Puritanism: Christianity in America with Stephen Nichols

Summary

This script delves into the Puritans' foundational role in American Christianity, challenging common misconceptions like their portrayal as hypocritical in works like 'The Scarlet Letter'. It highlights their God-centered beliefs, reverence for the Bible, Calvinist doctrines, and the significance of the covenant in all aspects of life. The script also emphasizes their commitment to education, with the establishment of Harvard University and contributions by figures like Cotton Mather and Anne Bradstreet, showcasing Puritanism as a comprehensive system influencing society, family, and church.

Takeaways

• 🇺🇲 The script discusses the roots of American Christianity, particularly focusing on the New England Puritans and their influence on American culture.
• 📚 Popular perceptions of Puritans are often shaped by literature, such as Nathaniel Hawthorne's 'The Scarlet Letter,' and historical events like the Salem witch trials, portraying them as self-righteous hypocrites.
• 💭 The term 'puritanical' has negative connotations in modern American culture, suggesting rigidity and a lack of enjoyment in life, as exemplified by H.L. Mencken's quote.
• 🙏 The Puritans were deeply God-centered, with a high view of God's sovereignty, holiness, and transcendence, which influenced their lifestyle and worldview.
• 📖 They were people of the book, valuing the Bible as the authority and guide for their lives, with a strong emphasis on sermons and worship.
• 🏛 The architecture of Puritan churches, such as the prominence of the pulpit, symbolized the central role of the preached Word in their religious services.
• 🔄 Puritans were Calvinists, believing in doctrines like original sin and monergism, which assert that salvation is solely the work of God.
• 🔗 The concept of the covenant was central to Puritan life, structuring relationships with God, within the family, the church, and society.
• 🌐 The Puritans were not just religious; they were also explorers of God's world, valuing education and making significant contributions to learning and science.
• 🎓 Key figures like John Winthrop, Cotton Mather, Anne Bradstreet, and John Eliot exemplify the diverse roles and contributions of Puritans in shaping American religious and cultural life.
• 📜 The script also touches on the decline of Puritanism and the shift in theological perspectives, such as the move away from Calvinism during the Second Great Awakening.

Q & A

What is the common perception of the Puritans in American culture?

The common perception of the Puritans in American culture is that they were self-righteous hypocrites, often portrayed as rigid and opposed to enjoyment or dissent, as depicted in works like Nathaniel Hawthorne's 'The Scarlet Letter' and Arthur Miller's play about the Salem witch trials.

How does the script challenge the stereotypes of the Puritans?

The script challenges the stereotypes by explaining that Puritanism was a set of deep convictions that emphasized a God-centered life, a love for education, and a high view of God's sovereignty, holiness, and transcendence, contrary to the popular 'puritanical' label.

What was the significance of the pulpit in Puritan church architecture?

The pulpit in Puritan church architecture was significant as it was prominently placed and elevated, symbolizing the centrality of the preached Word and the authority of the sermon in Puritan worship.

How did the Puritans view the Bible in their religious and cultural life?

The Puritans viewed the Bible as a central and authoritative part of their religious and cultural life, using it as a guide and the ultimate authority for living, which is evident in educational materials like the New England Primer.

What is the meaning of 'monergism' in the context of Puritan theology?

In the context of Puritan theology, 'monergism' refers to the belief that salvation is the sole work of God, emphasizing God's initiative and power in the process of redemption, as opposed to any human effort.

How did the concept of the 'covenant' shape Puritan relationships and society?

The concept of the 'covenant' in Puritanism structured all relationships, including those with God, within the family, the church, and society. It represented a binding agreement with expectations of obedience and corresponding blessings or judgments.

What was the role of education in Puritan society, and how did it manifest?

Education played a significant role in Puritan society, with a strong emphasis on learning and intellectual exploration. This is exemplified by the founding of Harvard University and the expectation for students to engage in original scholarly work.

Who was John Winthrop, and what was his vision for colonial New England?

