The Symbolic World 424 - Universal History: The American Religion - with Dcn Seraphim Rohlin
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Dec 4, 2025 Deacon Seraphim Rohlin, an insightful Orthodox deacon and scholar, delves into the intriguing landscape of American religious history. He uncovers how Puritan foundations and dramatic conversions shaped the American Religion, highlighting revivalism and its emotional intensity. Rohlin explores the roots of movements like Mormonism and Spiritualism, linking them to social crises and folk magic. He also critiques the American focus on individual conversion and divine experience, offering fascinating insights into the spiritual journey of a nation.
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Edwards Called In As The 'Big Gun'
- Jonathan Edwards was invited to preach to a congregation with many baptized but few converted members to provoke dramatic conversions.
- His sermon "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" aimed to scare people into genuine conversion.
Covenant Vs. Conversion Tension
- New England Puritanism combined a covenantal society with a demand for dramatic individual conversion, creating institutional tensions.
- That requirement became problematic as second- and third-generation colonists rarely experienced such dramatic conversions.
Alchemy As Metaphor For Soul Transformation
- Alchemical and mystical metaphors reframed spiritual transformation as inner transmutation in post‑Reformation thought.
- That language fed revivalist expectations of radical inward change and visionary experience.
