Global Awakening is a compilation of Mark Shaw’s yearlong research of global revivals in Christianity. Shaw explores how global revivals helped propel the explosion of Christianity in the 20th century. The purpose of this review is to give a summary of the contents of the book and provide the reader with a look at its strengths and weaknesses.
Shaw gives many of his book’s conclusions from the start in the first chapter. In a time when growing secularization in the world should have made Christianity plummet, just the opposite happened (p. 10). Over the course of 100 years from 1900 to 2000, many millions of Christians have been added to the church in Africa. Pentecostalism grew by a half a billion. There was a great shift of the center of …show more content…
He gives many facts and examples to support that the revivals around the world played an instrumental part in the explosion of Christianity in the 20th century. There are multiple strengths to this book. First, the book does a good job of eliminating the thought that America is responsible for global Christianity. Because American has been known for sending missionaries all over the globe, many people would assume this has brought revival to all parts of the world. After reading Shaw’s stories, it is clear that revival has immerged in numerous areas by natives and many times without the help of North American missionaries. This accentuates the fact that it was “global” revivals and not just American revivals that propelled the explosion of Christianity in the 20th century. He also shows how revivals happened in diverse cultures and diverse religious makeups.
Another area of strength for Global Awakening was the extensive use of researched and experienced stories. Stories have always captured the attention of people. Shaw painted the picture of revival in the 20th century with color and personality. There was not a dull moment in the book where the reader would wish it were drawing to a close. Each story compelled the reader to move forward to the next chapter and the next story. Shaw used these stories to show how these particular revivals propelled the explosion of
Shaw gives many of his book’s conclusions from the start in the first chapter. In a time when growing secularization in the world should have made Christianity plummet, just the opposite happened (p. 10). Over the course of 100 years from 1900 to 2000, many millions of Christians have been added to the church in Africa. Pentecostalism grew by a half a billion. There was a great shift of the center of …show more content…
He gives many facts and examples to support that the revivals around the world played an instrumental part in the explosion of Christianity in the 20th century. There are multiple strengths to this book. First, the book does a good job of eliminating the thought that America is responsible for global Christianity. Because American has been known for sending missionaries all over the globe, many people would assume this has brought revival to all parts of the world. After reading Shaw’s stories, it is clear that revival has immerged in numerous areas by natives and many times without the help of North American missionaries. This accentuates the fact that it was “global” revivals and not just American revivals that propelled the explosion of Christianity in the 20th century. He also shows how revivals happened in diverse cultures and diverse religious makeups.
Another area of strength for Global Awakening was the extensive use of researched and experienced stories. Stories have always captured the attention of people. Shaw painted the picture of revival in the 20th century with color and personality. There was not a dull moment in the book where the reader would wish it were drawing to a close. Each story compelled the reader to move forward to the next chapter and the next story. Shaw used these stories to show how these particular revivals propelled the explosion of