John Winthrop was a lawyer, politician, and the first governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. He envisioned colonial New England as a Bible Commonwealth, a society governed by biblical principles, as outlined in his sermon 'A Model of Christian Charity.'

What contributions did Cotton Mather make to American religious and intellectual life?

Cotton Mather was a significant figure in American religious and intellectual life. He authored the first American church history book, 'Magnalia Christi Americana,' and wrote extensively on various subjects, including medicine, science, and theology, reflecting the Puritan love for learning.

Who was Anne Bradstreet, and what is her significance in American literature?

Anne Bradstreet was America's first poet, known for her deeply personal and theological poetry that applied Puritan beliefs to life's experiences, such as the death of her children and the loss of her home. Her work, 'The Tenth Muse,' was published in 1650.

What was John Eliot's contribution to the religious life of the Algonquin people?

John Eliot, known as the 'apostle to the Indians,' contributed significantly by translating the Westminster Shorter and Larger Catechism, as well as the entire Bible, into the Algonquin language, facilitating the spread of Christianity among the Algonquin people.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Understanding the Puritans' Convictions and Misconceptions

This paragraph delves into the origins of American Christianity, focusing on the New England Puritans. It challenges common misconceptions shaped by literature and culture, such as the portrayal in Nathaniel Hawthorne's 'The Scarlet Letter' and Arthur Miller's 'The Crucible,' which depict Puritans as self-righteous hypocrites. The speaker emphasizes the need to look beyond these stereotypes to understand Puritanism as a set of deep convictions, beginning with the Puritans' God-centered worldview, their high regard for education, and their central focus on worship.

05:09

🏛 The Centrality of the Pulpit and the Puritans' Calvinist Beliefs

The second paragraph discusses the significance of the pulpit in Puritan church architecture, symbolizing the authority of the preached Word and the importance of the sermon in Puritan life. It also explores the Puritans' Calvinist beliefs, including the concepts of total depravity and monergism, which emphasize the sole role of God in salvation. The paragraph highlights the impact of these beliefs on the Puritans' understanding of conversion and their anticipation of shifts in theological perspectives during the Second Great Awakening.

10:14

🤝 The Covenant: The Foundation of Puritan Relationships

This paragraph examines the concept of the covenant as the fundamental structure governing all relationships in Puritan society, including those with God, within the family, and in the church. It discusses the Puritans' commitment to church discipline and the importance of obedience within the covenant. The paragraph also touches on the societal implications of the covenant, as seen in the Mayflower Compact and the establishment of a 'Bible Commonwealth' in New England.

15:19

🌳 Puritanism's Emphasis on Education and the Exploration of God's World

The fourth paragraph highlights the Puritans' dedication to education and learning, as evidenced by the founding of Harvard University and the diverse academic pursuits of Puritan leaders. It纠正s the common oversight that Puritans were not only focused on religious texts but also revered the 'book of nature,' using it as a gateway to expand knowledge. The paragraph also introduces key Puritan figures like John Winthrop and Cotton Mather, emphasizing their contributions to theology, science, and literature.

20:20

📖 Notable Puritan Figures and the Spread of the Gospel

The final paragraph introduces several notable Puritans, providing a brief overview of their lives and contributions. It mentions Anne Bradstreet as America's first poet, whose work reflects applied Puritanism, and John Eliot, known as the 'apostle to the Indians,' who translated the Bible into the Algonquin language. The paragraph sets the stage for a discussion on the decline of Puritanism in the subsequent episode.

Keywords

💡Puritans

The Puritans were a group of English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to 'purify' the Church of England from its 'Catholic' practices, advocating for a simpler, more 'pure' form of worship. In the video, they are discussed as one of the foundational groups of American Christianity, particularly in New England, and their beliefs and practices are explored in depth as central to the video's theme.

💡New England Puritans

The New England Puritans were a subgroup of Puritans who migrated to the New World, specifically the region that is now New England in the United States, to establish a society based on their religious beliefs. The video emphasizes their role in shaping early American religious and cultural life, particularly through their God-centered worldview and convictions.

