1. The Puritans were able to leave all they had in England to seek religious, political, and economical freedom from the English throne by building a new civilization in Massachusetts, an unexplored and foreign terrain for almost all the Puritans. First of all, the Puritans were English protestants, who wanted the Church of England reformed and perished of all Roman Catholic remnants but did not want to separate from the Church; they were “non-separatists” unlike the Pilgrims ("Religion and the Founding of the American Republic"). Then, in the 1620s, the Puritans faced religious persecution for not following religious beliefs that they absolutely hated ("Religion and the Founding of the American Republic"). In these times of turmoil, the Puritans fled to America from England; from the period of 1629 to 1639, 20,000 men, women, and children fled to settle in the Massachusetts Bay Colony (Bettlock). It was only until 1640, when parliament came back into control and Oliver Cromwell took power, did the “Great Migration” stop and immigration levels to the Massachusetts Bay Colony dropped (Bettlock).
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By then tens of thousands of people, most of them leading prosperous lives in England, left what they had economically back in their home country to risk life in a foreign land for the sake of religion (Bettlock).
Sources
Bettlock, Lynn. "New England 's Great Migration." A Survey of New England: 1620 - 1640. N.p.,
n.d. Web. 28 Sept. 2015. .
"Religion and the Founding of the American Republic." Library of Congress. N.p., n.d. Web. 28
Sept. 2015. .
2. The Puritans formed the basis of American democracy with their town meetings, suffrage system, written agreements, etc. Town meetings were held by the Puritans because of their belief that communities were based on covenants; at these town meetings, each church member was able to express their opinions and then, legislation was passed based on the majority vote among the members (Kang 150). Furthermore, male members of the Puritans, also known as freemen, had a say in government (Campbell). These freemen could vote to elect selectmen or delegates to represent the town in certain affairs (Campbell). These early forms of suffrage serve as the basis of America’s suffrage system now. Even the way Puritan churches functioned resembled that of the American democracy; the churches were formed simply by the members, who chose a priest by themselves, and afterwards, they were run autonomously by the priest and members (Kang 150). There was no hierarchy in the Puritan church system unlike that of the Roman Catholic Church, which consisted of a Pope at the top of its rankings, and this lack of social hierarchy would help to shape American democracy (Kang 150). Once again because of the Puritan belief in covenants and their use of them for secular affairs, the Puritans also had a number of written agreements or constitutions, which included the constitution for Providence Plantations written in 1647 that outright referred to the Plantations’ government as “democratic” (Howe). Moreover, the Puritans’ written agreements, also including the Connecticut 's Fundamental Orders (1638) and the Massachusetts Body of Liberties (1641), served as the foundation of the democratic Constitution of the United States (Howe). Sources Campbell, Donna M. "Puritanism in New England." Literary Movements. Dept. of English, Washington State University. 4 July. 2013. Web. 28 Sept. 2015. . Howe, Daniel Walker. "The Impact of Puritanism on American Culture." (n.d.): n. pag. Web. 28 Sept. 2015. . Kang, Ning. "Puritanism and Its Impact upon American Values." Review of European Studies. N.p., Dec. 2009. Web. 28 Sept. 2015. . 3. The Puritans were innovators of education, introducing free, public education for children and founding a number of higher education institutions including Harvard College, the first of its kind in America. Generally, protestants believed that each individual has the right to interpret the Bible for themselves, rather than just simply listening and accepting what the Church tells them to think (Shipton 224). However, in order to be able to interpret the Bible, a person must be able to read, which is why Protestants value education and make many contributions towards it. The Puritans believed in this idea of interpreting the Bible and they believed that one of the
By then tens of thousands of people, most of them leading prosperous lives in England, left what they had economically back in their home country to risk life in a foreign land for the sake of religion (Bettlock).
Sources
Bettlock, Lynn. "New England 's Great Migration." A Survey of New England: 1620 - 1640. N.p.,
n.d. Web. 28 Sept. 2015. .
"Religion and the Founding of the American Republic." Library of Congress. N.p., n.d. Web. 28
Sept. 2015. .
2. The Puritans formed the basis of American democracy with their town meetings, suffrage system, written agreements, etc. Town meetings were held by the Puritans because of their belief that communities were based on covenants; at these town meetings, each church member was able to express their opinions and then, legislation was passed based on the majority vote among the members (Kang 150). Furthermore, male members of the Puritans, also known as freemen, had a say in government (Campbell). These freemen could vote to elect selectmen or delegates to represent the town in certain affairs (Campbell). These early forms of suffrage serve as the basis of America’s suffrage system now. Even the way Puritan churches functioned resembled that of the American democracy; the churches were formed simply by the members, who chose a priest by themselves, and afterwards, they were run autonomously by the priest and members (Kang 150). There was no hierarchy in the Puritan church system unlike that of the Roman Catholic Church, which consisted of a Pope at the top of its rankings, and this lack of social hierarchy would help to shape American democracy (Kang 150). Once again because of the Puritan belief in covenants and their use of them for secular affairs, the Puritans also had a number of written agreements or constitutions, which included the constitution for Providence Plantations written in 1647 that outright referred to the Plantations’ government as “democratic” (Howe). Moreover, the Puritans’ written agreements, also including the Connecticut 's Fundamental Orders (1638) and the Massachusetts Body of Liberties (1641), served as the foundation of the democratic Constitution of the United States (Howe). Sources Campbell, Donna M. "Puritanism in New England." Literary Movements. Dept. of English, Washington State University. 4 July. 2013. Web. 28 Sept. 2015. . Howe, Daniel Walker. "The Impact of Puritanism on American Culture." (n.d.): n. pag. Web. 28 Sept. 2015. . Kang, Ning. "Puritanism and Its Impact upon American Values." Review of European Studies. N.p., Dec. 2009. Web. 28 Sept. 2015. . 3. The Puritans were innovators of education, introducing free, public education for children and founding a number of higher education institutions including Harvard College, the first of its kind in America. Generally, protestants believed that each individual has the right to interpret the Bible for themselves, rather than just simply listening and accepting what the Church tells them to think (Shipton 224). However, in order to be able to interpret the Bible, a person must be able to read, which is why Protestants value education and make many contributions towards it. The Puritans believed in this idea of interpreting the Bible and they believed that one of the