Anyone interested in attending our Festival or helping out might want to look into these resources to help educate themselves. These include kids books and adult reading, most of which are available through Dover publishing. Some are available through other publishers or websites.

Resources

Jonathan Edwards

Jonathan Edwards was a pivotal person during the Great Awakening. It's difficult to understand the Great Awakening without some familiarity with this great Puritan preacher. Here are some of the resources available to learn about him.

• Jonathan Edwards: Portrait of a Revival Preacher, Leonard Ravenhill

Preached in 1738, this moving exposition of 1 Corinthians 13 reveals Edwards' insistence that true Christian experience is Spirit-produced and Christ-centered. The concluding chapters on heaven as a world of love is perhaps the most beautiful in all Edwards writings. Available from Lewis and Roth Publishers.		"Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God and Other Puritan Sermons" (Dover Publishing) . This book includes memorable (and sometimes shocking) sermons from the most influential Puritans of the 16th to 18th centuries. Included are Jonathan Edwards' "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God," Thomas Shepard's "The Parable of the Ten Virgins," Cotton Mather's "An Hortatory and Necessary Address," and works by 7 other religious leaders.

Everyday Life in Colonial America	Home Life in        Early Colonial             Days	Woman’s Life in Colonial Days	Colonial and Early     American Fashions

The Blacksmith	Colonial Craftsman	Early American Crafts and Occupations	Early American             Trades

All across Massachusetts, historical sites have been set aside where people can visit the locations where famed preacher George Whitefield spoke in open fields during the Great Awakening. The locations of Whitefield’s outdoor sermons are little advertised tourist destinations. Today they are recognized as a places of legend and curiosity, where the significance behind them has been lost.

People go to visit these still visible rocks in open fields used by Whitefield to preach to hundreds. The web site information here shares the history in detail, but the historical significance of these places and our own evangelical ties all around Massachusetts is surprising.

The significant impact Whitefield and Edwards had on Massachusetts history is profound, yet very few people know how close the roots of the Great Awakening are. Gardner is right in the middle of these sites, making it an easy pilgrimage to anyone interested in seeing these places.

This website has more information on the Great Awakening in America.

This page lists points of interest in American history leading up to the Great Awakening.

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