John Winthrop was a puritan who came to America seeking religious liberty. The puritans believed religion should be straight from bible scripture. They encouraged their supporters to read the bible and listen to sermons rather than participate in sacraments. They loathed Catholicism and disliked how England’s churches still utilized catholic rituals. They did not agree with the religious structure where authority passed down from pope, to bishops, and priests. They were Congregationalists who felt each congregation should independently run its own affairs. They puritans believe in seeking salvation as success indicated God’s grace, but God had already determined who was going to be saved. They felt because of their strong urge to bring religion …show more content…
This right to worship however they chose gave them ownership over their own religion and allowed them to experience religious liberty and freedom. This enlightenment made the people question other forms of authority and encouraged many to not just listen to the elites but to instead trust their own views. They formed bible studies, debated religion, and listened to sermons to form their own independent judgment. This independent mindset became the driving force behind many political debates and in turn independence from England. The colonist understood that like their religion political power did not belong to England but instead resided in their own desire to be self-governed. Initially American colonists were mostly self-governed with very little interference from England as they elected their own officials. As time went on England started interfering more to reduce colonial self-government and inforce its authority over the colonies. England began to introduce many new laws that benefited themselves and negatively affected the colonies. With England in debt they enacted a taxes that colonists felt violated their