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The Puritans were originally members of a group of English Protestants seeking "purity" — further reforms or even separation from the established church — during the Protestant Reformation. There are to this day people who call themselves Puritans, but much of their original teaching (for instance, their line of reasoning that led to the Salem witch trials) has been left behind.
Terminology
Originally used to describe a third-century sect of rigorist heretics, the word "Puritan" is now applied unevenly to a number of Protestant churches from the late 16th century to the present. Puritans did not originally, by and large, use the term for themselves. It was a term of abuse that first surfaced in the 1560s. Recusants, Precisemen, and Precisions were other early antagonistic terms for Puritans who preferred to call themselves "the godly." The word "Puritan" was thus always a descriptor of a type of religious belief, rather than a particular religious sect. To reflect that the term encompasses a variety of ecclesiastical bodies and theological positions, scholars today increasingly prefer to use the term as a common noun or adjective: "puritan" rather than "Puritan."
The single theological movement most consistently self-described by the term "Puritan" was Reformed or Calvinist and led to the establishment of the Presbyterian, Baptist, and Congregationalist churches. The term was used by the group itself mainly in the sixteenth century, though it seems to have been used often and, in its earliest recorded instances, as a term of abuse. By the middle of the 17th century, the group had become so divided that "Puritan" was most often used by opponents and detractors of the group, rather than by the practitioners themselves. As Patrick Collinson has noted, well before the founding of the New England settlement “Puritanism had no content beyond what was attributed to it by its opponents.” The practitioners knew themselves as members of particular churches or movements, and not by the simple term.
More on [ Puritan ]
"Puritanism - The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy." - H. L. Mencken #quote
Debra_McDowell (Debra McDowell) Sun, 03 Jan 2010 08:41:26 -0000
"Puritanism - The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy." - H. L. Mencken #quote
RT @tSunshineLove: RT @mistressmatisse: The precise Mencken quote is actually: "Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, m ...
ms_bbwliz (Ms. Liz) Sun, 03 Jan 2010 06:45:34 -0000
RT @tSunshineLove: RT @mistressmatisse: The precise Mencken quote is actually: "Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, m ...
RT @mistressmatisse: The precise Mencken quote is actually: "Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy."
goeast (goeast) Sun, 03 Jan 2010 06:44:43 -0000
RT @mistressmatisse: The precise Mencken quote is actually: "Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy."
RT @mistressmatisse: The precise Mencken quote is actually: "Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy."
tSunshineLove (Sunshine Love) Sun, 03 Jan 2010 06:31:11 -0000
RT @mistressmatisse: The precise Mencken quote is actually: "Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy."
RT @mistressmatisse: The precise Mencken quote is actually: "Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy."
uhurajones (Uhura Jones) Sun, 03 Jan 2010 06:27:28 -0000
RT @mistressmatisse: The precise Mencken quote is actually: "Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy."
RT @mistressmatisse: The precise Mencken quote is actually: "Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy."
firewalk (Matt Crognale) Sun, 03 Jan 2010 06:26:08 -0000
RT @mistressmatisse: The precise Mencken quote is actually: "Puritanism: The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy."
1564-1660: The Era of Puritanism - Timeline of this important movement in England.
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21st Century Puritanism - Topical theology articles from the Reformed tradition.
A Puritan's Mind - Links to Puritan theology, theologians and history.
Meta Description: [ It is to God that all glory belongs. The Bible teaches us this as it begins with its most important verse, "In the beginning God..." (Genesis 1:1a). Everything past this is undeserved grace to us and great glory to Him; for this is the chief end of all things which exist--God's glory. May all t... ]
A Puritan's Mind - Contains information and resources by Dr. C. Matthew McMahon relating to Puritanism.
Meta Description: [ It is to God that all glory belongs. The Bible teaches us this as it begins with its most important verse, "In the beginning God..." (Genesis 1:1a). Everything past this is undeserved grace to us and great glory to Him; for this is the chief end of all things which exist--God's glory. May all t... ]
English Dissenters: Puritans - Bibliography and summaries of English sects and religious dissidents of the Tudor, Stuart and Interregnum periods in Great Britain.
Meta Description: [ Bibliography and summaries of English sects and religious dissidents of the Tudor, Stuart and Interregnum periods in Great Britain. ]
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Fire and Ice - Many links to Puritan and Reformed writings.
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JonathanEdwards.com - Site with links to biographies, sermons, theological, scientific and personal writings.
Puritan Roots - A brief sketch of the values of Puritanism, especially their doctrine of the church.
Puritanism - A number of Puritan beliefs, such as predestination, covenant of grace, justification, sanctification and providence.
Puritanism - An article from The Readers' Companion to American History which discusses the history and some theology.
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Puritanism and Predestination - A historian discusses the connection between Puritanism and Calvinism, especially as it pertains to the doctrine of predestination.
Meta Description: [ an interactive curriculum enrichment service designed to help teachers of American history bring their students to a greater understanding of the role religion has played in the development of the United States ]
Puritanism in New England - A discussion of the beliefs of the Puritans and their differences on church government.
Meta Description: [ Puritanism in New England: Brief Definitions ]
Puritanism, Puritans - Several articles on Puritanism. A source of information for deeper understanding of religious subjects.
Meta Description: [
Several articles on Puritanism. A source
of information for deeper understanding of religious subjects. ]
Religious Humanism - Book defending the Puritan tradition.
The English Puritan's Beginnings - A short history of the early Puritans.
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The Example of the English Puritans - An article on the Puritan example of applying Christian doctrine and the cultural mandate.
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The Puritans - An article on the beliefs, the rhetoric and the politics of the Puritans.
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