U.S. HISTORY

U.S. HISTORY

What was the belief of the Puritans?

Puritans were the Protestants in the Church of England. They were extremists who were against the aspect of English reformation getting into the church system. “They wanted to purify their national church by eliminating every shred of Catholic influence” (Calloway et al, 2009). They came into existence in the 16^th Century. In the colonial era, Puritanism had gained control of the religious beliefs and cultural practices in America. Their faith was mainly based on four beliefs. First, a person could only receive salvation from God; second, the Bible was the only source of the essential guidelines to life. The third one was about the church being a reflection of the scripture teachings, and finally, the whole society was integrated as one.

Their other strong belief was that the life of any individual completely depended on God. They believed in the Grace of God, which is only received through Faith in Him. They “regarded humans as sinners, unwilling and unable to meet the demands or to enjoy the fellowship, of a righteous God apart from God’s gracious initiative” (Calloway et al, 2009). They strongly believed that they were supposed to do only that which was permitted in the Bible. This was in conflict with the Anglican belief, who believed in not doing what the Bible outlawed. The Puritans believed that whoever failed to follow their beliefs was heretical. This is what happened when Quakers was established in the 1650’s. They were persecuted for trying to bring in their new version of the gospel. Their belief was that all people were equal before God. The Puritans had already declared their religion as the state religion. Any thing away from their belief was considered treason, and it would lead to persecution. “In 1660 Boston, the Puritans banished Quakers from the city under the threat of death. While Mary Dyer was executed, her cause triumphed. Her death and that of the other Quakers who were executed set in motion freedom of religion in the United States” (Calloway et al, 2009)

The Discovery of the New World.

The New World was discovered by the European explorers in the 15^th Century. These explorers were led by Christopher Columbus. In fact, he is considered the founder of America. He is viewed as the one behind America’s fame in the Western world. This however does not give him the credit for discovering America. Many other people had come to America before him. His explorations were what led to the Spanish colonization as well as the European colonization. The natives in America at that time were the Indians who had migrated from Asia. The term New world was invented by Peter Martyr d’Anghiera, who was a Spanish scholar, in reference to Columbus debut voyage to America. The discovery of the New world led to the explorations in the old world, which was collectively referred to as the Eurasia. Movement of people from the old world to the new world led to the transfer of resources from the old world to the new world. This is also what introduced slave trade.

The European colonization happened in 1492. This begun with the entrance of Vikings Norse, who established settlements in Greenland. The settlements however collapsed by the end of the 15^th Century. The first invasions were made by Spain and Portugal. They shared the non-European countries between themselves by signing the “treaty of Tordesillas.” The Portuguese managed to conquer Brazil. The Spanish people on the other hand conquered most of the Southern and Central America. Many other Nations were attracted to the colonization of America. This brought out stiff competition for the land and led to the formation of thirteen different colonies, which later on became the 13 states of the United States of America. This happened when all the other colonies rebelled against the British rule.

Work cited:
Calloway, Colin G., Henretta, James A., & Brody, David. (2009). First Peoples 3rd Ed + America a Concise History 4th Ed Vol 1. Bedford/st Martins.