Puritans In The 17th Century

In 17th century England, a group of people otherwise known as the Puritans, played a significant role in both England and America. Their beliefs in purifying society provided them an opportunity to strip away the formalities and traditional trappings of Christianity. Puritans also believed that “the Bible was God’s true law, and that it provided a plan for living (Kizer).” The Puritans visualized a strict reformed world, which played a role in their ultimate downfall. The unique views and characteristics of the Puritans ultimately drove them away from the Church of England. They claimed that the church had “become a product of political struggles and artificial doctrines” (Kizer). One man, known as John Calvin, gave rise to Protestantism by becoming a leader to the reformation. He was essential to the Christian revolt. John Calvin, along with other Puritans decided that the Church of England was beyond reform. As a result, they came to America to escape persecution. Once reaching America, their idea of …show more content…
The Puritans are one group of many to prove this claim as true. One thing that offset their downfall was King William. Once becoming a king, he opened the Puritan colonies for outsiders to join while their religious practices were being protected. After this, large numbers of non-Puritans began settling in Puritan colonies. As time went on descendants began to question the strictness of the faith. Puritanism was without a doubt over with its domination of the nations, “as it became simply one religion amongst many others” (Howard).
The Puritans ultimate downfall was a result of their strict, reformed world. The inflexibility of their belief was the Puritans strength in the beginning, overtime it became their biggest weakness. Their harsh interpretations and their repressive actions will always be remembered, though, hopefully never