Editing First Great Awakening (section)

==Continental Europe==
Historian [[Sydney E. Ahlstrom]] sees the Great Awakening as part of a "great international Protestant upheaval" that also created [[Pietism]] in the [[Lutheran]] and [[Continental Reformed church|Reformed churches]] of continental Europe.{{Sfn|Ahlstrom|2004|p=263}} Pietism emphasized heartfelt religious [[Faith in Christianity|faith]] in reaction to an overly intellectual [[Protestant scholasticism]] perceived as spiritually dry. Significantly, the Pietists placed less emphasis on traditional doctrinal divisions between Protestant churches, focusing rather on [[religious experience]] and affections.{{Sfn|Campbell|1996|p=127}}

Pietism prepared Europe for revival, and it usually occurred in areas where pietism was strong. The most important leader of the Awakening in central Europe was [[Nicolaus Zinzendorf]], a Saxon noble who studied under Pietist leader [[August Hermann Francke]] at [[Halle University]].{{Sfn|Sweeney|2005|p=36}} In 1722, Zinzendorf invited members of the [[Moravian Church]] to live and worship on his estates, establishing a community at [[Herrnhut]]. The Moravians came to Herrnhut as refugees, but under Zinzendorf's guidance, the group enjoyed a religious revival. Soon, the community became a refuge for other Protestants as well, including German Lutherans, Reformed Christians, and [[Anabaptists]]. The church began to grow, and Moravian societies would be established in England, where they would help foster the Evangelical Revival as well.{{Sfn|Sweeney|2005|pp=36–37}}