💡Perceptions

Perceptions refer to the way in which the Puritans are viewed or understood, especially within American culture. The video discusses common misconceptions about the Puritans being self-righteous hypocrites, as portrayed in literature and plays, and seeks to challenge these stereotypes by presenting a more nuanced understanding of their beliefs and practices.

💡God-centered

Being 'God-centered' means having a worldview and lifestyle that is focused on God and His sovereignty. The video explains that the Puritans held a high view of God's holiness and transcendence, and this perspective influenced every aspect of their lives, including their worship, education, and daily living.

💡Worship

Worship, in the context of the video, refers to the act of revering and showing devotion to God. The Puritans believed that all of life should be lived in worship, not just the communal worship on the Sabbath but also in one's daily activities and interactions.

💡People of the Book

The term 'People of the Book' highlights the Puritans' deep reverence for the Bible as the authoritative guide for their lives. The video mentions the central role of the Bible in Puritan culture, from education to church architecture, emphasizing the sermon as the highlight of their religious gatherings.

💡Calvinism

Calvinism is a theological tradition that originated with John Calvin and emphasizes the sovereignty of God in all aspects of life, including salvation. The video explains that the Puritans were Calvinists, which influenced their doctrines of original sin and monergism, the belief that salvation is solely the work of God.

💡Covenant

A covenant, in the context of Puritanism, refers to a binding agreement or contract, particularly between God and His people. The video discusses how the concept of the covenant structured relationships in Puritan society, including with God, within families, and in the church, emphasizing obedience and the consequences of disobedience.

💡Church Discipline

Church discipline refers to the practices and mechanisms by which a church community maintains order and upholds its standards of conduct. The video mentions that the Puritans took church discipline seriously, as part of their covenantal relationships, which included measures like the 'scarlet letter' as a form of public shaming.

💡First Great Awakening

The First Great Awakening refers to a series of religious revivals that swept through the American colonies in the 1730s and 1740s. The video notes that the theology of the Puritans, particularly their Calvinism, dominated the First Great Awakening, influencing the preaching and the converts' understanding of conversion.

💡Second Great Awakening

The Second Great Awakening was another wave of religious revivals in the United States during the early 19th century. The video suggests a shift away from Calvinism during this period, with some key figures even rejecting Calvinist doctrines in favor of synergism, the belief that salvation is a cooperative endeavor between God and the individual.

Highlights

Discussion on the roots of American Christianity, focusing on the New England Puritans.

Perceptions of Puritans as self-righteous hypocrites, shaped by works like 'The Scarlet Letter' and the Salem witch trials.

H.L. Mencken's quote defining Puritans and the negative connotation of the term 'puritanical'.

Puritanism as a set of deep convictions, not just beliefs, influencing Puritan lifestyle.

Puritans' God-centered worldview, emphasizing God's sovereignty, holiness, and transcendence.

Puritans' high regard for education and classical theism, with many being Cambridge or Oxford trained.

The centrality of worship in Puritan life, with all of life viewed as an act of worship.

The Puritans as people of the book, with the Bible being a fundamental part of their culture and mindset.

The significance of the pulpit in Puritan church architecture and worship, symbolizing the authority of the preached Word.

The Puritans' Calvinist beliefs, including the doctrines of original sin and monergism.

The contrast between Puritan monergism and the synergism that emerged in the Second Great Awakening.

The concept of the covenant as the foundational structure for all relationships in Puritan society.

The importance of church discipline and the role of covenant in the Puritan church community.

The Puritans' view of society as a covenantal structure, as exemplified by the Mayflower Compact.

Puritanism as a comprehensive system that functions best when all aspects are fully embraced.

The decline of Puritanism and the shift away from its original principles over generations.

Profiles of key Puritan figures such as John Winthrop, Cotton Mather, Anne Bradstreet, and John Eliot.

