Three Reasons why John Edwards Sermon, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, is a Persuasive Essay During the mid 16th and 17th centuries, a new method of life arose and religion , this being called Puritanism. Puritans, who embodied the practices of Puritanism, sought to “purify” the Church of England of its Catholic practices. Moreover, as these Puritans began to travel overseas and inhabit the continent of North America, these Puritan views traveled over as well. America thus began on the ideology of Christianity and Puritanism, and practically everyone applied their faith to God. One of the most influential and important Preacher/Puritan of this time was a man by the name of Jonathan Edwards. Gordon Miller comments on Edwards by stating,
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Once again, Edwards kept a very calm and quiet manner throughout the duration of his sermon, however the directness of his language greatly influenced the audience. Throughout the sermon, Edwards utilizes the word “you” in a way in which he seems he’s speaking one on one to every person he’s speaking to. His Direct language manages to strike fear and desperation into his listeners in hopes it will persuade them to turn away from their sinfulness and devote even more to the lord. For example, Edwards states on page 88, “Your wickedness makes you as it were heavy as lead, and to tend downwards with great weight and pressure towards Hell…” Edwards was powerfully influential with his use of the word “you” and managed to make each and every individual in his audience feel as if they needed to change something about their faith. However, sin is an extremely difficult action to avoid, as explained by Kathleen McGowan, “The most enjoyable sins engage the brain's reward circuitry, including evolutionary ancient regions such as the nucleus accumbens and hypothalamus…” Clearly, sin can be pleasurable, but it is the duty of these people to avoid it at all costs, and Edwards persuasion is key in this …show more content…
His powerful language instilled into the minds of his audience that God has every bit of power to destroy them for their pestilence. Moreover, Edwards insane word pictures provide his audience with vivid thoughts of the tribulations they would suffer if their actions don’t suffice. Even more so, Edwards extremely direct language singled out all of his audience members, putting all their faith on the line. Overall, Edwards passion and devotion to his work is inspiring, and the amount of persuasion he possesses is gripping. Gerald R. McDermott states about Edwards, “Jonathan Edwards (1703-58) is widely recognized as the greatest theologian this continent has ever produced.” Amazingly, over hundreds of years this man still remains one of the best theologists within our nation. Moreover, Edwards work will continually be studied into the future due to its vast intelligence and
Once again, Edwards kept a very calm and quiet manner throughout the duration of his sermon, however the directness of his language greatly influenced the audience. Throughout the sermon, Edwards utilizes the word “you” in a way in which he seems he’s speaking one on one to every person he’s speaking to. His Direct language manages to strike fear and desperation into his listeners in hopes it will persuade them to turn away from their sinfulness and devote even more to the lord. For example, Edwards states on page 88, “Your wickedness makes you as it were heavy as lead, and to tend downwards with great weight and pressure towards Hell…” Edwards was powerfully influential with his use of the word “you” and managed to make each and every individual in his audience feel as if they needed to change something about their faith. However, sin is an extremely difficult action to avoid, as explained by Kathleen McGowan, “The most enjoyable sins engage the brain's reward circuitry, including evolutionary ancient regions such as the nucleus accumbens and hypothalamus…” Clearly, sin can be pleasurable, but it is the duty of these people to avoid it at all costs, and Edwards persuasion is key in this …show more content…
His powerful language instilled into the minds of his audience that God has every bit of power to destroy them for their pestilence. Moreover, Edwards insane word pictures provide his audience with vivid thoughts of the tribulations they would suffer if their actions don’t suffice. Even more so, Edwards extremely direct language singled out all of his audience members, putting all their faith on the line. Overall, Edwards passion and devotion to his work is inspiring, and the amount of persuasion he possesses is gripping. Gerald R. McDermott states about Edwards, “Jonathan Edwards (1703-58) is widely recognized as the greatest theologian this continent has ever produced.” Amazingly, over hundreds of years this man still remains one of the best theologists within our nation. Moreover, Edwards work will continually be studied into the future due to its vast intelligence and