41 Facts About Puritans

Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to purify the Church of England of Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should become more Protestant.

Puritans were dissatisfied with the limited extent of the English Reformation and with the Church of England's toleration of certain practices associated with the Roman Catholic Church.

Puritans adopted a Reformed theology, and in that sense they were Calvinists .

Puritans, then, were distinguished for being "more intensely protestant than their protestant neighbors or even the Church of England".

Some Puritans refused to bow on hearing the name of Jesus, to make the sign of the cross in baptism, use wedding rings or the organ.

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Yet, the main complaint Puritans had was the requirement that clergy wear the white surplice and clerical cap.

Many Puritans believed the Church of England should follow the example of Reformed churches in other parts of Europe and adopt presbyterian polity, under which government by bishops would be replaced with government by elders.

Puritans called the Hampton Court Conference in 1604, and heard the teachings of four prominent Puritan leaders, including Laurence Chaderton, but largely sided with his bishops.

Puritans was well informed on theological matters by his education and Scottish upbringing, and he dealt shortly with the peevish legacy of Elizabethan Puritanism, pursuing an eirenic religious policy, in which he was arbiter.

Puritans still opposed much of the Roman Catholic summation in the Church of England, notably the Book of Common Prayer but the use of non-secular vestments during services, the sign of the Cross in baptism, and kneeling to receive Holy Communion.

Some Puritans left for New England, particularly from 1629 to 1640, supporting the founding of the Massachusetts Bay Colony and other settlements among the northern colonies.

Puritans set up a college only six years after arriving in Boston.

Puritans shared with other Calvinists a belief in double predestination, that some people were destined by God to receive grace and salvation while others were destined for Hell.

Puritans believed in unconditional election and irresistible grace—God's grace was given freely without condition to the elect and could not be refused.

Puritans agreed "that the effectual call of each elect saint of God would always come as an individuated personal encounter with God's promises".

Early on, Puritans did not consider a specific conversion experience normative or necessary, but many gained assurance of salvation from such experiences.

For some Puritans, this was a dramatic experience and they referred to it as being born again.

Some Puritans attempted to find assurance of their faith by keeping detailed records of their behavior and looking for the evidence of salvation in their lives.

Many Puritans relied on both personal religious experience and self-examination to assess their spiritual condition.

Puritans were concerned about biblical errors and Catholic remnants within the prayer book.

Puritans objected to bowing at the name of Jesus, the requirement that priests wear the surplice, and the use of written, set prayers in place of improvised prayers.

Puritans taught that there were two sacraments: baptism and the Lord's Supper.

Puritans objected to the prayer book's assertion of baptismal regeneration.

Puritans wanted to do away with godparents, who made baptismal vows on behalf of infants, and give that responsibility to the child's father.

Puritans objected to priests making the sign of the cross in baptism.

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Private baptisms were opposed because Puritans believed that preaching should always accompany sacraments.

Puritans rejected both Roman Catholic and Lutheran teachings that Christ is physically present in the bread and wine of the Lord's Supper.

Puritans criticised the Church of England for allowing unrepentant sinners to receive communion.

Puritans wanted better spiritual preparation for communion and better church discipline to ensure that the unworthy were kept from the sacrament.

Puritans did not believe confirmation was necessary and thought candidates were poorly prepared since bishops did not have the time to examine them properly.

Puritans eliminated choral music and musical instruments in their religious services because these were associated with Roman Catholicism; however, singing the Psalms was considered appropriate .

However, some Puritans equated the Church of England with the Roman Catholic Church, and therefore considered it no Christian church at all.

Puritans viewed the relationship between master and servant similarly to that of parent and child.

In contrast to other Protestants who tended to view eschatology as an explanation for "God's remote plans for the world and man", Puritans understood it to describe "the cosmic environment in which the regenerate soldier of Christ was now to do battle against the power of sin".

Puritans believed it was the government's responsibility to enforce moral standards and ensure true religious worship was established and maintained.

However, the Puritans' emphasis on individual spiritual independence was not always compatible with the community cohesion that was a strong ideal.

Puritans strongly condemned the celebration of Christmas, considering it a Catholic invention and the "trappings of popery" or the "rags of the Beast".

Puritans were opposed to Sunday sport or recreation because these distracted from religious observance of the Sabbath.

For example, Puritans were universally opposed to blood sports such as bearbaiting and cockfighting because they involved unnecessary injury to God's creatures.

In New England, where Congregationalism was the official religion, the Puritans exhibited intolerance of other religious views, including Quaker, Anglican and Baptist theologies.

The national context frames the definition of Puritans, but was not a self-identification for those Protestants who saw the progress of the Thirty Years' War from 1620 as directly bearing on their denomination, and as a continuation of the religious wars of the previous century, carried on by the English Civil Wars.