Zenger and Great Awakening

#39 Jury can nullify the law
Jury Nullification
Nullification-A way to protect fellow citizens who are being prosecuted under a law that is unjust. If you feel that it is your duty to set your fellow free.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=98&v=mxYUr6CNopQ

Great Awakening
Half way covenant in New England battlefield of New England Calvinism. The churches required a testimonial as to how Jesus came to be your personal savior. Many could not see a clear difference between their before and after. New England church added confession of faith, outward lifestyle. New requirement came in the community of Calvinists who had come from England. They had broken with England and broken with the congregational churches in England.

2nd generation did not join because they could not make a proclamation from wrath to grace. They grew up in the institutional life. They didn't really have an experience of conversion. They saw church membership as elitist because they couldn't be part of it.

Solomon Stoddard started doing open communion. This is reaffirmation for the members of the church. Communion can be a means of grace.This had never been taught before and was considered heretical. Was experience the criterion of faith? What about profession of faith and outwardly moral/honest living? Once the issue of experience comes in, it creates a real problem. The half way covenant demonstrates the issue.

Confession of experience v. confession of faith
Experience was important-communion gave this experience. An emotional transition from wrath to grace. Edwards was the grandson of Stoddard. Whitefield also followed this line of thinking.

New Lights-Edwards and his ideas spread.
Old Lights -they did not think that communion =experience and testimony of change
Issue is that experience is subjective. It is emotional and may not remain. Outward behavior and confession of faith are more serious.

The split had deep consequences and spread throughout the colonies. The church elders or old lights wanted to know about confession of faith not just experience. This led to a divide between old and new lights=generational divide. If members are not required to make a confession of faith that is detailed, what is the basis of the faith.
Judicial standard of membership--church government relied on votes of the members.
Itinerant preachers believed they were led by the spirit. Not trusted by the old lights.

Honey moon religion. After the honey moon the traditional habits end. How do you sustain the revival-honey moon period-when the revival emotion ends and the fires associated with the great awakening end? What happens next?
1. experience offers no ethical guidelines
2. Liturgies are traditional
3. This movement ended the old commonwealth idea of the old Calvinism. People wanted experience. People less interested in traditional congregation and transform the social order through the church.