Jonathan Dickinson's Influence on Presbyterianism and the Great Awakening

Jonathan Dickinson played a significant role in American Presbyterianism and the Great Awakening. As a minister and doctor in Elizabethtown, New Jersey, he emphasized the need for conversion and fought against nominalism in the Anglican and congregational churches. During the Great Awakening, Dickinson was a key figure and supported the new side Presbyterians. Along with his colleagues, he sought to establish a new college for Presbyterian ministers, but their initial petition was denied by the Anglican governor. However, under a new governor, the College of New Jersey was founded in 1746 and housed in Dickinson's parsonage. Although he served as the first president for only a year before his death, his efforts paved the way for the college's move to Princeton and its eventual transformation into Princeton University.