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Religion in American colonies
John winthrop a model of christian charity summary
Religion in American colonies
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As a dedicated Puritan, John Winthrop believed in the necessity of following God’s rules. “God Almighty... ”, Winthrop highly uses the name of God in his “A Model of Christian Charity” from 1630. While preparing to a new life in the newfangled colony, the soon to be the first Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony was determined to build a better life to his supporter based in God’s fundaments of living. Winthrop believe in use the power of God to create a strong and compliant colony. His vision of a unified colony was excessive reinforce in his speeches. A colony where the people work together and help each other, always following the God’s principles. A colony needs to be a well synchronize system. Winthrop was creating a colony based in mutual common and sense; if you help the others, the others will help you. Plus, Winthrop believed in karma; his thought was that with a colony working together and in harmony, would be the best way to get blessings from God. Be on the good side of God was very important for Winthrop. The part when Winthrop …show more content…
He enface the fact that if you do not follow the rules or do not life a good Christian life, the Lord would punish the entire colony. “… if we shall neglect the observation of these articles which are the ends we have propounded, and, dissembling with our God, shall fall to embrace this present world and prosecute our carnal intensions, seeking great things for ourselves and our posterity, the Lord will surely break oy in wrath against us, and be revenged of such a perjured people, and make us know the price of the breach of such a covenant” (A Model of Christian Charity, 1630). Those are the words of Winthrop about God’s punishment power. God can give you wonders, but depends on you. The people in the colony was would be the main determination on which way the Lord would look at the colony. God is the one who decides if the colony would be blessed or
On his way to the New World, aboard the Arabella in 1630, John Winthrop, Puritan leader of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, spoke of the plan that he had in store for the colony. He preached that there would be equality in the new colony and that they " must be knit together in this work as one man." He spoke about the importance of community in the colony that was vital for the survival of the colony. His statements made on the Arabella are to the ideas in the Articles of Agreement, which compiled in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1636. In the Articles of Agreement, the community was to contain forty familiesrich and poor. In the Articles of Agreement, the concern for comfort and quality of life (for families) is outlined. They again put emphasis on the importance of unity in the colony and they also express that social classes do not determine what a person is. In Connecticut, the colonists set up regulations for wages and price; these rules were made to include poor settlers in trading and the economy by keeping the prices in the colony "fair." Since the colonists in the New England region was untied "as one" in each colony, this was one way that caused them to become a different society from the Che...
While the Protestant Revolution raged in Europe, Catholics and other radicals were fleeing to the New World to find religious freedom and to escape prosecution. Because of this, the northern colonies became more family and religiously orientated as the families of the pilgrims settled there. From the Ship’s List of Emigrants Bound for New England we see that six families on board made up sixty nine of the ships passengers (B). Not only did families tend to move to New England, but whole congregations made the journey to find a place where they could set up “a city upon a hill”, and become an example to all who follow to live by as John Winthrop put it to his Puritan followers (A). Contrastingly, the Chesapeake colonies only had profit in their mind, which pushed them to become agriculturally advanced. Since Virginia, one of the Chesapeake colonies, was first settled with the intention of becoming an economic power house, it was mainly inhabited by working-class, single men. The average age of a man leaving for the Americas was only twenty two and a half years old according to the Ship’s List of Emigrants bound for Virginia (C). The harsh conditions of the colony did not appeal to those who wished to settle with a family. Added on to that was the fact that the average lifespan in the Chesapeake colonies was a full ten years or more shorter than that in other more desirable living quarters to the north.
There may not be two more contrasting characters of early America then Thomas Morton and John Winthrop. Morton was nicknamed, "Leader of Misrule" while Winthrop was seen as the "model of [a] perfect earthly ruler" (147). These two figures not only help settle a new land, they also had firsthand knowledge of each other. They are not two people that lived years apart from each other but rather they lived concurrently. With two such polarizing people living in a small new land, there was bound to be at least one disagreement. We are fortunate to have writings from each of these two fascinating men. One can't help but be thoroughly entertained when reading the words that each man left behind. Morton was the rebellious and raucous and Winthrop was the conservative preacher. Each had different ideas and ideals for what America was to become. Their two opinions could not differ much more from the other but they both weren't quite right. It seems that America has found a middle ground. Perhaps these two help set the path to where we stand now.
