Why Read Jonathan Edwards and What He Has to Say About Secularisation

Jonathan Edwards was one of the greatest American thinkers and theologians. He was also at the heart of the transatlantic global revival known as The Great Awakening. In recent decades, there has been an academic rediscovery of Edwards that has bled over into a popular resurgence of interest in his preaching and writing. At the heart of Edwards’ contribution to evangelicalism is his grasp of and response to the secularising tendencies dormant in, as well as decisive to, the Enlightenment. In many ways, Western Culture as a whole still reflects a discourse that interrelates with its Enlightenment heritage. Edwards can help us as model and method in our interaction with the Enlightenment-influenced secularisation within which we work on a daily basis.