The Puritans sought to create a society that was more pure and righteous than the corrupt society they believed existed in England. The Massachusetts colonies were founded by Puritan separatists who left England in search of religious freedom. They believed that the Church of England was too hierarchical and corrupt, and they wanted to establish a society that was more focused on individual piety and a direct relationship with God. The Puritans emphasized education and literacy, and they believed that all members of the community should be able to read and interpret the Bible for themselves.
Liberty was the key issue for the Puritans. It was liberty, or the lack of, that pushed men to find safe haven, and it was freedom that enticed them to create a new society that never put state and the church hand in hand. By having a taste of liberty, they were introduced to ideas of equality and democracy which became an important part of the community they built and to the future nation that they will create. The foundation of Puritan principles such as piety, democracy and republican freedom, spread its influence over all the colonies, enlightening the “whole American world”.
They came to New England to practice Christianity in a new way.” (Background Essay) Puritans believed in predestination, this means that God had already determined who is going to heaven and who is going to hell. They believed if they worked hard enough and did enough good they would be able to go to heaven. Puritans were scrupulous and
The Puritans were a group of people that were discontented with the church in England. The moved from England because it was expected to have religious, moral and social reforms. They lived by the bible because they believed that the Bible was the very true law of God. Although they rejected the church's authority. They were seeking to purify of a not only church but also their everyday lives.
They wanted to create pure, moral Christian society based on moral living. By hard working, integration of religion in politics, and social development of certain lifestyle practices, Puritans had a large influence on the development of the New England colonies from 1630s through the 1660s. Puritans believed in hard work as the pathway of success since they thought they were favored by God to succeed (Doc I). They tried to shun idleness and believed that being lazy is not profitable (Doc C).
On their journey, they did not want to break from England’s system. Their goal was to reform it. When they arrived in America, there were hardships for the puritans to overcome.
The Puritans of colonial times were rapidly increasing and experiencing a time of great success in the implementation of a large scale Puritan community, but their achievement did not happen overnight. With religious zeal the Puritans sought to create an ideal society in the New World where the their way of life was law and they could become a model christian community for the world. In order for the Puritans to achieve their goals they needed a united and, therefore, strictly controlled community, and they found that community in New England. In New England they organized a unified and strictly controlled political, economic, and social structure dominated by religion in order to achieve the Puritan dream.
1. Puritans were the religious nonconformists in England, who advocated the purification of Protestant Church of England from the "popish stuff. " The most radical of them - a group that included William Bradford, the future spiritual leader and the first-time writer of New England, in principle, did not believe in the possibility of return to the Church of England on the right path. They chose to isolate from it. Massachusetts, where travelers had to disembark, was gray and chilly place at that time of year, and had very little in common with the Earthly Paradise.
The New England colonies were made with the aspiration to escape commotion and disorder of England, with their sights set to found a formal, clean, Puritan society. Their society was strict conformity, fines were issued for breaking Sabbath by smoking or even stopping by to see friends. Strict dress codes were given, including a ban on wearing flashy ceremonious clothing to your own wedding and a ban was put on all games, such as: cards and dice. The land was distributed between wealthy families and the government was considered to be ruled by the people, well, the men; considering they were the only people allowed to vote. This was called a self government and was managed primarily by the male church members.
While the Virginians were focused of making a profit of the land, the New England Puritans saw it as a refuge. The New England Puritans sought religious freedom for themselves in the “New World.” They compared themselves a lot to the Israelites and saw the new land as a “Promised Land.” Their attitude towards the land was that of respect, but they believed God wanted them to “use” the land.
For the Puritans, it became their promised land, one where they could purify the Church, worship God, and create a godly society, safe from the destruction they believed would come to Europe. (Taylor,
The American Dream in the Eyes of a Puritan Jonathan Edwards defines the American dream as essentially, God’s “dream”, in the religious sermon, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”. God is restraining an arrow from striking you, “The bow of God’s wrath is bent and justice points the arrow at your heart.” (Edwards 1). God does not let his arrow fire, instead, he holds it to protect those who are unconverted in hopes they will follow His dream to escape Hell. God does not wish anyone pain, he wants those unconverted people to follow His “dream” and flee from the clutches of Hell, they need to dream as God desires.
The Puritan’s goal of coming to the New World was not to create a new life, but to create the ideal model of living for the “corrupt” inhabitants of England. This was coined “The Errand”, the Puritans desire to establish a City Upon a Hill that others could look up to and imitate in order to receive God’s grace. The Puritans failed at building their City Upon a Hill (creating a perfect religious, economic, and political community), however the long-term effects of their efforts have influenced American moral politics throughout its history. The Puritans forever had the attitude of a community that had successfully established a City Upon a Hill. The Puritan lifestyle was heavily influenced not only by religion, but also inside of that, morality.
They came to America seeking religious refuge in 1629. The kind of utopia they were seeking was one that held religious freedom because they had one sole purpose; to worship God. The kind of influence the Puritans had on America was building strong morals, religion, tradition, and love for one another. A sermon
Puritans are Europeans who escaped religious persecution from the Church of England. The Puritans age likely varies from children to adults. However, it’s apparent that Winthrop is appealing more towards Puritan males to create their ideal utopia. Winthrop evokes God to entice the colonist to fruitfully colonize the land. He uses nationalism, religion, and imagery to entice the colonist into creating a bountiful colony.
