A Pilgrimage through Connecticut’s Spiritual History
Connecticut's History is a Religious History.
The colony was conceived from a spiritual idea. Connecticut was an epicenter of the first two great spiritual movements in American History. The lives of its inhabitants and immigrants were for three centuries centered on their relationship with God. Enjoy surprising insights as we explore the disappearing traces of Connecticut’s most precious heritage!
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The Life and Times of Thomas Hooker (1586-1647)
Little is known or appreciated of this good man’s works that influenced the American experiment. He is aptly called “the father of American democracy”. He risked all to adventure into the Connecticut wilderness and met the challenge with pure unselfishness.
Saturday, March 9, 10:30-12 noon — (After the Lecture follow us to the State Library to view Fundamental Orders) — Hosted by the First Church of Christ in Hartford, 60 Gold Street, Hartford (street parking, free on weekends also parking garages nearby)
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Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758) and The First Great Awakening
This son of Connecticut profoundly influenced an international revival that changed the British Empire and united the American colonies. The First Great Awakening was first inter-colonial cultural event.
Saturday April 13 11-1 pm (After Lecture follow us to the Parish Ancient Burial Ground) — Hosted by First Congregational Church, 992 Main Street, South Windsor
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Samson Occom (1723-1792) Connecticut’s Native American Preacher
This eloquent Minister preached Christ to thousands in both New England and England. He was a member of the Mohegan nation and was exemplar in his loving attitude towards all including his prejudicial detractors.
Saturday May 4 11-1 pm at the Noah Webster House, 227 South Main Street, West Hartford (Save on a tour of the Noah Webster House after the Lecture!)
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Connecticut’s Preachers of Revolution - 1765-1783
It is little taught today that the impetus for Connecticut to join the American Revolution was largely provided by the Clergy. Their convictions convinced the people that their civil liberties were worth fighting for. In fact, Connecticut enjoyed more political freedoms than any other American colony.
Saturday May 18 11-1 pm at the Noah Webster House, 227 South Main Street, West Hartford (Save on a tour of the Noah Webster House after the Lecture!)
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Revival in Connecticut: The Second Great Awakening - 1800-1830
The lives of these four Connecticut natives were profoundly affected by the religious movement known as the Second Great Awakening. Though this revival began as a clarion call to holiness it also produced the great social movements of the 19th century including the Temperance Movement, the Women’s Movement and the Abolition Movement.
Saturday June 1, 11-1 pm at the Noah Webster House, 227 South Main Street, West Hartford (Save on a tour of the Noah Webster House after the Lecture!)
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Fanny Crosby (1820-1915) Greatest Hymn Writer in History
This Connecticut resident wrote over 8,000 hymns and over 100 million copies of her songs have been printed. Blessed Assurance is one of her most loved songs. Undaunted by her blindness, this poet/preacher and evangelist was the first woman to speak before Congress. She knew 22 U.S. Presidents and was a close friend to four of them.
Saturday, June 15, 11-1 pm at the Noah Webster House, 227 South Main St, West Hartford (Save on a tour of the Noah Webster House after the Lecture!)
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"...Connecticut is one very great miracle to me."
"In the laws of Connecticut we find the germ and gradual development of that township independence which is the life and mainspring of American liberty."
- Alexis de Toqueville, after visiting Connnecticut in 1831.
Bristol, CT 06010
Email: tdberrill@netscape.com | Phone: 860.877.1547
Institute of Connecticut History