the purpose of these paragraphs is to see the effects of seventeenth-century New England Puritanism upon the development of the United States of America. Many scholars have argued that various elements of Puritanism persisted in the culture and society of the United States long after the New England Puritanism discussed in the following pages was recognizable.However, many of the verbal formulations that the early Congregational and Presbyterian clergy devised as ways to imagine themselves as a special people on a sacred errand into the wilderness of a New World have been sustained in the social, political, economic, and religious thinking of Americans even to the present. Two leading literary and cultural scholars of New England Puritanism
The Puritans left England, just as the Pilgrims did, as they sought religious freedom that they were not gaining from the Church of England. Families of the Puritans found themselves sailing to the New England colonies, where there hard work and motivation would change the ways of all the colonies, although the Puritans were not in all of them. The Puritans did not sail all the way here for the money or opportunity to live better, they came here to purify the Christian faith since the Church of England was very against the purification of the faith that they had much control over. This caused the Puritans to change the structure of religion in the colonies, and cause the growth of all the New England colonies. As the Puritans created a fellowship of themselves and changed the ways that the Church of England forced upon them, they influenced the political, economic, and social maturation of the New England colonies.
The New England colonies developed rapidly, largely due to the influence of the Puritans. The Puritans came to the new world seeking religious freedom and helped found most of the colonies in the New England region. The Puritans wanted a United government that will later become the basis for the Unites States, they believed that the overall well being of the people was more important than the well being of the few, and the Puritans believed that religion, church, and community were important aspects of the people’s lives. The Puritans’ religion allowed them to prosper in the political, economical, and social development of the New England Colonies in the 1630-1660’s.
The New England colonies development was influenced upon the arrival of the Puritans. The Puritans brought with them many ideas and values to help better the colonies. One of the political ideas the Puritans had were town meetings which was a form of democracy. Economically, the Puritans were big on trading, fishing and farming. Also one of the main reasons the Puritans came to the New World was to purify the churches which impacted the colonies socially. The ideas and values of the Puritans influenced the development of the New England colonies politically by having the first pure form of democracy, economically by trading and farming, and socially by purifying the churches.
The New England colonies developed quickly and rapidly through the early 1600s. The colonies’ development was largely influenced by the Puritans, who had helped found most of the colonies in the region after emigrating from GB. The philosophies, ideas, and values of the Puritans greatly shaped the development of the colonies in a number of distinct ways. Politically, the idea of a united, representative government that later became a staple of the US was derived from Puritan ideals. Economically, the ideals of fair pricing and the celebrated “Yankee frugality and thriftiness” originated from the Puritans. Socially, emphasis on church, religion, and community was another lasting influence of the Puritans. Clearly, the values held by the Puritans greatly influenced the political, economic, and social development of the New England colonies from 1630 to 1660.
The New England colonies quickly expanded and developed, largely due to the vast emigration of Puritans who had come seeking religious freedom. Puritan values and ideas greatly shaped New England's economic, social, and political development throughout the 1600’s. Their belief in a driven and productive lifestyle gave New England surprising economical success that was the envy of the English empire. Additionally, Puritan values on religion and the importance of education affected their social interactions with the Native Americans and intelligence of the New England community. Finally, Puritan values shaped the political structure in New England that simultaneously restricted the liberties of the people while taking a step towards democracy.
The decades surged by and thoughts other than religion began to crowd the minds of the American people. The smoldering ideas of independence, enlightenment, and innovation elicited a new mentality in America. Puritan ideals were not held as high, for other religious sects had taken their place. The stringencies of the Puritan lifestyle wafted away as America grew in its diversity, but the Puritan mindset was rooted in the soil and could not be torn away. The words that John Winthrop had spoken on the Arabella were held at the base of the country, “For we must consider that we shall be as a City upon a Hill, the eyes of all people are upon us.”
Dissent always existed in the New England Colonies; the Puritans rarely all agreed on one point. Differing theological opinions forged a schism between groups and lead to the creation of colonies such as Rhode Island. As they stressed literacy, individuals formed their own impressions of the gospel. Minister Roger Williams, for example, disagreed with the Massachusetts Bay Colony’s Indian relations and lack of religious freedoms. Roger Williams wrote this on the matter, “God requireth not a uniformity of religion to be enacted and enforced; which enforced uniformity sooner or later is the greatest occasion of civil war.”
