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”.
The Puritans brought strong religious beliefs to the colonies where they established a holy Commonwealth. They left an impact on both religious
In the Puritan family, the family managed all things. The towns were seen as part of a greater family, all were invited to weddings and baptisms. Doors were never locked because the idea was that Puritans should have nothing to hide from each other. Even on the honeymoon it was common for an aunt, uncle, or parent to watch the new couple make love for the first time to insure everything was done right. Church was a large part of the Puritan experience and the Meeting was a time when the people of the town would gather in the church with the minister to discuss religion, voting, or anything else of importance.
Over 100 individuals were suspected to be witches in result to weird behavior before a disaster happens. The puritans set fairly high standards on themselves and others. True puritans could show their commitment by going to church and working their hardest. They also believed God was not the only powerful force among their community.
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).
The Puritans created a religiously repressive society that greatly influenced the overall development of New England. Although their society revolved around the church, were all of their beliefs detrimental to the evolution of the colony? Regarding New England’s social development, the Puritans’ stress on community, family and education was advantageous because it caused the region to thrive with more families and small towns. Therefore, since Puritans were more likely to come to the New World’s families instead of individuals, New England had significantly more families settle there than in other regions of colonization. Additionally, Puritans emphasized the importance of a community living together and sustaining its members, which resulted in New England being marked by the development of
While this proved to be a formula for self-righteousness and intolerance, the Puritans, at their best, acknowledged that their own commonwealths also stood under the judgment of God (Frey, 2009,
By 1620, the Puritans arrived in Plymouth, Massachusetts. When Puritans arrived did not know the environment of the place, but the Native Americans helped them. These Native Americans were very different from the Puritans in many aspects, they believed that all things in the Universe depend on each other, recognized the work of the creator of the world, and ceremonies that honored a creator of nature. The Puritans, in another way, believed in God and follow their Protestant Ethic, which is a code of morals based on the principles of thrift, discipline, hard
In the Puritan way of life, religion is essential; therefore, there was no separation of church and state in their government and it was important
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.
The Church was a vital source for them. The Puritans believed that the men were the superior ones. The women were not allowed to attend the town meetings and were also prohibited from making decisions for the church. Attending church for the Puritans was mandatory for the people that missed church had to pay a fine. The church official typically had the ultimate power even above the judge.
The lifestyle that the Puritans lived affected their lives along with others around them, since many spoke out their full mind when someone was not acting how a Puritan would. Puritanism was a very common practice because of its ability to influence other and so both the poor, educated, and the average farmer were all normally was influenced by
More than 80% of Americans have Puritan ancestors who emigrated to Colonial America on the Mayflower, and other ships, in the 1630’s (“Puritanism”). Puritanism had an early start due to strong main beliefs that, when challenged, caused major conflict like the Salem Witch Trials. Puritanism had an extremely rocky beginning, starting with a separation from the Roman Catholic Church. Starting in 1606, a group of villagers in Scrooby, England left the church of England and formed a congregation called the Separatist Church, and the members were called The puritans (“Pilgrims”).
Essentially, Puritans are expected to follow a strict set of religious and moral guidelines from which their actions and morality are derived. According to Hall’s A Reforming People, these moral expectations first introduced by the pilgrims were the driving force behind the power that the Puritan ministry had over society: “Ministers and laypeople looked first to congregations as the place where love, mutuality, and righteousness would flourish, and second to civil society. …Alongside love, mutuality, and righteousness they placed another set of values summed up in the word “equity.” Employed in a broad array of contexts, the concept of equity conveyed the colonists’ hopes for justice and fairness in their social world.”
