American Religion Timelines
All Entries - Movements by Date
| Date (Year-Month-Day) | Movement | Introduction |
|---|---|---|
| 1680-01-01 | Abolitionism | The abolitionist movement (1680s-1860s) led a variety of Christians across denominations to denounce the evils of slavery occurring both within and outside their congregations. |
| 1700-01-01 | Church Planting Movement | The United States has a rich history of church planting, notably in the 18th/19th centuries with the growth of the Methodists and Baptists. |
| 1730-01-01 | Missionary Movement | Beginning in the early 18th century, the Protestant missionary movement sought to convert and aid unchurched peoples, both domestically and internationally. |
| 1733-01-01 | The First Great Awakening | The First Great Awakening (1730s-1770s) was a series of religious revivals that propelled the expansion of evangelical denominations in the colonies. |
| 1780-01-01 | Memorial Movement | With early origins in the 1780s, the memorial movement highlights how Americans commonly commemorate the dead in visual and material forms. |
| 1790-01-01 | The Second Great Awakening | The Second Great Awakening(s) (1790s-1840s) fueled the rise of an evangelical Protestant majority in antebellum America, giving birth to new denominations and social reform organizations. |
| 1801-01-01 | Restoration Movement | The Restoration Movement (RM) formed in the early 1800s as a means to "restore" and unify the Christian church based on biblical principles. |
| 1820-01-01 | Temperance Movement | Starting in the 1820s, the temperance movement aimed to curb and ultimately discontinue the consumption of alcohol. Many temperance leaders also were Christian leaders. |
| 1836-01-01 | Transcendentalism | In 1836, transcendentalism took shape, as New England intellectuals pushed for the union between humans and nature through personal experience. |
| 1837-01-01 | Holiness Movement | Beginning in the 1830s, the Holiness Movement spread across American Protestantism, promoting "entire sanctification" for Christian believers. |
| 1844-10-22 | Millenarian Movement | Since William Miller predicted the return of Jesus Christ in the mid-1800s, Millenarian movements emerged and anticipated the end of the world. |
| 1848-03-31 | Spiritualism | In the mid-19th century, spiritualism arose in America, as individuals became captivated with mediums contacting spirits of the dead. |
| 1851-01-01 | Landmark Movement | Beginning in the 1850s, the Landmark Movement claimed that only Baptists have a succession back to the time of Jesus Christ. |
| 1857-01-01 | The Third Great Awakening | The Third Great Awakening (1850s-1920s) saw a resurgence of religious vigor, as Dwight Moody and Billy Sunday drew in crowds of religious seekers. |
| 1859-01-01 | New Thought | Beginning in the mid-19th century, the New Thought movement extolled the power of the mind and God to influence everything from healing to personal success. |
| 1861-01-01 | Woman's Missionary Movement | More than two million Protestant women joined the field of missions from the mid-19th century to the early 20th century. |
| 1870-01-01 | Christian Modernism | Emerging in the late 19th century, Christian modernism sought to accommodate Christian faith to changes in modern society. |
| 1880-01-01 | Social Gospel | From 1880 to 1925, the Social Gospel movement highlighted "social sins" present in society and sought Christian-based social justice initiatives. |
| 1889-01-01 | Settlement House Movement | In the late 19th century, many Catholic and Protestant organizations established settlement houses to aid urban immigrants and poor American-born citizens. |
| 1897-01-01 | Zionism | Beginning in the late 19th century, Zionism gained attention as a political movement seeking the re-establishment of a Jewish homeland. |
| 1901-01-01 | Pentecostal/Charismatic Movement | In 1901, Christians became filled with the Holy Spirit and spontaneously spoke in foreign languages, leading to the growth of the Pentecostal/Charismatic Movement. |
| 1908-01-01 | Ecumenical Movement | Gaining prominence in the early 20th century, the modern ecumenical movement desired to unite various Christian groups divided by denominational boundaries. |
| 1911-09-01 | Men and Religion Forward Movement | From September 1911 through April 1912, the Men and Religion Forward Movement attempted to reclaim a masculine version of Christianity. |
| 1913-01-01 | Black Muslim Movement | In the early 20th century, the Black Muslim movement arose as a unique African American religious movement that promoted black nationalism and fought white supremacy. |
| 1915-01-01 | Christian Fundamentalism | In the 1920s, Christian fundamentalism arose as a means to counter liberal interpretations of the Christian Bible and "secularizing" changes in society. |
| 1926-01-01 | Liturgical Movement | In the early 1900s, the American liturgical movement emerged as Catholics and other groups became interested in renewing traditional liturgical practices. |
| 1933-05-01 | Catholic Worker Movement | In 1933, Dorothy Day and Peter Maurin founded the Catholic Worker Movement, a group of Catholic communities promoting social justice and hospitality toward the poor. |
