Perspectives on Christian Revivals and Societal Change

Church historians have long studied revivals, and this phenomenon has recently received renewed attention as a result of contemporary Western revivals. However, little interdisciplinary research within a theological framework has explored how revivals can lead to positive societal changes. The purpose of this article is to investigate this relationship from an Evangelical-Pentecostal perspective that draws on historical and organisational leadership studies. In part one, revival is defined theologically as a restoration of authentic Christian spirituality which consists of orthopathy, orthodoxy and orthopraxy. We then suggest a three-level quantitative conception of revivals as 1) individual renewal, 2) local revival, and 3) national awakenings. In part two, we study two particular cases, viz. the Haugean revival in the 1800s and the Norwegian Pentecostal movement in the 1900s, in order to identify key factors, mechanisms and conditions that may cause or prevent societal changes. In part three, we provide a tentative model that includes leadership and organisational perspectives.