The Puritans' love for learning and their contributions to education, science, and literature.

Transcripts

NICHOLS: Well, we were talking about the roots  of American Christianity and one of those roots,  

of course, is the New England Puritans.  So, I want to spend this time with you  

talking about the Puritans. Who were  the Puritans? Now, as we get into this,  

we have to deal with first, what  are the perceptions of the Puritans,  

especially in American culture, where we  are right now, where we find ourselves.

Our understanding of the Puritans largely comes to  us mediated through a few things. One of them, and  

you might recall reading this back in high school  literature class or in a college literature class  

is Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Scarlet Letter."  And of course, as you read that story,  

you come across this notion that the Puritans  are self-righteous hypocrites, right?  

The hero of the story is the one who was  ostracized from the Puritan community,  

the one who's marginalized and doesn't fit  in. And the scarlet letter "A," which was  

a symbol of shame, ends up evolving into this  almost trophy as Hawthorne unfolds his novel.

The other thing we learn about the Puritans  is through a play written by Arthur Miller,  

and it came from a context. It came from the  context of the McCarthy era purges. And so,  

he looked back to another moment in American  history where the term "witch hunt" actually  

originated. And so, he takes us back to Salem,  Salem and the Salem witch trials of 1692-1693.  

And of course, same theme comes out of  that. These are self-righteous hypocrites  

who actually burned people who were  dissenters and didn't agree with them. So,  

much of what we understand of Puritans in popular  American culture is mediated through these things.

There was the famous H.L. Mencken,  the reporter at The Baltimore Sun  

and just an American cultural commentator,  very curmudgeonly, Mencken. And Mencken had  

this great quote about the Puritans, he said that  "a Puritan is anyone who thinks that somewhere,  

someone might just be having a good time." That's  a Puritan, right? And we even have this expression  

"puritanical," right? That's not a compliment,  that's someone who's stuffy and someone who's  

rigid and someone who has applied  these strict rules to themselves.

Well, can we just blow all those  stereotypes out of the water?  

This is not true of Puritanism. So, let's first  look at what Puritanism is, and then let's look  

at a few key Puritans just to get a handle  on some of them and get to know some of them.

Well, the first thing as we come into  what Puritanism is, is a set of beliefs,  

but not just beliefs. These are really  convictions. You remember, we were talking about  

confessional affirmation and conviction? These  are convictions that get played out in how the  

Puritans lived. And at the top of the list is, the  Puritans were God-centered. It was a view of the  

sovereignty of God, it was a view of the holiness  of God, it was a view of the transcendence of God.  

These Puritans, we're going to see this in  a little bit. They're not anti-education,  

they're not anti-learning, the Puritans were  all... many of them before they came to New  

England were Cambridge trained and Oxford trained.  And they were trained in classical education,  

and they were classical theists. They  had, at the center of their worldview,  

a high view of who God is. And that  also played out into their worship  

of God, which is very central for them.  In fact, for the Puritans, all of life  

is to be lived in the worship of who God is.  So, we start with God, that takes us to worship.

The other thing we find with the Puritans is  

they were people of the book. The Bible was very  much a part of Puritan culture and the Puritan  

mind. You go back to the New England Primer,  you know, the learning of the alphabet. And  

I don't know if you know what the "B" is, but  the B is B, "Heaven to find, the Bible mind."  

In other words, this is to be your guide,  this is the authority for your life.

The Puritans were a people of the book. You  see this even at the center of their worship,  

at the center of their church architecture.  As you walk into some of these New England  

meeting houses and sometimes, mostly they were  rectangle, sometimes they were squares, but as  

you walked into the building they were very plain,  not like the Anglicans or not like the Lutherans,  

they were very plain, tend to have plain  glass windows, plain pews. But immediately,  

your eyes were drawn to the pulpit. It was always  prominent, it was always displayed off the ground,  

sometimes you had to literally  climb a ladder to get up into it.

