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They also shunned, kicked out or hanged anyone that didn't "try hard enough" so I wouldn't take their philosophical/religious opinions too seriously. They beli
by dsfyu404ed 8y ago
They also shunned, kicked out or hanged anyone that didn't "try hard enough" so I wouldn't take their philosophical/religious opinions too seriously. They believed in a merciful god because the earthly reality they subjected themselves to was anything but (i.e. it was a coping mechanism). They basically ran the closest thing to a caliphate to ever exist in the western hemisphere. Of course they put a good spin on it but every utopia is also a dystopia.
- ARandomerDude 8y agoHmmm...that doesn't seem to fit the historical data. Most of what they said was inline with protestantism generally. For example Luther (certainly no Puritan!) said this as early as 1518: > The law says, "do this," and it is never done. Grace says, "believe in this," and everything is already done. At most we could say they didn't live according to their preached views, but that's still too broad a brush stroke. For example, the Salem trials (1692) were viewed with near universal horror outside the immediate area, and Salem itself publicly apologized (1696) to the victims, reversed the convictions (1703), and paid restitution to their families (1711). Shunning was an Anabaptist practice (Menno Simons in Germany -> Mennonites, most famously Amish) not a Puritan practice. Most Christians, including Edwards, have regarded shunning as a cultish aberration since it appeared on the scene in the 1530s. My point in saying all this: fair criticism is good, and evaluation of their doctrine is fine. But pop culture "knowledge" on this issue is pretty wide of the mark. Also: I'm not a Puritan. I just like history. :-)