Preview

Puritan Beliefs Essay

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
671 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Puritan Beliefs Essay
According to Merriam-Webster’s dictionary, a Puritan is a member of a Protestant group in England and New England in the 16th and 17th centuries that opposed many customs of the Church of England. These Puritans broke off from the Church of England and started a new church after the Church of England disagreed to the Puritans’ requests. The Puritans held multiple beliefs and were very serious about religion. Puritans believed the community had a responsibility to punish sinners harshly for the good of the individual. These beliefs are highly debated by some individuals on rather the Puritans were right or wrong. During this time, the church leaders made up the government and enforced the laws the church set forth. The colonies of New England …show more content…
This gave the men of the church permission to vote for elected officials and some input in the colony’s laws. Men who were not part of the church or the Puritans’ beliefs were not allowed to vote and often experienced problems with owning property and business interests in the colonies (Clark). This not only affected non-Puritans, but it affected other members of the colony
By not allowing men who were not part of the church to vote, this limited the amount of votes individuals and laws received and basically eliminated the opinions of the people who were considered unimportant in the colony (Campbell). Members of the colony were often upset about not getting a say in these decisions, which, once again caused tension due to being neglected by the government. Members of the colony felt angry and distrust towards the government for overlooking the views of several members in the colony and the decisions the government made without everyone’s consent. If a colony is experiencing tension, the tension limits the amount or rate in which the colony can improve, grow, and
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Puritans Influence On New England Colonies Dbq Research Paper
    • 547 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Puritans Influence On New England Colonies Dbq Research Paper

    During the 1630`s to the 1660`s the Puritans had a frat influence on the New England colonies. Puritans were protestants that arose within the Church of England. They demanded to have a greater and more rigorous discipline and were not satisfied with what the Church of England offered.They separated themselves from the Church of England but still considered themselves from the Church of England. when their desires were not fulfilled they left to settle in the Americas.Many spread throughout the colonies and settled in places like New Hampshire and Rhode Island. The Puritans made an impact on the political, economical, and the social development of New England colonies through the 1630`s and the 1660`s.…

    • 547 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    AP History Assignment 2
    • 472 Words
    • 2 Pages

    AP History Assignment 2

    1) Puritans did not want to separate from the Church of England. They wanted to "purify" it of practices they considered too Catholic. The Puritans believed that the holy Church did not abide by the biblical commands strong enough, and so they didn’t like that virtuous morals.…

    • 472 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Fundamental Religious Orientation of the New England and Southern Colonies, and Its Impact on General Value Systems.
    • 1104 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Fundamental Religious Orientation of the New England and Southern Colonies, and Its Impact on General Value Systems.

    The Church of England was a state church, so everyone in England had to pay taxes for it. Protestant “isms” or beliefs began to flourish. Calvanism, founded by John Calvin lead to religious Puritanism, Presbyterianism and the Dutch Reform Church. The English Puritans were members of the radical Protestant sect that followed the teachings of John Calvin. They wanted their own Congregational churches, and they wanted to elect their own ministers. The Church of England refused their requests. The Church of England began to persecute the Puritans. They were no longer allowed admittance to the Universities in England. The Puritans wanted to “purify” the Church of England and have them revert back to the days of the Acts of the Apostles. They disapproved of secular amusements like dancing and card playing, and also they did not approve of many things being used within the Church of England, i.e. silk and satin vestments, incense, elaborate polyphonic music, silver…

    • 1104 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Chesapeake Region Dbq
    • 760 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Chesapeake Region Dbq

    On the other hand, in New England, the Puritan Church had people under their control. There was no boundary line between the State and the Church, which made New England almost a theocratic society. Ministers had no formal political power, but they exerted great influence on Church members, who were the only people who could vote or hold office. Family was an essential aspect of the Puritan Church, and consequently, the English brought entire families to America, and not only men…

    • 760 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    How Did Puritans Influence John Winthrop's Utopian Society
    • 709 Words
    • 3 Pages

    How Did Puritans Influence John Winthrop's Utopian Society

    The Puritans were one of the most radical groups that left England; they were extremely pious and wanted to create a safe haven for themselves to be able to practice their religion, beliefs, and ideals freely. Puritans main reason for immigrating to America was to create their "City Upon a Hill" , since they were persecuted in England for their beliefs, and because they wanted to reform the Anglican church. They didn´t immigrate for economical reasons, like many of their brethren did in the Chesapeake Bay colonies. Puritans instead wanted to create their model Christian society based on the principals of high morality, and strong family and community lives. Puritan society was based on certain morals and principals which enabled the Puritans to successfully establish a colony; these same morals and principals had a profound impact on the New England colonies in a similar way as well.…

