Critics have long noted but never adequately explained why Jonathan Edwards deliberately reordered the Northampton revival's chronology in his Faithful Narrative. This essay argues that by declaring that Joseph Hawley's suicide signified the withdrawal of God's Spirit, Edwards sought to protect his community from the social, cultural, and theological ramifications of that self-murder.

Issue Section:
Reconsiderations
This content is only available as a PDF.
© 2012 by The New England Quarterly
2012
You do not currently have access to this content.