And if you've ever read Moby Dick, you  know, there's that great story before they  

head out to sea they go to church. In that  church the pulpit was the mast of a ship,  

and he climbed a rope ladder to get up into  the pulpit. And then once he was in the pulpit,  

he brought the ladder up with him, right?  He was stuck there till he was done.

But the idea of the pulpit was twofold. One was a  practical reason, this is before microphones and  

you had sound systems, and some of these churches  are pretty large, and this is also an era before  

hearing aids, and some of these congregants were  maybe on the elderly side and couldn't quite hear  

as well as they once did. And so, the pulpit being  lifted up and the pastor being literally over the  

congregation would allow for the pastor's  voice to carry out over the congregation.

It was an acoustic purpose, but that was only  secondary. The main reason was the symbolism  

that we come to church to sit under  the authority of the preached Word.  

The sermon was like a blood sport for the  Puritans. It was the highlight of their week,  

the sermon. And it was a tour de force training  in the Word of God, sitting under the authority  

of God. So, you begin to look at a Puritan  worldview that was God-centered. Because it was  

God-centered, it's going to focus on worship and  not just the community worship on the Lord's Day,  

but all of life as an act of worship. And of  course, they're going to be people of the book.

The other thing that you find about  the Puritans is they were Calvinists.  

Of course, they were Calvinists because they  have a high view of God. But they're going to  

follow through on all of these doctrines, they're  going to affirm the doctrine of original sin,  

go back to the New England Primer, B is "Heaven  to find, the Bible mind." You might have heard  

the one for "A," and the jingle for "A"  is, "In Adam's fall, we sinned all."  

And so, they start off with  this notion of total depravity  

that we are unregenerate, that we are dead in  our trespasses and sins. And if that's the case,  

then salvation, how we come to faith in Christ,  is exclusively, only, solely the work of God.

We call this "monergism." And monergism  literally means "work of one," and here  

we're talking about the work of God. This is going  to be very important because it's this Calvinism  

that is the theology that dominates and undergirds  the First Great Awakening. And if that's the case,  

then that's going to make its way through the  preaching, and it's going to make its way through  

in the convert's understanding of  what is happening at conversion.

As we move into the Second Great Awakening, we're  going to see a shift away from Calvinism. In fact,  

on some of the major figures of the Second  Great Awakening, we're going to see a flat-out  

rejection of Calvinism. And so, the  opposite of monergism is synergism, S-Y-N,  

or that's the Greek. We could go to the  Latin "co opera." Now, I always love this,  

because this to me is the great definition of  opera, it takes work to listen to an opera.  

So, I know, my buddy Dr. Derek Thomas is spinning  around right now that I just said that. But  

"opera" means work and "co"  means together. So, our salvation  

is a cooperative endeavor between us and God. In  fact, you'll even come to hear revival preachers  

say things like, "God is waiting on you, God  is waiting on you, what are you going to do?"

Well, fast forward a little bit because I  just have to, because I find it exciting.  

But we'll fast forward a little bit.  There was a tract that was put out  

by Billy Sunday, and it was like a ballot that  you would vote. And it had three columns – God,  

the devil, and you. And it had two columns on  the side – for and against. And God has voted,  

and you know how God has voted? He's  voted for you. So, God's for you.  

But the devil voted, and guess what the devil  voted? He's against you. So, God's for you,  

Satan is against you – that's a tie. Then the  final column with you, it's a question mark.  

It's now up to you – you  cast the deciding vote, okay.

So, let's go back to Puritanism. Let's  think this through. This is not just  

an affirmation of doctrine, it impacts how we  understand salvation and how we enter into the  

Christian life and has everything to do with how  we live the Christian life, right? So, these were  

Calvinists, and because they were Calvinists,  salvation is the work of God alone, right?

Now, one last is...and I'm writing  downhill now, but it is "the covenant."  

Now, this is very key. The covenant structures  all of the relationships within the Puritan world.  