| 1934-01-01 | Reconstructionist Judaism | Founded in the mid-1930s by Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan, Reconstructionist Judaism became the first uniquely American Jewish movement. |
| 1941-01-01 | Secular Movement | Gaining prominence in the mid-20th century, the modern secular movement pushed for a society without religion. |
| 1943-01-01 | Biblical Theology Movement | Between the mid-1940s and early 1960s, the biblical theology movement emerged to counter both liberal and fundamentalist interpretations of the Bible. |
| 1947-01-01 | New Evangelicalism | After World War II, a movement of conservative, but socially engaged Protestants emerged. They are known as the "new evangelicals." |
| 1950-01-01 | Neo-Paganism | In the mid-1940s, Gerald Gardner and Doreen Valient helped revive pre-Christian nature religion (i.e., Neo-paganism) in the United States. |
| 1950-01-01 | The Fourth Great Awakening | According to some scholars, a Fourth Great Awakening arose in the mid-20th century. |
| 1954-01-01 | Civil Rights Movement | The Civil Rights Movement refers to specific events of political and social protest against racism in the 1950s and 1960s. |
| 1960-01-01 | New Age Religion | Forming in the 1960s, the New Age Movement emphasizes personal fulfillment, spiritual unity, and experimental healing methods. |
| 1965-01-01 | Christian Reconstructionism | Originating in the mid-1960s, Christian Reconstructionism is a fundamentalist movement promoting the application of biblical law on all aspects of society. |
| 1965-01-01 | Pro-Life and Rescue Movements | Anti-abortion movements, like the pro-life movement (est. mid-1960s) and rescue movement (est. mid-1980s), garnered support from Catholics, evangelicals, and Christian fundamentalists. |
| 1967-01-01 | Jesus People Movement | The Jesus People Movement emerged as an evangelical Christian response to the drug and hippie counterculture of the 1960s. |
| 1968-01-01 | Anti-Cult Movement | In the 1960s and 1970s, the rise in new religious groups brought accusations of "brainwashing" from opposing groups, who became known as the anti-cult movement. |
| 1969-01-01 | Latino Christian Movement | The Latino Christian Movement of the 1960s/1970s represents concerted efforts by Latino Catholics for greater visibility and equality. |
| 1970-01-01 | Church Growth Movement | In the 1970s and 1980s, American evangelicals coupled their love for evangelism with new pragmatic marketing strategies known as the Church Growth Movement. |
| 1970-01-01 | Home School Movement | The Home School Movement began in the 1970s and attracted evangelical Christians who feared the secular influences of public education. |
| 1971-01-01 | Messianic Judaism | Forming in the 1960s-1970s, Messianic Jews grew as a movement of evangelical Christians who embraced Jewish customs, rituals, and identity. |
| 1972-01-01 | Shepherding Movement | An offshoot of the Charismatic Movement, the Shepherding Movement garnered controversy in the early 1970s for its emphasis on personal submission to religious leaders. |
| 1975-01-01 | Hymn Renaissance | In the 1960s-1970s, a diverse collection of new modern hymnals began circulating across the world. Scholars refer to this development as the Hymn Renaissance. |
| 1979-01-01 | Religious Right | In the late 1970s, the religious right arose, as religious conservatives turned to politics to fight perceived moral and spiritual decline. |
| 1980-01-01 | Missionary Member Care Movement | Beginning in 1980, the Missionary Member Care Movement sought to reduce missionary attrition and provide more holistic care to humanitarian workers. |
| 1982-01-01 | Sanctuary Movement | The Sanctuary Movement of the 1980s helped to provide sanctuaries and safe havens for Central American refugees. |
| 1985-01-01 | Convergence Movement | Emerging in the 1980s, the Convergence Movement sought Christian unity by creatively blending evangelical, charismatic, and liturgical worship styles. |
| 1994-01-01 | Progressive Christian Movement | In the late 20th and early 21st centuries, a group of "progressive" Protestant Christians emerged and embraced theological diversity, eclectic spirituality, and social justice. |
| 1998-01-01 | Missional Church Movement | Founded in 1998, the missional church movement arose and changed the focus of modern Christian missions. |
| 1999-01-01 | Emergent Church | The Emergent (or "Emerging") Church Movement gained traction in the 1990s, as groups sought to make Christianity "relevant" to a postmodern world. |
| 2000-01-01 | Christian Orphan Care/Adoption Movement | Arising in the early 21st century, the Christian Orphan Care Movement encourages Christians to adopt local and foreign children who are orphaned. |
| 2000-01-01 | City (Gospel) Movements | The 2000s saw the emergence of City Gospel Movements, which encourage partnerships across churches and social service to local urban areas. |
| 2004-06-01 | New Monasticism | Formally established in 2004, New Monastics reject Christian individualism and emphasize a communal lifestyle and spiritual discipline. |
