Massachusetts Colony was created as a place of refuge where Puritans could escape from the dominance of the English faith. The Puritans felt dominated by the Anglican church and felt as if their rights and freedoms had been taken away, so the Puritans created this new safe haven as a way to create an open environment for people of all religions to live while enjoying their freedom to practice as they chose This is exactly what Massachusetts was supposed to be; it was meant to represent religious freedom and tolerance. Although this is not quite the way that it truly played out.
The Puritan church spoke of itself as open and inviting, when in reality members of this group were only accepting of other Puritans. Massachusetts Colony was
…show more content…
Realistically, these hardships should have scared off some of the community to joining the new beacon, although this was not actually the case. Puritans believed that the scripture must be the central guiding force in every good Puritan’s life and, if there is anything that is more central then that person is failing. They believed that they had no choice but to move to Massachusetts Colony because this was going to give them the safe haven they need to openly practice their religion and live out their goal of making Puritanism the central aspect of their …show more content…
In actuality, things were not going as well as they appeared, however. This was mainly because of the structure in which the colony was created and built. Massachusetts Colony was built as a safe haven for Puritans, this communal structure dedicated to a single religion actually created some real challenges at they worked to built their new home. In Puritanism as it was practiced in Massachusetts,each person was constantly trying to appear to be more pious then the next, either by actually being so pious and devout, or by simply acting that way in public. This caused many hardships in the business world, an area whose success is very necessary when trying to build up a community from scratch. In creating a new community, the citizens cannot be constantly worried about perceptions, and sometimes have to put the good of the community over their own personal agenda, something that was lacking in the creation of Massachusetts Colony. An additional problem that the Puritans faced was the importance and influence that money had over the community. Money was seen as a sign of God’s grace, so the more money any individual had the more they believed that God favored that individual. This created an unhealthy image of money and distorted the previous genuine piety that citizens of the Massachusetts Colony had in their
Massachusetts Bay Colony was one of the first 13 original colonies. The name Massachusetts is an indian word. It means “at the great hill” or “large hill place.” Boston became its capital in 1632. Boston was a very popular port city, and had lots of available jobs for immigrants.
When colonist began to settle in Salem, Massachusetts they believed in a very pure life. Their faith in God was strong and they were willing to help just about anyone who found their way there. In the eyes of Puritans, they were the ideal lifestyle. Originally the Puritans were part of the Christian religion.
As colonies were being founded in the early 1600's, religion was a key factor in determining laws. Massachusetts was established in 1620 by Pilgrims. These Pilgrims had fled England to avoid religious persecution. However, The New World was not their first stop. The Pilgrims originally traveled to New Amsterdam, where they were tolerated.
Throughout the 1600’s and 1700’s English colonies emerged in North America. While all thirteen of the colonies had significant similarities, each colony was unique with its own features, especially between Massachusetts and Virginia. The Massachusetts colony civilians put the group and community above all, whereas the Virginians focused more on individualism and self-advancement. The Massachusetts Colony was Puritan, with very important kinship ties. The family worked together, with each member of the family having a certain job or responsibility.
Even though many had originally come to the New World to practice their own religion freely, not all of them were able to allow others to do the same. The Puritans thought that to ignore God's work was completely unthinkable and when “free-thinkers” such as Anne Hutchinson and Roger Williams chose to speak their minds, conflict was inevitable (“Dissent in Massachusetts Bay”). The economic landscape of the colonies was small and isolated. Tension was inevitable because the colonists did not have much, if any, gold and silver.
The original settlers of Massachusetts were the Puritans. Puritans believed the world was good but people were evil. God had direct line through elders of the Puritan community. Since the elders were thought to be closest to God they ran the town and made the decisions. To
Similar to Pennsylvania, many of the New England states were founded in order to grant people freedom of religion. The formation of Massachusetts was because many Puritans were looking to leave England's oppression; just as Roger Williams, who was against the Bay colony's religious restrictions, wanted to found Rhode Island to leave Massachusetts. The location of the New England colonies prevents settlers from finding many riches and its rocky terrain resulted in poor farming results compared to the middle colonies; therefore, New Jersey and New York's intentions for establishing their colony were far from those of the New England territories. Moreover, the New England colony of Massachusetts's religious motive was very similar to those of New York, while others, such as Rhode Island, were more like Pennsylvania's and New Jersey's. Just like New York's Dutch Reformed Church, the Bay Colony saw the members of their own church, the Congregational Church, as better than those who were not a part of it; They intended to control unchurched citizens.
The Puritan’s goal of coming to the New World was not to create a new life, but to create the ideal model of living for the “corrupt” inhabitants of England. This was coined “The Errand”, the Puritans desire to establish a City Upon a Hill that others could look up to and imitate in order to receive God’s grace. The Puritans failed at building their City Upon a Hill (creating a perfect religious, economic, and political community), however the long-term effects of their efforts have influenced American moral politics throughout its history. The Puritans forever had the attitude of a community that had successfully established a City Upon a Hill. The Puritan lifestyle was heavily influenced not only by religion, but also inside of that, morality.
Although all the colonists all came from England, the community development, purpose, and societal make-up caused a distinct difference between two distinct societies in New England and the Chesapeake region. The distinctions were obvious, whether it be the volume of religious drive, the need or lack of community, families versus single settlers, the decision on minimal wage, whether or not articles of agreements were drawn for and titles as well as other social matters were drawn, as well as where loyalties lay in leaders. New England was, overall, more religious than the Chesapeake region. Settlers in New England were searching relief for religious persecution in Europe. Puritans, Quakers, and Catholics were coming in droves to America searching for an opportunity to have religious freedom.
New England’s economy would also be influenced by the British tax later that would cause Americans to revolt many of which trusted in their faith to guide them The Puritans who settled in Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1630 were also motivated by religious beliefs. They believed in the idea of a "city upon a hill," a vision of a holy community that would serve as an example to the rest of the world (American YAWP, 2.6). This belief led to a strict social order and a commitment to the moral and spiritual purity of the community. It also led to conflicts with other religious groups, such as the Quakers, who were seen as a threat to the Puritan social order.
When I hear the term “New England,” I automatically picture a beautiful land that was filled with natives and Europeans who worked together. I picture Europeans who supported each other. I also picture colonists who were free from all persecutions for their religion. I saw them as people who understood and accepted outsiders unlike the Chesapeake colonies. Prior to reading the textbook, I knew that the colony in Massachusetts was home to the first Puritans.
The New England colonies were first founded in the last 16th to 17th century as a sanctuary for differing religious groups. New England was made up of the Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, and New Hampshire. New Hampshire, however, was formed for economic reasons instead of religious ones. The Chesapeake region, which is made up of the colonies of Maryland and Virginia, was founded by the British colonies for the purpose of farming. However, by the 1700’s, despite both being settled by Englishmen, New England and the Chesapeake region had developed differently.
Massachusetts was one of the most successful colonies, founded by John Winthrop, as the Puritan religion allowed a strict regime of tight government rules and ideals. These colonies also differ
Church attendance was mandatory, and people were forced to be Puritan. There was zero religious tolerance in the community. Political System: Massachusetts originally had a governing body called the General Court which was assembled by the original joint-stock company. This was eventually altered into a legislature for the established colony and gradually became a 2 house legislature. Voters were adult male church going property owners within the
The New England, Chesapeake, and the Mid-Atlantic Colonies were beginning to find their reason of life whether it be around religion, wealth, or profit each colony had centered around a different