In the trial of Anne Hutchinson, we meet a well intentioned yet lost people described and labelled as the Puritans of the Massachusetts Bay Company. These self governing Puritans, once a people who sought God to set them on their way, settled only to be found as a people who simply lost their way. This journey to lost began when first motivated by a desire for religious reform and separation from the liturgy, ceremonies and practices of the Church of England. Once they banned together, they set on their way and traveled in groups to the New World. With the Word of God as their ultimate authority and the desire for a personal relationship with God, these people landed in Boston in 1630 united to self govern the newly founded Massachussets Bay Colony. Unfortunatly, this self rule resulted in a government of intolerance, fear and a liturgy not much different from what was once found in the Church of England. A system designed to set apart outward morality, or sanctification, to strengthen the authority of the Church only worked to neglect the place of true piety purposed to strengthen the spiritual lives of the people it served.
The New England colonies developed rapidly throughout the early 1600s. Their development was largely influenced by the Puritans, who had emigrated from Britain and helped found most of the region’s colonies. The philosophies, ideas, and values of the Puritans greatly shaped the development of the colonies in a number of distinct ways. Politically, the idea of a united, representative government, which later became a staple of the United States, was derived from Puritan ideals. Economically, the ideals of fair pricing and the celebrated “Yankee frugality and thriftiness” originated from the Puritans. Socially, emphasis on church, religion, and education was another lasting influence of the
On the North American Atlantic seaboard, New England began developing in the early 17th century. After Spain began the mad scramble for American land, other European nations and peoples realized the opportunities the New World provided. New England, or the northern British colonies, were largely settled and so were influenced by the Puritans, a group that emigrated from Britain to escape religious persecution. The ideas and values of the Puritans greatly shaped the development of the New England colonies in many ways, but the strongest influence out of these was their religious values. This influence can be seen in the politics, economy, and culture of colonial New England. Politically, the foundations for limited government and religious freedom in the Americas were developed by the Puritans. The Puritans would create a strong work ethic and a disdain for greed that would influence the growing economy. Socially, the Puritans created an emphasis on faith and education. The religious values held by the Puritans
The New England colonies rapidly developed though out the 1600s. This mass of development was influenced by the Puritans, whom founded a majority of the New England and several Middle colonies. The Puritan philosophies and values formed and directed the progress of the colonies. Socially, strict emphasis on church and community was influential in other colonial settlements as well. Politically, unification and representation derived from the Puritans. Economically, ideas such as fair pricing originated through the Puritan minds. It is obvious that the ideas held by Puritans grasped the social, political and economic maturity of the New England colonies in the time period of 1630 to 1660.
Murrin, Paul E. Johnson, James M. Mcpherson, Alicea Fahs, Gary Gerstle, Emily S. Rosenberg, and Norman L. Rosenberg, “Puritans fleeing to America hoped to escape the divine wrath that threatened england and to create in America the kind of churches that God demanded.” (John et al., 2012). Because the English church was beginning to become “perverted, corrupted, and utterly overthrown by the multitude of evil examples and the licentious government” (John Winthrop) the Puritans feared God’s rage at the Church of England, so therefore they felt they urgently need to flee in order to escape this wrath and please God by creating a “City Upon a Hill”. This means the Puritans had to set an example in Massachusetts because they wanted to spread the gospel and create a government surrounding all of their principles around God’s word and do what they believed would glorify God. There was no where else where an opportunity for a pure church
Following the European Reformation the agency of various denominations in History decreases drastically. Many people never learn anything about the Anabaptists and Calvinists history after the year 1600. One group however that had a significant influence on the early development of the United States were the Puritans. During the mid to late 1600’s two crises arose in Puritan villages; first the Antinomian controversy and later the infamous Salem Witch Trials.
The 17th century Puritans were known to represent a religious group migrating from England to America in order to practice religious freedom. These groups were determined to “purify” churches of England from Catholic practices. Puritans are known for their religious, social, and political influences on early America. Edmund S. Morgan’s novel The Puritan Family highlights a part of history that many would tend to look over upon- that is, the complex structural life of Puritan Families in the 17th century.
Puritanism was a religious movement that began in the late sixteenth century. The puritans were a group of reformed protestants who sought to “purify” the Church of England during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. However, puritanism was not just a historical movement, it was a lifestyle that the puritans brought to New England. Puritanism can be defined by predestination, calling, covenant, Protestant ethic, and conversion.