Anne Hutchinson's Role In Puritan Society

The Massachusetts Bay colony was initially settled by Puritans in 1630. They were overwhelmed by the religious persecution of King Charles I and the Church of England; they left England under the leadership of John Winthrop. These original colonists rapidly established numerous of small towns in the name of high religious standards and strict social rules; up until Anne Hutchinson came along. Anne Hutchinson challenged the traditional role of women in the Puritan society through her opposing religious beliefs. Anne was not the first women to have her own beliefs, but she was simply the first to act on them. She became a threat to the Puritan establishment both because of her gender and because she attracted a large and influential following (Give me liberty vol. 1). In 1634 she and her husband moved to Boston from England after her husband was expelled from church. Here Anne began holding informal church meetings in her home and also led discussions of religious issues among women and men. Hutchinson views, salvation was God’s direct gift to the elect and could not be earned by good works devotional practices, or other human effort (Give me liberty vol. 1). In other words salvation does not come from church attendance and moral behavior rather than an inner state of grace (Give me Liberty …show more content…
In 1637, she was placed on trial before a civil court for sedition. John Winthrop wasn’t favorable of Hutchinson opinion "considered her a threat to his 'city set on a hill'" (a distinctive of Puritan theology) and criticized her meetings as being a "thing not tolerable nor comely in the sight of God, nor fitting for [her] sex." Governor Winthrop and the established religious hierarchy considered many of her comments in her discussion groups to be heretical, specifically, her "unfounded criticism of the clergy from an unauthorized