Puritans Contradictions

The Puritans were a diverse group of religious people that sought to purify the Church of England in the 16th, 17th, and 18th Century. Most of the Puritans believed that the church was corrupted and that true Christians should be separated from it. The rise of Puritans started as people began learning how to read and write and as Bibles started becoming more available to commoners, several people started reading the Bible for themselves. Reading the Bible was actually discouraged in the established church.

I. The Puritans had been strongly against the Catholic Church A.They wanted the Church of England to become pure by getting rid of Catholic practices. B.The Puritan wanted to make reforms or changes. C. Accordingly the Puritans wanted religious freedom.

A Puritan defined is “a member of a group of English Protestants of the late 16th and 17th centuries who regarded the Reformation of the Church of England under Elizabeth as incomplete and sought to simplify and regulate forms of worship.” Puritan society in America depended on the belief that all members were working for the glory of God. The Puritans did not allow deviations from the strict code of behavior which would not allow any member to have individuality. They restricted any type of entertainment, except that which was endorsed by the church. They worked and worshipped.

It could be conceived that this old-fashioned attitude which developed against a backdrop of scientific development, sparked passion in the Puritan church to purge their society of witches. Smith, the secularist historian, and therefore with perhaps a biased view, notes, "A patent cause of the mania was the zeal and bibliolatry of Puritanism". Johnson concurs with this statement by observing, "Above all, Puritanism was the dynamic behind the increase in witch-hunting". Part of the Puritan belief is the creation of a 'land of saints' which meant that Puritans would actively seek to banish evil from their communities, which in the 17th century, took the form of witchcraft. Mainly stimulated by the Civil War, Puritanism rose in credibility and following as a religion.

Three centuries ago, the Puritan religion was the base of the Salem village and many townspeople strongly believed in the existence of witches and witchcraft. According to the common Puritan belief, witches were in alliance with the devil and were granted power to harm. People were blamed for illness, failed crops, to bad weather, and many other things that were evident centuries ago. Due to the belief in witchcraft villagers were, perhaps, inclined to the most improbable explanations. The Puritans held strict views, ways of living, perspectives fears, and fantasies. Many Puritan ministers used the the fear of witchcraft to scare the believers into following the church. Historians believe these strict Puritan ways of life may have brought upon the witchcraft hysteria in Salem. At the time, witches and witchcraft were a serious and viewed as a real threat; almost as real as

While Puritan religious beliefs did contribute to the Salem Witch Trials, it was only to a minor extent as, rather than being the true source of the witchcraft fear, they were used by New England authorities to manipulate and control the public. In the 1600s, religion was the cornerstone of Puritan society, a denomination that originated in England and was established in America with the migration of approximately 9,000 colonists between 1630 and 1645. Already superstitious, with a Christian Church that preached of a God who protected his servants, and a Devil who preyed on the weak, society’s fears were intensified

Any action that contradicted their code was considered immoral and a sin and was punished harshly. The religious and strict moral rules created fear of being punished and created great tension in the community. This explains why they jumped to conclusions about the witch accusations. Above all else puritans feared God and everything bad that happened to the puritans was recognized as Gods punishment. It can be said that the main tension in the puritan society was being accused of witchcraft, but there are also other notable tensions too.

In their society the Puritans based their lives, beliefs, and communities on what they deemed as God's law and true word, the bible (Barger). Reading the bible was expected for the members of society, this included women and children, which was often unheard of (Foner 66) at that time. With their lives being restricted to the word of the bible this left very little leeway for anything other than what was deemed acceptable, and this rigid way of life was another straw that led to the eventual troubles and fervor that took over.

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.

The Puritans were a religious group of people who came from England to America in the 1600’s. As Protestants, they relied heavily on the Bible as the guide for every part of their lives. They used these biblical principles as the basis for their laws and marriage. The Puritans had very strict rules about how men and women should act in a marriage and had very harsh penalties for those who broke these rules. According to Matthew Glass and Edward Queen, “During the Colonial Period, Protestant Americans viewed sex as a fundamental feature of married life, enabling reproduction as well as providing an outlet for feelings.” Because they felt this was an important part of marriage, the Puritan laws were meant to be followed. As society gained more people, sex became more widespread which made the officials of the church look for more ways to stop the desire to do anything. Overall, the Puritans had meticulous standards for individuals, immoderate laws and punishments, habits and daily life which were strictly formed by decisive ways.

During the seventeenth century, many Puritans became fed up with the Church of England and its devilish ways. They wanted to break free from it, and make changes elsewhere. They got permission to set up a colony in Massachusetts Bay, and soon after that, over twenty-thousand Puritans fled from England to America. They decided to base their colony on the word of God, and believed God would protect them if they followed his commandments. This meant that if anyone were to sin, “they didn’t want God to protect them because they already worshiped the devil,” and “anyone who worshipped the devil was a witch who used witchcraft to possess others.” Because of this theory, many people were accused of being witches and using witchcraft. The most notorious series of hearings and prosecutions for those accused of witchcraft took place in Salem Village, Massachusetts, known as the Salem Witch Trials.

During 1692, Puritan society in Massachusetts was filled with pressures: pressures to be a loyal and dedicated Christian and also pressures to remain in a uniform manner so each individual would not be criticized. Tensions in Puritan society escalated during the Salem witch trials, Puritans, mostly middle-aged wealthy women were kept under close observation and if something seemed unusual about an individual they would be persecuted by the town and told they are a witch, often this lead to their banishment from the colony or ultimately their death. The ideology of predestination created extreme conflicts throughout the Puritan society. People were constantly in fear if they committed a sin, they would go to hell. This fear sparked a distress that witchcraft was among the colonies and Satan was leading it by controlling the ones accused of witchcraft. Puritan society was dominated by fear that caused victimization throughout the colonies.

The Puritans arrived in the New World in the hopes of “purifying” the Church of England. They practiced certain principles that they believed in and that centered around the idea of God. The main purpose of their journey to New England was to set an example to others how the Church should be, and so their motive for settlement was solely related to religion. The Puritans positively influenced the political, economic, and social development of the New England colonies from 1630 through the 1660s because they were a “city upon a hill” that served as an example to other parts of the world as a result of their strong belief in God.

Puritans believed in the devil and his role as strong as they believed in God and his role. For many centuries, Puritans had the idea that the weakest individuals in society often committed diabolical acts and sins. Furthermore, Satan selected the most vulnerable individuals to do his bidding, among these individuals, women were often held responsible for many sins, including witchcraft. (Godbeer 12). According to Richard Godbeer, in his book, The Salem Witch Hunt, “it was Eve who first gave away to Satan and seduced Adam.” (Godbeer 12). In 1692, witchcraft became a panic among Puritan society. Even though both men and women were accused of witchcraft, women were seventy-six percent more likely to be accused in Salem than men. (Godbeer 12). Puritan society was a male dominate society and men looked down upon women. The reasons to why women in particular were often accused of being witches, was in regards to certain events that associated with accusations. These events were being of relatively low social status and income, being rich or financially independent and being a midwife or nurse.

[H]e which would have suer peace and joye in Christianitye, must not ayme at a condition retyred from the world and free from temptations, but to knowe that the life which is most exercised with tryalls and temptations is the sweetest, and will prove the safeste. For such tryalls as fall within compasse of our callinges, it is better to arme and withstande them than to avoide and shunne them. -John Winthrop