Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God
Jonathan Edwards’ sermon ‘Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God’ is a window into an age fraught with religious controversy and moral confusion. The sermon was riddled with horrifying imagery and threats to instill fear into the audiences of Puritan Minister, Jonathan Edwards. The movement of religious revivalism that occurred in part because of Edwards caused the Puritan society to think of God as a vengeful, torturous God, of whom to be afraid. The Puritans fear of God and being condemned to hell forced them to live in accordance with God’s will in hopes of spending eternity free from sin, living in salvation with Christ. Sinners is a work grounded in the concerns and struggles of its time, and it offers insights into a significant period of cultural transition in American history (Winslow 193). Simultaneously a conservative and a revolutionary text, the sermon hangs between the new and the old, science and Scripture, individual freedom and sovereign authority. Jonathan Edwards was born on October 5, 1703 in East Windsor Connecticut into a Puritan family. He was the only son of eleven children. His father was the Reverend Timothy Edwards and his mother was Esther Stoddard Edwards, the daughter of Reverend Solomon Stoddard (Winslow 28). He grew up in an atmosphere of puritan piety, affection and learning. After years of rigorous schooling at home, Edwards entered Yale in 1716 at the age of twelve. During his time at Yale, Edwards received a great theological education. He also studied new sciences, psychology, and philosophy of Isaac Newton, John Locke, George Berkeley, and other European thinkers (Personal Awakening). Edwards was profoundly influenced by John Locke’s ‘An Essay Concerning Human Understanding’ which is about the foundation of human knowledge, growth, and understanding. During his years at Yale he studied the mind, natural sciences, the scriptures, and natural and mental philosophies. Jonathan Edwards was a very smart man who enjoyed learning.