    • 709 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Analysis Of The Sovereignty And Goodness Of God Mary Rowlandson
    • 1022 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Analysis Of The Sovereignty And Goodness Of God Mary Rowlandson

    Puritans believe that God created a plan for each person before they were born that decided if that person were destined to go to heaven or if they were destined to go to hell. This meant that God decided who would enter heaven. Those people were called the “Elect” or “Saints”. The way people noticed if one was part of the “elect” was how they carried themselves through their day to day actions. Also, If a person were married to a minister or something of the sort, that person could also be considered to be one of the “elect”. Puritans thought that only those who were destined for hell would die from diseases and terrible causes because they were not worthy. They believed that doing “good works” would not get you into heaven and that your own faith would not grant you rites into the “Pearly Gates” (The Sovereignty and Goodness of God, 9). Today, most people find that absurd. The Puritan belief was very cut throat and straight forward. Colonists who did not believe in god were punished severely. Men were also the only ones who were allowed power in the Puritan belief. This was different for Rowlandson because she did a lot of preaching to her town’s people, which was considered crazy for those…

    • 1022 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Essay On Roger Williams And Anne Hutchinson Individualism
    • 870 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Essay On Roger Williams And Anne Hutchinson Individualism

    Puritans were passionate reformers seeking to bring the Church of England to a state of purity in comparison with Christianity at the time of Christ and decided to form their own religious colonies in America. They considered religion to be a complex and highly intellectual affair. Thus, leaders were highly trained scholars with authoritarian positions that developed a “built-in hierarchism” (http://xroads.virginia.edu/%7eCAP/PURITAN/purhist.html#pil, 3). Roger Williams and Anne Hutchinson believed and preached “Individualisme”…

    • 870 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    How Did Puritans Influence Native American Culture
    • 801 Words
    • 4 Pages

    How Did Puritans Influence Native American Culture

    Puritanism was found by English Protestant leaders with the purpose of providing original unification of spiritual life, church and social life. Due to the fact that puritans in Britain were prohibited to attend the church, they had to move to New England and maintain their power over the continent. After establishment of their colony, the local authorities began to implement laws regulating human behavior in terms of drunkenness, swearing and gambling. This way, they hoped that the colony would build a new and reliable role model. In view of many scholars, although Puritan ambition to create the ideal model of society, based upon the establishment of a covenant with God, was initially rather promising, they did not firmly follow what they…

    • 801 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    How Did The Puritans Influence Their Ideas And Values
    • 679 Words
    • 3 Pages

    How Did The Puritans Influence Their Ideas And Values

    The church was like the government and it had the laws, as in the this document, the colonies agreed to follow the religious rules of the church.…

    • 679 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Roger Williams and Anne Hutchinson
    • 698 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Roger Williams and Anne Hutchinson

    Every time in history when the government had too much power, corruption occurred. In Massachusetts Bay colony and other colonies, church and politics were greatly combined, causing problems with non-Puritans. The church influenced the conduct of politics and the affairs of society. These non-puritans were persecuted and were excluded from certain rights that the church attenders had, for example one had to be a church member to vote in colony elections. The rulings of the church were everywhere, including in laws, which were drawn from scriptures. At times like these when the church became too powerful and began to greatly intervene with peoples lives, there are always a few people who would bring this injustice to the surface. In the Massachusetts Bay colony during the 1630’s, a man by the name of Roger Williams was spreading word that the king of England had no right to take away Indian land for redistribution, and that church and state should be kept separate; from another point of view Anne Hutchinson came out with her theses that anyone could achieve salvation and she examined the roles of women in the society. These two posed a threat to the Puritan community, and thus were eliminated.…

    • 698 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Differences Between New England Colonies
    • 1369 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Differences Between New England Colonies

