Bouwman, L.B. (Lucille Barbara) (2026) Fast for the pouring out of the Spirit : fasting and revival in the life and thought of Jonathan Edwards. Doctoral thesis.
![[img]](http://theoluniv.ub.rug.nl/style/images/fileicons/text.png) |
Text
2026 Bouwman, L.B._diss.pdf - Accepted Version Download (3MB) |
| Item Type: | Thesis (Doctoral thesis) |
|---|---|
| Titel: | Fast for the pouring out of the Spirit : fasting and revival in the life and thought of Jonathan Edwards |
| Samenvatting (EN): | This dissertation analyzes Jonathan Edwards’s theology and practice of fasting in his sermons, correspondence, diaries, and related writings, arguing that he linked fasting with both personal renewal and ecclesial revival. Despite extensive scholarship on Edwards, his fasting practice remains underexamined; this study addresses that gap. To contextualize these findings, the study examines Edwards’s personal library and citations, which show sustained engagement with Reformed and Puritan authors (e.g., John Calvin, Petrus van Mastricht, Richard Baxter, and Increase and Cotton Mather). It also considers Edwards’s psychology of fasting and eating, clarifying how this biblical discipline also relates to his appreciation of food, and highlights recurring nourishment eccentricities such as: Christ as spiritual food, breastfeeding imagery, and occasional symbolic references to cannibalism. Edwards maintains that biblical fasting is legitimate only when rooted in profound humility before God and that such fasting disposes believers toward regeneration and personal revival. Accordingly, his sermons stress “Fast Days in Dead Times,” rejecting externalism and calling for repentance. Drawing on biblical precedents (e.g., Ahab; Nineveh), he argues that God shows mercy to those who humble themselves through fasting and that the practice counters an “atheistical spirit,” understood as practical disregard for God. Finally, the dissertation argues that fasting is normative for Christians and especially urgent for ministers. In “Some Thoughts…,” Edwards links fasting to personal and corporate revival and contends that renewal should not be expected apart from it; neglect, he warns, impoverishes spiritual life and renders ministers ineffective. Reconstructing this fasting–revival nexus clarifies a neglected dimension of Edwards’s piety and offers a framework for interpreting renewal in the Great Awakening and earlier reform movements, as well as for evaluating modern-day appeals to ecclesial and personal revival. |
| Number of Pages: | 495 |
| Theologische Universiteit: | Theologische Universiteit Apeldoorn |
| Trefwoorden (NL): | Edwards, Jonathan (1703-1785) ; Vasten |
| Trefwoorden (EN): | Edwards, Jonathan (1703-1785) ; Fasting-Religious aspects-Christianity |
| Date Deposited: | 15 Jul 2026 13:13 |
| Last Modified: | 15 Jul 2026 13:13 |
Actions (login required)
 |
View Item |