First, the covenant structures our relationship to  God. This is what we see in the Old Testament, God  

enters into a covenant with His people. In fact,  we see it dramatically and vividly portrayed. And  

as you go through the Old Testament, what do  the prophets do as they come on to the scene?  

They remind Israel that they are God's covenant  people, they remind Israel that God has been  

faithful to the covenant. He redeemed you from  your slavery in Egypt. He brought you out of  

that land, and He brought you into the Promised  Land. He's given you everything you need. He's  

brought you into this land of milk and honey.  God has never ever broken covenant or failed you.

But what have you done, right? Even an ox  knows its owner, even a donkey knows its owner,  

but my people don't know my name, right?  So, they've broken covenant. So, this is  

very important to the Puritans, this notion  of covenant that governs, first and foremost,  

our relationship to God. But then that covenant  moves out to the human relationships that we have.  

So, in the family there is a covenant bond, there  is a covenant between father and children, and  

children and parents. There's a covenant between  husband and wife, and they spoke of marriage as a  

marriage covenant that would be entered  into. So, the covenant dominated the family.

But moving out, the covenant also  dominated the church. And sometimes,  

Puritans would even use that language of church  membership. They would speak of you signing  

a church covenant. And just as covenant  relationships have blessings when there  

is obedience and curses or judgments when there  is disobedience, so it is with this covenant in  

the church. So, the pastors of a church covenant  to nurture you and to bring you up, right, in  

the admonition of the Lord and to provide for you  nourishment of the sermon and the Lord's Supper.  

And what do you covenant with the  church? You covenant obedience.

And so, one of the things that the Puritans  took very seriously, and they got this from  

John Knox and the Scottish Reformation branch, is  church discipline. And this becomes...this is the  

scarlet letter. This becomes one of those things  that is used to sort of pillory the Puritans and  

to make fun of them and to deride them. And we all  think of the town stocks, right, as representative  

of the Puritan town. Well, not only does the  covenant govern our relationship with God,  

in the family, in the church, it also governs  our relationship with one another in the society.

And so, you see this in the pilgrims, right, even  while they're still out on the boat, before they  

land on New England soil, it's the Mayflower  Compact. That was covenant that they would obey  

the authorities, and the authorities would set up  structures to protect them and provide for them.  

And if they disobeyed the authorities, right,  punishment would set in. They even spoke of  

themselves, and John Winthrop does this on board  the Arabella, and we'll talk about Winthrop in a  

moment, but Winthrop was not a minister. He was  actually a lawyer, ends up being a politician,  

ends up being the first governor  of the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

But it is Winthrop that preaches the sermon  on board the Arabella before they land.  

And it's in that sermon titled "A Model of  Christian Charity" that he gives that phrase  

"a city upon a hill." But it's also in that sermon  that Winthrop says what we are establishing here  

is a Bible Commonwealth. And that  is a covenant that these colonists  

of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, which will  evolve to become the colony of Massachusetts,  

it's a covenant with one another. So,  the covenant governs all relationships.

And here's the thing about Puritanism,  Puritanism functions best as a whole system.  

It's almost like an "either-or" thing.  

Puritanism is not really something that can sort  of be halfway. It's sort of either is or it isn't.  

And what you see is within a few  generations, Puritanism becomes "isn't,"  

right? And Edwards is even feeling it in his own  congregation in the 1720s and the 1730s. He's  

feeling himself to be a Puritan. All of this marks  Jonathan Edwards, he's the God-centered theologian  

of God-centered theologians, Jonathan Edwards.  But his congregation is no longer Puritan. They've  

moved away from this, and they've moved away from  these things governing their lives. But if we go  

back to that original generation and the second  generation, we see this as marking Puritanism.

Well, while in addition to the covenant, I  want to say one more thing because we forget  

this sometimes, I think I've got room here.  And that is, they are people of two books.  

They're a people of the Bible, they're a people of  the book. But they are also people of the book of  

nature, and they use that as a gateway to not  hide from learning, but to run into learning.  

