reaction against a prevailing theology; it was also a product of the difficulties inherent in the established character of New England Puritanism and of institutional difficulties which long antedated the Great Awakening. Indeed, the revival itself was in large measure an attempt by the standing clergy of New England to resolve ecclesiastical problems without altering the basic structure of such insti-