Puritan historical background In the 1560 s a

Puritan historical background In the 1560 s, a group of militant English Protestants broke off from the Church of England � �They called themselves Puritans because they wanted to “purify” the Church of England �They wanted The Bible, not the Pope, to be the “supreme authority” on religious rules and practices. �They thought the Pope was too inconsistent and did not always rule by The Bible (as God would).

�They also wished to eliminate many Catholic practices � Saying Mass in Latin � Having priests � Entertainment on Sundays Their version of Christianity was based on the works of John Calvin, but they were not Calvinists.

�Though a group of Puritans stayed in England, many traveled to the new world seeking freedom from religious persecution �Puritans were among the pilgrims who landed in Massachusetts in 1620 on the Mayflower �Puritanism was dominant in America until 1735

�In the community, everyone had to conform to Puritan beliefs � Attending and giving money to the church � Following orders of the church leaders �Those who believed otherwise (Quakers) were driven out. If they returned, they were killed for being sinners! How is that ironic?

Moral beliefs �Life is serious Joyfulness and pleasures were the devil’s influence Married people you may We only eat for sustenance, not for yummy. do, but dont’ enjoy: Home and family were very important. They had many children – sometimes as many as 20. You just weren’t allowed to “like” making them. It’s a duty.

Don’t even think about… you sinner

�There is no time for social occasions, such as parties Social gatherings went against their religious beliefs, because they did not glorify God. They believed one should be productive all the time NO!

Acceptable behavior = They had a strong work ethic Idleness was considered the devil’s influence

�Clothing should be dark and cover the entire body, especially women’s clothing �Anything that encourages lust is sinful Yes, proper No, whore

Women were the main cause of the downfall of man due to Eve duping Adam in the Garden of Eden. For those of you unfamiliar. God gave Adam and Eve a garden to live in, paradise, and said you can eat anything here, but don’t mess with this one tree (the tree of knowledge). Eve is tempted by a serpent (the devil in disguise) and takes an apple from that tree; she eats it and gives one to Adam to eat. He protests then eats the apple, too. God banishes them for disobedience. A few consequences: life will be harder and they will have to figure out housing and how to find food for themselves. They become aware of their nakedness and sexuality becomes shameful. Painful childbirth is Eve’s punishment now given to all women and men don’t trust the judgment of women.

Therefore, all women must be “subdued”. . . told what to do, not taken seriously, kept quiet, put in her (low) place, made to stay home.

They viewed God as a stern judge. The Bible was the final authority! They believed: one should fear God! God is omniscient and omnipotent. Man is evil. The world as a place of sorrow and sin.

Social norms: They were not a democratic society � Their government was a theocracy (ruled by the church) The local religious leader and a few important men made laws and punishments. They had seating arrangements in church, according to wealth and position.

They believed in “Grace” �A person is bound for hell, unless he/she is the lucky one that gets God’s grace (God chose to save you and send you to heaven. It was totally dependent on God’s mood, whim, choice). �One cannot earn “grace”. A person never knows if one has “grace” or not. People who were good and pious were thought to have “grace, ” but no one knew for sure. They must work their whole lives to attain “grace” from God. They believed people were able to improve themselves, morally, even though each of us were born sinners bound for hell. �Being wealthy might be a sign a person was a chosen one � Wealth =success. Success meant the person was working hard at his/her chosen vocation and God would reward that person �Their beliefs were TOTALLY contradictory!

Basically, they believed it was predestined whether they were going to heaven or hell, but the way they lived their life would show which one they were headed to Headed to heaven ↓ If you work hard, attend church regularly ↓ Good Puritan ↓ Headed to heaven Headed to hell ↓ Horrible life, do not attend church regularly ↓ Bad Puritan ↓ Headed to hell

�The Puritans signed the Mayflower Compact upon arriving in America � The Compact called for self-government (as opposed to the King’s rule) based on mutual consent

Before you go writing these guys off as nuts, they established the American work ethic that allows our country to be seen as most powerful in the world-- that and a bunch of natural resources.

They established free public schooling Secured by the levying of taxes Applies to you directly, because your parents don’t pay $20, 000 a year for you to go to school here as they would if you were in private school… Thanks, Puritans. Founded first colleges & universities Notably, Harvard

Residue of the Puritans, what remains all these years later. Instilled respect for learning Developed a religious conscience in America Developed moral principles for government and society Americans are uncomfortable with nudity (no boobies) Some language is considered “bad”. NO: Sh*( or F@+

Thanks, Puritans… They created first printing press in North America Cambridge, Massachusetts Established the first representative form of government The Mayflower Compact

Puritan Literature Always practical Focused on spiritual experience Sermons, hymns, Bible studies, biographies The Mayflower Compact