I find John Winthrop and Jonathan Edwards to be the most fascinating writers I have ever read. For one, they are the "apostles" of our time. Second, their comparisons to the apostles of Christ are too close to ignore.
[This is an introduction sentence, wow amazing, I can’t believe I made it to the third page.] I believe that if John Winthrop were to suddenly come back to life in order to witness the Salem witch trials, he would first consider it the work of the devil, then later disapprove of the actions taken by Parris and his supporters. In order to break down this argument, one must draw upon Winthrop’s sermon, A Modell of Christian Charity, and his traditional Puritan values.
Compare and Contrast A Description of New England and A Model of Christian Charity Mankind can be conceived in interesting ways by analyzing the writings of John Smith and John Winthrop. As I read through John Smith‘s “A Description of New England” and John Winthrop’s “A Model of Christian Charity,” it became evident to me that the two readings had similar and different viewpoints of the essential nature of man. Throughout my paper, I will compare their similar beliefs of community and diversity of people and completely contrast their ideas of emphasis on religion and relationships with enemies. Both authors stress a sense of community and diversity in order to survive in America.
As the regions began to expand and develop, their motivations for settlement helped to mold their societies. New England was a place where men sought refuge from religious persecution and was established as a haven for religious refugees. Despite this reason for settling, the New Englanders still attempted to spread their own beliefs of religion. As illustrated by John Winthrop in his Model of a Christian Charity, he preached to his fellow colonists that “we shall be a city upon a hill” (Doc A) exemplifying the Puritans’ aspirations of a Holy Utopia. He and countless other New Englanders practiced the belief that they must all work together. They were determined to “mourn together, labor and suffer together, always having before our eyes our commission and community in the work.” The Articles of Agreement plainly laid out the basis for the New England region. These articles made New England a cosmopolitan mix of rich and poor families, all being in possession of land and resolute in doing God’s work (Doc D). However, while the New Englanders settled to create a Holy Utopia, the people of the Chesapeake were concerned not only with their religious freedom, but also ...
Religion was the foundation of the early Colonial American Puritan writings. Many of the early settlements were comprised of men and women who fled Europe in the face of persecution to come to a new land and worship according to their own will. Their beliefs were stalwartly rooted in the fact that God should be involved with all facets of their lives and constantly worshiped. These Puritans writings focused on their religious foundations related to their exodus from Europe and religions role in their life on the new continent. Their literature helped to proselytize the message of God and focused on hard work and strict adherence to religious principles, thus avoiding eternal damnation. These main themes are evident in the writings of Jonathan Edwards, Cotton Mathers, and John Winthrop. This paper will explore the writings of these three men and how their religious views shaped their literary works, styles, and their historical and political views.
In 1630, the Massachusetts Bay Company set sail to the New World in hope of reforming the Church of England. While crossing the Atlantic, John Winthrop, the puritan leader of the great migration, delivered perhaps the most famous sermon aboard the Arbella, entitled “A Model of Christian Charity.” Winthrop’s sermon gave hope to puritan immigrants to reform the Church of England and set an example for future immigrants. The Puritan’s was a goal to get rid of the offensive features that Catholicism left behind when the Protestant Reformation took place. Under Puritanism, there was a constant strain to devote your life to God and your neighbors. Unlike the old England, they wanted to prove that New England was a community of love and individual worship to God. Therefore, they created a covenant with God and would live their lives according to the covenant. Because of the covenant, Puritans tried to abide by God’s law and got rid of anything that opposed their way of life. Between 1630 and the 18th century, the Puritans tried to create a new society in New England by creating a covenant with God and living your life according to God’s rule, but in the end failed to reform the Church of England. By the mid 1630’s, threats to the Puritans such as Roger Williams, Anne Hutchinson, and Thomas Hooker were being banned from the Puritan community for their divergent beliefs. 20 years later, another problem arose with the children of church members and if they were to be granted full membership to the church. Because of these children, a Halfway Covenant was developed to make them “halfway” church members. And even more of a threat to the Puritan society was their notion that they were failing God, because of the belief that witches existed in 1692.
