by Susan Klatz Beal

Created on: October 31, 2009

The Pilgrims were a group of English people who sought to escape from both the religious controversies and economic problems that were so rampant in England and they did so by immigrating to America. The group we know of as the English "Separatists" did so by first going to Holland. The group that settled Massachusetts Bay came later, and that group consisted of "Puritan" Pilgrims. Both groups were Puritans, however the group known as the "Separatists" believed that continued membership in the Church of England meant that they would be "violating biblical precepts for true Christians."

*"Separating" from the Church of England -

For the Separatists who landed at Plymouth Colony, it was necessary to break away from the Church of England so that they could form their own individual congregations where they could be true to the divine requirements as they saw them. They were separating their religious life from their secular life, and in England, church and state were one, so their actions were tantamount to treason.

*"Puritan" immigration -

Some people chose to remain loyal to the church. Those people were Puritans who believed that it wasn't necessary to divorce themselves from the church altogether because it could be changed from within. They immigrated because of greater economic opportunities, but there were also those who merely sympathized with the Puritans.

*Common bonds -

What they all had in common was a strong and abiding Protestant faith, and it touched every area of their lives. At the same time, they also shared a secular culture, some of which might have been learned and some of which was so traditional that it was something people accepted and believed simply because that's what one did in England.

The early decades of the 17th century were a time during which people readily accepted the existence of fairies, witches, astrological virtues, folklore, seasonal festivals and even herbal remedies. All of these beliefs and practices were real and important parts of their lives. That world view was based on academic traditions that dated back to ancient times. It was also based on folklore that was an indigenous part of the English countryside.

They may have been Protestant, and they may have been affected by the Reformation, but they were nonetheless, people who had inherited all of the imaginary pictures of the Medieval world that ultimately produced brilliant people like Jonson and Shakespeare.

*Who the Pilgrims really were -

They

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>