    In 1641, the Massachusetts’ General Court issued a Body of Liberty that derived from a person’s social position. This allowed certain, and separate, privileges to freemen and women among children and servants. Each town had a designated church, which further allowed the cementation between church and state as the colony barred ministers from holding offices. As an offset of the closely-knit, patriarchal nature of the communities in New England, self-sufficient farmers, merchants, and tradesmen made up the economic labor force. Although New England’s healthy climate meant lower death rate and higher birth rate, the colonies indignation to any outside members made them more self-reliant and well governed.…

    • 1369 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Puritans Vs Planters Essay
    • 494 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Puritans Vs Planters Essay

    Puritans were a group of people from Europe that came to America to live out their own religion. They were a hard working, strict when in it came to their religion , and they also believed that they were Gods chosen people. Now the Planters also came from Europe as well but they weren't leaving for religion but more for the money. They were not as hard working as the planters, you could even say that they were pampered. Puritans and planters were said to be very different groups of people but also very much alike. In my opinion they were more alike than unlike. They were both a religious group. They all loved God, almost the same amount. The Puritans were hard working, but the Planters were lazy and pampered.…

    • 494 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Colonial Dispositions Of The New England Colonies
    • 140 Words
    • 1 Page

    Colonial Dispositions Of The New England Colonies

    The New England colonies were founded by the puritans who came to escape religious persecution. The puritans didn’t have any separation between the church and state, they mainly had a theocracy with the pastor as the head of the colony. They also based all of their rules off of the bible, the people who were considered “criminals” were people who had completed sins. Laws were not imposed by the monarch but by common law. In the middle colonies, the Quaker women had more rights politically. There were governors in New York and the colonist could elect representatives to an assembly. The southern colonies created the first elected legislature in 1619, the House of Burgesses, only white men who owned property could be elected or vote. The Toleration…

    • 140 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Religion In The 13 Colonies
    • 1564 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Religion In The 13 Colonies

    Religion was an important factor in determining where the colonists lived. Several colonies were created because of difference in religion. One example is Pennsylvania. This colony was founded as a safe place for Quakers. While other religions were present, they weren't as accepted compared to others. Quakers were discriminated against in other colonies, so the founder of Pennsylvania founded the colony as a safe haven. Pennsylvanians government was based on religious freedom for the Quakers. Which they believed in strict rules from the puritan church. They believe in many different ways of practicing their beliefs. For example, they see heaven and hell as the same thing because it is the person's afterlife. They also see men and women as spiritual equals, meaning the man nor the woman is more important than the other when practicing their religion. Another example is Maryland, a colony that was created by and for Catholics. The majority of the Southern colonies took the religion of England with them, and felt that it was the proper religion. That is why the Quakers and Catholics were pushed out of other colonies, since it wasn't the preferred religion. Maryland was then created, and like Pennsylvania, a safe haven was created. Lord Baltimore founded Maryland mainly for the Catholics because there were disagreements between the Catholics and the Protestants causing a rebellion. “Roman Catholics believe that both the bible and Sacred Roman Catholic tradition are necessary for salvation, while the protestants believe that in the faith of Christ alone, believers are absolved of all their sins.” Therefore being the reason why they both did not agree with everything was because of their different beliefs. “In 1649, Maryland governor William Stone responded by passing an act ensuring religious liberty and justice to all who believed in Jesus Christ”. This allowed the Puritans and Catholics to coexist in…

    • 1564 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Conformity And Diversity In New England
    • 813 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Conformity And Diversity In New England

    The religious diversity of England, whose citizens were primarily Anglican, but also Puritan, Presbyterian, Separatist and Catholic, was very different from the enforced Catholic conformity of Spain. While the English government did not accept all these groups, quite a few flourished within the country. When the king began persecuting the varied religious groups present in the country, many immigrated to America. The diversity begun in England continued in the colonies: New England was Puritan; Maryland was Catholic; Pennsylvannia was Quaker; the Southern Colonies were primarily Anglican. Many New England colonies were founded when dissenters from the Purtian religion left Massachusetts to form their own communities, creating several slightly different Puritan influenced colonies with their own traditions and governments. Because so many of the colonies were founded by Englishmen of various religions seeking to escape persecution, most of the colonies offered some form of religious freedom. Rhode Island and Pennsylvannia offered the most freedom. Rhode Island extended protection to Catholics, Quakers, and Jews; Pennsylvannia guarenteered freedom of worship to all under its constitution. A majority of the colonies supported freedom of worship at least for most mainstream Protestant sects. Religion in the English colonies therefore, created more diversity and religious…

    • 813 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics