Conversion Narrative
Encyclopedia
Broadly speaking, a conversion narrative is a narrative that relates the operation of conversion, usually religious. As a specific aspect of American literary and religious history, the conversion narrative was an important facet of Puritan
sacred and secular society in New England
during a period stretching roughly from 1630 to the end of the First Great Awakening
. As defined by Patricia Caldwell, the conversion narrative was "a testimony of personal religious experience…spoken or read aloud to the entire congregation of a gathered church before admission as evidence of the applicant's visible sainthood" Edmund S. Morgan describes the typical "morphology of conversion" related in the conversion narrative as involving the stages of "knowledge, conviction, faith, combat, and true, imperfect assurance."
The conversion narrative was one of the distinguishing features of the Massachusetts Puritan churches; the relation of a conversion narrative emphasized their belief in "faith as the essence of the church: and they were to ensure the presence of faith in their members by a screening process that included narratives of religious experiences." In adopting this requirement for membership, Bremer argues that the New England churches were extending the beliefs of their English brethren that "admission to the communion table should be limited to those with saving faith." As Morgan goes on to point out, the adaptation of the conversion narrative as a requirement for church membership "was as important politically as religiously, for it altered not only the character of church membership but the character of freemanship
." Freemanship was restricted to church members and with the adaptation of this requirement for church membership, given the force of law with an act by the General Court
in 1636, "the new system of church membership may be said to have reached full definition, legal establishment, and coordination with the civil government in Massachusetts"
A key figure in the development and adaptation of the conversion narrative to the New England Puritan churches was John Cotton.
Puritan
The Puritans were a significant grouping of English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries. Puritanism in this sense was founded by some Marian exiles from the clergy shortly after the accession of Elizabeth I of England in 1558, as an activist movement within the Church of England...
sacred and secular society in New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
during a period stretching roughly from 1630 to the end of the First Great Awakening
First Great Awakening
The First Awakening was a Christian revitalization movement that swept Protestant Europe and British America, and especially the American colonies in the 1730s and 1740s, leaving a permanent impact on American religion. It resulted from powerful preaching that gave listeners a sense of personal...
. As defined by Patricia Caldwell, the conversion narrative was "a testimony of personal religious experience…spoken or read aloud to the entire congregation of a gathered church before admission as evidence of the applicant's visible sainthood" Edmund S. Morgan describes the typical "morphology of conversion" related in the conversion narrative as involving the stages of "knowledge, conviction, faith, combat, and true, imperfect assurance."
The conversion narrative was one of the distinguishing features of the Massachusetts Puritan churches; the relation of a conversion narrative emphasized their belief in "faith as the essence of the church: and they were to ensure the presence of faith in their members by a screening process that included narratives of religious experiences." In adopting this requirement for membership, Bremer argues that the New England churches were extending the beliefs of their English brethren that "admission to the communion table should be limited to those with saving faith." As Morgan goes on to point out, the adaptation of the conversion narrative as a requirement for church membership "was as important politically as religiously, for it altered not only the character of church membership but the character of freemanship
Freeman (Colonial)
Freeman is a term which originated in 12th century Europe and is common as an English or American Colonial expression in Puritan times. In the Bay Colony, a man had to be a member of the Church to be a freeman. In Colonial Plymouth, a man did not need to be a member of the Church, but he had to be...
." Freemanship was restricted to church members and with the adaptation of this requirement for church membership, given the force of law with an act by the General Court
Massachusetts General Court
The Massachusetts General Court is the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The name "General Court" is a hold-over from the Colonial Era, when this body also sat in judgment of judicial appeals cases...
in 1636, "the new system of church membership may be said to have reached full definition, legal establishment, and coordination with the civil government in Massachusetts"
A key figure in the development and adaptation of the conversion narrative to the New England Puritan churches was John Cotton.