Welcome back to my school essays, haven’t posted in awhile due to all the holidays, but for today’s essay topic I would like to first explain who Cotton and Winthrop are and what’s their significance.
John Cotton– a highly respected clergyman of the early 17th century and he was an outstanding scholar. John was a Puritan who established the first church in Boston along with John Wilson. He served as a teacher in the church and played an important role in the establishment of America’s first public school – The Boston Latin School. He was an excellent preacher and an outstanding speaker whose views and opinions were greatly respected. He was often consulted for advice in settling issues both in the political and church matters. Being the son of a lawyer, he was exposed to religious studies from an early age. John also studied rhetoric, philosophy, Greek, astronomy and logic in colleges and was regarded highly educated in his time, developing his preaching and oratory skills for which he would become famous later on. He was especially influenced by the teachings of the Cambridge theologian, William Perkins who was one of the foremost leaders of the Puritan movement. He was a notable speaker who spoke with such authority and clarity that listening to him was like listening to the speeches of none other than Jesus Christ.
John Winthrop– was an English Puritan Lawyer, best known as one of the founders of the ‘Massachusetts Bay Colony,’ one of the biggest settlements in New England. He sailed to North America from England with a large group of immigrants and served as the first governor of the colony. His vision served as a blueprint for other colonies in the New England to thrive. Born in Suffolk, England, into a wealthy family, he was initially home schooled. The religious discussions of his parents when he was young got him interested in theology at an early age. He attended ‘Trinity College’ for higher education. He studied law and later worked as a government lawyer in London. He was also a land owner and lived a comfortable life. He was one of the pioneers behind the ‘Massachusetts Bay Company’ and with a large group of colonists sailed to the New World in 1630. He became the governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the same year and ruled as an authoritarian. He was also a highly religious man, which was also a key element in his way of governing the colony.
Going back to today’s essay topic, during the times of England in the 16th century there were 2 kinds of religious groups, one of them are called the Puritans and the other are called the non-Puritans also called the separatists. Puritans were the kinds people who were religious, strict about following the rules and they also believed in predestination where they believed that God had already determined who would go to heaven and who would go to hell. Non-Puritans (or separatists) believe in worshipping the Lord freely without having to do religious kinds of acts in order to obtain forgiveness/salvation
In conclusion Even though Cotton and Winthrop were part of the Puritan clergy, they both didn’t blame or criticize those who were excluded from the Puritan community and became separatists wanting to create a colony of their own. They won’t criticize God’s ordinances for such decisions and beliefs of those who call themselves separatists. If God is calling them to depart from England, and there was a biblical reasoning behind that departure then they in the hands of the Lord and he will prosper them for they are blessed!
Thank you so much for reading this essay! I hope you enjoyed it or learned something new from it! I’ll be posting more soon so stay tuned!
Also don’t forget to check out my
Anastasia's Blog 