Paper Sample on Puritanism: Founding, Objections, and Separation in Colonial New England

This article is vital to the study of Puritan life in colonial New England. It explains the founding of Puritanism, which was intended to purge all vestiges of Roman Catholicism. The article accounts for how the Puritans objected to demonstrate church activities that did not have any biblical authorization and raised priests above the congregation. The article also accounts for the separation of Puritans in the sixteenth century because the actions did not convince them of the Church of England ("Digital History-Founding New England"). The group of Puritans was then later known as Pilgrims, and the article also describes how they left the Netherlands and got help in a new settlement from an Indian named Squanto, who taught the English how to plant corn. This article is of significance in the study of the history of Puritans by providing an account of how they moved out to establish new settlements hence the founding of New England ("Digital History-Founding New England").

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According to "Digital History-The Puritans," the New England Puritans have been significantly instrumental in shaping the American values. The Puritans of the seventeenth century were responsible for the sense of mission of the country and all about its sensibilities, such as the work ethic and morals. Hence, the Puritans became the central symbol of every cultural aspect that contemporary Americans detested. The article also outlines how the Puritans intended to conform to God's laws even though they did not set up a church-run state. Hence, according to the account in the article, there were few commitments as Puritans towards the separation of the church and the state despite their belief that the state was responsible for punishing people who breached the laws of God. The article also outlines the commitment of the Winthrop as well as other Puritans. They were different from the Pilgrims because they hoped to establish New England, a pure church that would provide an approach for churches in England ("Digital History-The Puritans").

The other article is significant to the study of Puritan life in New Colonial England. It examines the essential elements of the Puritans' social and theological perspective about the covenant. According to the article, all forms of social coexistence were perceived in terms of a covenant or rather an agreement that was set up on consent and mutual roles ("Digital History-The Puritan Idea of the Covenant"). The article also refers to certain materials that were of significance in the Puritan society because they acknowledged the existence of a covenant between the Puritans and God to establish a truly Christian society that would enable the wealthy to express charity and avoid exploitation of their neighbors. At the same time, the poor were obliged to work diligently.

Additionally, the article on the religious differences of the settlers of New England even though most of them were Puritans. Mostly, the Puritans had differences in ideologies of individuals who could be admitted to the church membership, the individuals who could be baptized as well as those who were authorized to take the communion. Hence, the article highlights the religious differences as one of the reasons that led to the formation of new colonies ("Digital History-Dimensions of Change in Colonial New England"). Not only did the religious differences lead to new economies, but they also resulted in wars which equally led to an economic crisis among the Puritans in the second half of the seventeenth century. There were also intercommunity wars, which are highlighted in the article, especially the Indian wars, which led to the loss of lives of several New England native people ("Digital History-Dimensions of Change in Colonial New England"). Therefore, the article is instrumental in the Puritans' study in colonial New England because it examines a central aspect of the Puritans that led to economic crisis and conflicts.

There were also regional differences between the colonial New England and Chesapeake, which is an ideal factor highlighted in one of the articles about the history of the Puritans. However, the article highlights how New England used to be an outstanding region around the seventeenth century. That explains the life expectancy that members of the Puritan community had in the colonial New England ("Digital History-Regional Contrasts"). The article goes further to compare New England to other English colonialists like the Southeast and how epidemic diseases led to the decline of the population of coastal Indians of New England by almost ninety percent in the early seventeenth century ("Digital History-Regional Contrasts"). Also, the article highlights how the migration of Puritan colonists into the western areas of Massachusetts, as well as Connecticut in the seventeenth century, led to warfare, particularly with the Pequots. Therefore, the article is significant to the study of the Puritans' history in colonial New England ("Digital History-Regional Contrasts").

The last article examines another essential aspect of the history of the Puritans in colonial New England, the Salem Witch Scare. The witch scare was one of the social stresses facing New England besides the increase in the number of black slaves in New England around the seventeenth century, as highlighted in the article ("Digital History-The Salem Witch Scare"). The Puritans were a godly society. The article emphasizes the witch scare as one of the essential social challenges that the Puritan community faced, hence the significance in the study of the Puritan history in the colonial new England ("Digital History-The Salem Witch Scare").

Works Cited

"Digital History-Dimensions of Change in Colonial New England." UH - Digital History, www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=2&psid=3581.

"Digital History-Founding New England." UH - Digital History, www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=2&psid=3577.

"Digital History-Regional Contrasts." UH - Digital History, www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=2&psid=3580.

"Digital History-The Puritan Idea of the Covenant." UH - Digital History, www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=2&psid=3579.

"Digital History-The Puritans." UH - Digital History, www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=2&psid=3578.

"Digital History-The Salem Witch Scare." UH - Digital History, www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=2&psid=3582.