One of the first things they do in Massachusetts  when they get here, after they have a governor,  

and after they, you know, build a  home, and after they plant some corn,  

they found Harvard University. They were all about  education. Most of the Puritan leaders who landed  

on the Arabella had degrees from Emmanuel  College and Trinity College in Cambridge.  

And one of the things they made  their students at Harvard do  

was write original poetry. And if you  wanted to write it in Latin, so be it.  

They loved learning, they loved exploring. We're  going to talk about Cotton Mather and Increase  

Mather, these were scientists in addition to being  ministers. And so, we forget that sometimes about  

the Puritans. These Puritans were not just  about exploring God's Word, they were about  

exploring God's world, and they loved learning.  And they loved learning about God's world.

So, let me just talk about a few of the key  Puritans and just give you some little bit  

of texture to some of the Puritans. One of  them is John Winthrop, the one we mentioned.  

Winthrop is the one who saw colonial  New England as a Bible Commonwealth.  

I'll give you his dates, he was born in 1588  in old England, of course, and dies in 1649.  

I do find it interesting that he's not a minister,  but he's the one preaching and giving the sermon  

to sort of launch this vision as they leave the  Arabella and begin the settlement at New England.

Another stalwart Puritan was Cotton Mather.  Mather was born in 1663, died in 1728.  

Mather is New England royalty. His maternal  grandfather was John Cotton, who was one of  

those early Puritans, first church Boston, and  his father was Increase Mather. And Cotton Mather  

wrote one of the first...this is why I like to  talk about him, he wrote the first church history,  

American church history book ever written. It  was called Magnalia Christi Americana," the great  

works of Christ in America. And it was  his way of chronicling these events,  

of seeing that this was really the work of God in  bringing the Puritans there and establishing them.

But he went on to write on all subjects. He  wrote on medicine, he wrote on science, he  

wrote on astronomy, he wrote on hermeneutics, he  wrote on theology. He is, to me, that consummate  

Puritan whose mind just explores every nook and  cranny, turns over every stone in the stream.  

And honestly, I think it goes back to the  focus on worship and the God-centered. Do  

you remember what Isaac Newton said, right? He  studied science and studied how the world works  

so that he would have an even grander  vision of the greatness of God  

and the creation that He gave  us. And that was Cotton Mather.

One of my favorite Puritans is  the Puritan poet, Anne Bradstreet.  

She was born in 1612, old England. Came to  New England on board the Arabella in 1630.  

She dies in 1672. Both her father and her  husband were governors of Massachusetts. But  

she was America's first poet. Her book of poetry  was published in 1650, The Tenth Muse. And what  

you'll find, and I totally commend to you the  poetry of Anne Bradstreet, what you find in the  

poetry of Anne Bradstreet is applied Puritanism.  She's writing poems on the death of her children,  

she's writing poems when her house burns down.  And in all of those, you see her resting in the  

sovereignty of God. It's beautiful, applied  Puritan theology, the poet Anne Bradstreet.

And then one final Puritan to mention, this is  the "apostle to the Indians," as he was called.  

This is John Eliot. He was born in 1604, he died  in 1690. He translated the Westminster Shorter and  

Larger Catechism into Algonquin. And then in 1661,  he translated the New Testament. And in 1663,  

he translated the Old Testament into Algonquin.  They were published together, and it was the first  

Bible published in America, the Algonquin  Bible, through the efforts of John Eliot.

In fact, if you were to ask John Eliot, he would  tell you that the Puritans were brought here  

all the way across the Atlantic. And if  I remember right, I think the Arabella  

traveled at a whopping two miles per hour, so  here you're going across the Atlantic Ocean,  

at two miles per hour, hold  on to your seat belt, right,  

all of this to bring the gospel to the  natives that were here in the Algonquins.

So, those are some of the Puritans. Next episode,  sadly, we're going to look at the decline  

of Puritanism and what went wrong. So,  we'll pick it up next time together.