Documentation Interpretation 5
The goal of revival of religion is to reform the moral standards of individuals. Finney thinks that by learning the moral system of God, people could be more connected with religion and society would be more civilized. Finney believes that the revival may be accomplished by obeying God's manner. He hopes that this would change people’s manners by preventing sinful or unlawful behaviors from happening. Finney fears that society would be fearful of believing in religion and the society will be filled with sinful behaviors. For instance, people might worship evil figures and have destructive motives. Eventually, people will blindly pursue their materialistic lives and will no longer worship God and desire the truth.
I think the word "excitement" that Finney uses in the document means enthusiasm or desire. Finney believes that only the “excitement” for truth will lead the country to a better stage. He believes that people have the responsibility and the ability to respond to God. Finney explains that since people are reluctant to obey God, they will not follow God until they are excited. Many people know that they should be religious; however, they are afraid to be laughed at by other if they become religious. Hence, these people worship idols and resist to repentance. According to Finney, “Such persons never will give up their false shame, … till they are so excited that they cannot contain themselves any longer.” The concept of “excitement” bothers other ministers because they believe religion can be better promoted in the world without revivals. They do not think it is necessary to produce religious excitements because there might be evils arising from great excitements of religion.
Reflection #2
The document “What a Revival of Religion Is” helped me learn to compare the past beliefs to those of the present. This document showed what role did religion have in the past. Most people were timid to believe in God and were reluctant to be “excited.” Yet, today there are many religions and people are more likely to show their beliefs. For this assignment, I had to look at how the opinions on religion have changed or stayed to fully understand what people were thinking. This is important because one of the most valuable things in history is learning from the past and if I do not compare it to the present I am missing one of the most important areas of learning. This document helped me with this because it was easily applicable to today and helped me realize the need to make the comparisons. It also showed how much the expectations have changed and how much religion has influence American culture. When doing the next document, I am going to try and find how it is applicable to today and incorporate it into my responses. I need to work on my analysis while reading the document and to take the time after I finish reading the document to reread and think about the modern applications of the document and the thinking and motivations that the people writing the document had. Another thing I want to work on is take enough time to think on the. I can accomplish this by stopping after reading the document to think about it and write my initial thought on the document. Then, I would reread the document and note anything new that I have read. This would help me to get the most out of the document and make my analysis’s better.
The goal of revival of religion is to reform the moral standards of individuals. Finney thinks that by learning the moral system of God, people could be more connected with religion and society would be more civilized. Finney believes that the revival may be accomplished by obeying God's manner. He hopes that this would change people’s manners by preventing sinful or unlawful behaviors from happening. Finney fears that society would be fearful of believing in religion and the society will be filled with sinful behaviors. For instance, people might worship evil figures and have destructive motives. Eventually, people will blindly pursue their materialistic lives and will no longer worship God and desire the truth.
I think the word "excitement" that Finney uses in the document means enthusiasm or desire. Finney believes that only the “excitement” for truth will lead the country to a better stage. He believes that people have the responsibility and the ability to respond to God. Finney explains that since people are reluctant to obey God, they will not follow God until they are excited. Many people know that they should be religious; however, they are afraid to be laughed at by other if they become religious. Hence, these people worship idols and resist to repentance. According to Finney, “Such persons never will give up their false shame, … till they are so excited that they cannot contain themselves any longer.” The concept of “excitement” bothers other ministers because they believe religion can be better promoted in the world without revivals. They do not think it is necessary to produce religious excitements because there might be evils arising from great excitements of religion.
Reflection #2
The document “What a Revival of Religion Is” helped me learn to compare the past beliefs to those of the present. This document showed what role did religion have in the past. Most people were timid to believe in God and were reluctant to be “excited.” Yet, today there are many religions and people are more likely to show their beliefs. For this assignment, I had to look at how the opinions on religion have changed or stayed to fully understand what people were thinking. This is important because one of the most valuable things in history is learning from the past and if I do not compare it to the present I am missing one of the most important areas of learning. This document helped me with this because it was easily applicable to today and helped me realize the need to make the comparisons. It also showed how much the expectations have changed and how much religion has influence American culture. When doing the next document, I am going to try and find how it is applicable to today and incorporate it into my responses. I need to work on my analysis while reading the document and to take the time after I finish reading the document to reread and think about the modern applications of the document and the thinking and motivations that the people writing the document had. Another thing I want to work on is take enough time to think on the. I can accomplish this by stopping after reading the document to think about it and write my initial thought on the document. Then, I would reread the document and note anything new that I have read. This would help me to get the most out of the document and make my analysis’s better.