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John Winthrop: A Model Of Christian Charity

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The Puritans were plaster saints. In other words, they considered themselves humans without failings. Puritans are primarily remembered for their devout faith, their repressive religious code, and their repressive and violent attitudes towards women and children. The Oxford English Dictionary confirms these attributes by stating, “A Puritan is a person who practices or who is characterized by extreme strictness or austerity in religion, morals.” Their extreme moral code caused the Puritans to have a sense of superiority to anyone who was not following their lifestyle. John Winthrop summarizes what he believes are the statutes of what Puritans should live by in, “A Model of Christian Charity.” Winthrop’s writings are based on his interpretation of bible scriptures. In a Model of Christian charity, the four focal points are love, forgiveness, mercy, and justice. The sermon Winthrop gave contradicts the actual character of the Puritans. The Puritans are remembered as extremists, not individuals who practice unconditional love under the ideals of a loving God. …show more content…

He demonstrates these points by echoing the bible by stating: “he perform this out of the same affection which makes him careful of his own goods, according to the words of our Savior (from Matthew 7:12), whatsoever ye would that men should do to you.” Winthrop claimed that the attributes of justice and mercy are two rules that walk toward one another. He wanted Puritans to show mercy to someone in distress and do justice to a poor man. Winthrop essentially uses these two traits because they are easily recognizable references from the Bible. Using biblical references and exploiting emphasis on God’s laws Winthrop is merely trying to gain public support to unify the

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