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Essay on religion in colonial america
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Puritans in New England
Raised during the aftermath of the fall of the Spanish Armada to England, the Puritan generation they were children and grandchildren of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. An idealistic generation of the Colonial Cycle, the Puritans came to America seeking freedom, to practice religion in a manner different than that of the English.
Puritans regarded New England as a place to establish a "visible" kingdom of God, a society where outward conduct would be according to God's laws. Puritanism is defined by…: "the intensity of the Puritan's commitment to a morality, a form of worship, and a civil society strictly conforming to God's commandments. ...[in colonial America] Puritanism meant the direction and control of civil authority." (Encarta®)
They found their strengths in the formation of their congregation. They followed daily demanding schedules that were placed upon them by their minister leaders. "By placing the authority over religious appointments in the hands of the lay congregation, they sought to establish a purified church, wh...
The puritans traveled from England on the Arabella in January of 1630 to escape to a place where they could instill their own religious and political values into their society; Stephen Foster writes about the puritans in the narrative entitled Puritanism and Democracy: A mixed Legacy. Stephen grants the puritans with creating a society based off of religious freedom and reformation of the English church. Their social constructs consisted of hierarchies and accepted inequality. The puritans are credited with laying the foundation to the democratic system of America along with early aspects of political and social constructs found in current day America.
Puritans fleeing religious persecution in England settled New England. They were a highly religious people. Document A, John Winthrop’s “ City on a hill” speech, shows how they lived according to God’s will and were very community oriented. Their towns were very planned out with a town/ church meetinghouse in the centre, and land plots for everyone in the community. This is shown in Document D, Articles of Agreement in Springfield Massachusetts 1636. Family was also very important. Since they were very religious and family is highly regarded in the Bible, marriage was advocated and adultery was a huge crime. Adulterers were made to wear the letter A on their clothing. Since they were a very close-knit people, they travelled as big families and sometimes as communities. This mass travel is depicted in document B that is a ship’s list of emigrants bound for New Engla...
8.Puritans— ‘Followers' of Puritanism, a movement for reform in the Church of England that had a profound influence on the social, political, ethical, and theological ideas in England and America. In America the early New England settlements were Puritan in origin and theocratic in nature. The spirit of Puritanism long persisted there, and the idea of congregational democratic government was carried into the political life of the state as one source of modern democracy.
While residing in England, the Puritans and faithful Catholics faced prosecution, which led to their immigration to the New World. Most left England to avoid further harassment. Many groups and parishes applied for charters to America and, led by faithful ministers, the Pilgrims and Puritans made the long voyage to North America. Their religion became a unique element in the New England colonies by 1700. Before landing, the groups settled on agreements, signing laws and compacts to ensure a community effort towards survival when they came to shore, settling in New England. Their strong sense of community and faith in God led them to develop a hardworking society by year 1700, which Documents A and D express through the explanation of how the Pilgrims and Puritans plan to develop...
The puritans had many religious beliefs. The religious beliefs they held were strong and they were extremely devoted to serving their Lord. Puritans believed that people of God had a teetotal lifestyle, worked hard and were responsible. They also believed that anything and everything that happens on earth is already predestined by God. People would not earn salvation with works of righteousness but through God’s grace. The congregation would make all of the decisions in the church and they would not acknowledge any other religions. When Puritans worshipped, it was very simple and only focused on God. There was no music, stained glass windows or art.
The Virginians were better off than the Puritans were, because they had tobacco for a cash crop, they had a longer growing season, and they could trade and sell to England easier than the Puritans could. The Virginians were also more loosely structured than the Puritans, and were allowed to be individual people instead of one large mass. Smith and Bradford’s ways of leading their colonies were similar, yet so very different. Smith’s main concern was to make money and be famous. Bradford’s concept was to start a new life, and preach his own, new religion.
The Puritans were "Christians," in that they believed in Jesus Christ yet some may argue that they did not lead "Christian" lives. These fanatics seemed to obssess over a major tenet of their religion, that being "Pre Destination." That is, God Himself chose those destined for eternal salvation in the beginning of time, long before our conception and birth. This pre-ordained number is considerably miniscule, which, at times, the Puritans seemed to ignore.
Throughout the history of mankind, numerous events such as the Crusades, have occurred in the name of religion and religious freedom. Sadly, motivation for the early settlers coming to America wasn’t strictly about finding religious freedom. It was actually deeply rooted in the desire for economic growth and new trade opportunities. The New world presented itself as an opportunity for many to gain higher social economic status and growth in their business ventures. A number of known historical facts, including: hunger for new trade, poverty of many English inhabitants, and the rivalry between Spain and England, contributed and fostered the foundation and settling of the American Colonies.
The Puritans were mainly artisans and middling farmers by trade and in the wake of the reformation of the Church of England, left for the colonies to better devout themselves to God because they saw the Church of England as a corrupt institution where salvation was able to be bought and sold, and with absolutely no success in further reforming the Church, set off for the colonies. English Puritans believed in an all-powerful God who, at the moment of Creation, determined which humans would be saved and which would be damned (Goldfield 45).
The puritans were very religious. They wanted to show everyone what happens if you are good and believe in god and the heavens. If you do bad things you would be punished or be killed. If you do good things you can be hand chosen to go to heaven.
Puritanism, and The Salem Witch Trials. Puritanism refers to the movement of reform, which occurred within the Church of England. It began at the time of the Elizabethan settlement of 1559 and ended at the end of the Rump Parliament with the ascension of Charles II to the British throne in 1660. The American Puritans clearly understood that God's word applies to all of life.
Puritans believed in strict religious dedications, by trying to follow the holy commandment. “The discipline of the family, in those days, was of a far more rigid kind than now.”(Hawthorne 9). They wanted to be considered the holiest of all people because they try to reflect a world of perfection in the sight of God. While they where trying to portray a holy life; however, they where also living a sinful life because they have been judgmental, slandering, uncompassionate, resentment, and forbearing, which are all sinful acts of the bible.
The Puritans were Englishmen who chose to separate from the Church of England. Puritans believed that the Anglican Church or Church of England resembled the Roman Catholic Church too closely and was in dire need of reform. Furthermore, they were not free to follow their own religious beliefs without punishment. In the sixteenth century the Puritans settled in the New England area with the idea of regaining their principles of the Christi...
While I'm sitting here at my computer, in my air conditioned home, with the radio blaring and the t.v. on downstairs, I try to imagine how life was as a young Puritan. To be honest, I don't think I could live a week the way they do. I could try but it would be excruciatingly difficult.
Puritans are discontented with the Church of England. The Puritans are people, who stand in for the pure doctrin of the bible. They reject all forms of religious practise. Every written word in the bible must be believed from them. Who follows God's moral codes will be blessed with eternal life. The conflict between the King, the Church of England and the Puritans had reached the climax when William Laud became the new Archbishop of Canterbury. He brought new beliefs in the Church, but this was unacceptable for the Puritans. This new beliefs included emphasise on individual acceptance or rejection of God's grace, toleration for a varity of religious beliefs, and the incoporation of "high church" symbols. For the Puritans is this not true belief. So they wished to get rid of all catholics influence in their religion. Thats the reason why they split from the Church of England in 1633.