According to both Winthrop and Rowlandson, if one has true faith in God, he will be able to witness God's mercy in his own life. Winthrop clearly underscores this point in his sermon, where he stresses that the Puritans must uphold their covenant with God in order to have a harmonious and successful colony. If one is faithful and obedient to God, he will be the recipient of God's providence: "Now if the Lord shall please to hear us, and bring us in peace to the place we desire, then hath He ratified this covenant and sealed our commission, [and] will expect a strict pe...
The "A Model of Christian Charity" sermon, delivered by John Winthrop, is an example of the deeply religious Puritans that settled in Boston. They felt they had a convent with God to live a righteous life, a life that put God commandments and the community first. The puritans were very concerned with proper behavior theirs and others. The settlers of Boston were pious Puritans who regularly reassessed the state of their souls. By living this righteous life, the Puritans believed the Massachusetts Bay Colony was the "City upon the Hill" and they would be the light of the world. John Winthrop stated in the closing statement of his sermon how deeply the Puritans walked with God.
The political difference between the New England and Chesapeake region was that New England government associate more with religious matter than the Chesapeake government. The New England regions included the Massachusetts Bay Colony, the Plymouth colony, the New Hampshire colony, Maine colony, Connecticut colony, and Rhode Island colony. Massachusetts colony for example was governed as a theocracy government. As the first governor of Massachusetts colony once stated in A Model of Christian Charity (Written on board the Arbella on the Atlantic Ocean, 1630),"we shall be as a city upon a hill" a holy commonwealth that could be served as an example community to the rest of the world. The Massachusetts Bay colony placed great importance on religious matters. Only the church member were allowed to vote or held office position. Those who held office position would enforce the law requiring attendance at services. Jamestown, Maryland and the Carolinas were some colonies in the Chesapeake regions. The governments in these regions were less concerned about...
The eyes of all people are upon us.” He believes his colony should become a model for other Christian communities around the world. People would use the community as an example for other godly experiments. All the colonists have in the New World is their religion, so knowing the journey would inspire religious fervor in others would make them feel more than worthy. Winthrop tells the people, “…when He shall make us a praise and glory that men shall say of succeeding plantations, ‘may the Lord make it like that of New England.” The colonists had recently emigrated from their home, risking everything to create a Puritan colony that would bring them closer to God. Hearing that their adventure would be an inspiration of historical proportions would be very comforting to them. Winthrop also declares, “...we shall be made a story and a by-word through the world.” Winthrop knows that the colonization of New England will be important to the future generations. By telling the colonists the sheer importance of the settlement, he hopes to invoke a good spirit in all of the Puritans. He hopes that the sermon will make them act even more religiously and become a golden, idealistic community. John Winthrop wants to inspire the settlers to their hearts. He wants them to do everything they find God’s
The people of the colonial period thought of religion much more sternly than I do. John Winthrop believed in a very stern God. John Winthrop writes, "Now if the Lord shall please to hear us, and bring us in peace to the place we desire, then hath he ratified this Covenant and sealed our Commission, [and] will expect a strict performance of the Articles contained in it" (43). He believes that God acts completely as he wishes, without any thought for man. Samuel Sewall used religion to help him when he needed help. In his diary, Samuell Sewall writes, "...My Son, the minister, came to me p.m. by appointment and we pray one for another in the Old Chamber; more especially respecting my Courtship"(63). Sewall only acted religious when it was convenient for him. I personally believe in a God much more caring than that Winthrop believed in. I also believe that God is always around, not just when I need him. Different people have many different religious beliefs.
John Winthrop’s envision indicated something that would serve as an outstanding example of a perfect society. It would be above and beyond anything that formerly existed anyplace in the world. He stated that the "eyes of the world are upon us" and he wanted to set a worthy example. Winthrop, being an extremely religious man had used a religious image. His hope, was that the world could not help but notice his new city and eventually match it. Winthrop's starts with a harmless question, why in society are some people rich while other people are poor? He states that there is a difference among people, mixture among people that allows for a change of ways in which God may be respected. Acts of compassion by the rich towards the poor and a life