In 1630 to the offs, Puritan values and ideas had a considerable impact in New England on politics, by establishing a theocratic, authoritative political structure that demanded moral conformity, economy, by decreasing the importance of making money because of the focus on religion. , and culture, by having an emphasis on family and community. In 1630, when John Winthrop found the Massachusetts Bay Colony, he wanted to create the Ideal Puritan society. He wanted to create a “City on a Hill” and a “model of Christian charity’.
By creating this colony with Its strict laws and rules, Winthrop set a standard for all other colonies In New England. Most or all laws were created based n Puritan beliefs and Ideals, such as bans on theatres, public drunkenness, and disobeying “God’s Law”. The political structure of New England was set up entirely to create the perfect Puritan society, and through this the Puritans created a theocratic state, where even political leaders were not allowed much power; they were only allowed to make the town a better place to live in.
The Puritan religion dictated the political structure of New England. The Puritan colonists were one of the few groups that did not come to America for wealth. Economy was second to worshipping god and focusing on religion. As a result of this, the Puritan colonists worked together to make enough money to survive, and if there was extra, they would give it to someone In need. Merchants that were only seeking ways to become lucrative were not allowed In Puritan societies.
New England never developed as a center for economic growth because It was created as a “a plantation of religion”, a society created to worship God, not to become profitable. One of the main themes of the Puritan religion is family. The family unit was viewed as a very important part of raising children to be enlightened members of the Puritans ideal society. In contrast to the other colonial areas, where most colonists came from Europe as individuals, a lot of colonists immigrating to New England from England were families.
This caused the gender ratio to be much more even than in other areas in the New World. The balanced gender ratio resulted in a much faster growing population. The community aspect of the Puritan religion led to the development of many many small towns and villages throughout New England, In which the colonists had common lands for animals to graze. The Puritans Ideals and beliefs also dictated gender roles within the family, such as the father cutting down he wood while the mother stays at home, and affected dally life, because the Puritan ways led little room for having fun.
The Puritan colonists and their beliefs and ideals colonists lived their day to day life in New England. If the Puritans had not been there, the colonies in New England would have operated the same way as most of the other English colonies, but the Puritan presence made it unique to the rest of the English colonies for the different way it approached culture, economy and politics. The focus on religion brought a certain stability that was uncommon in most colonial region in that time period.
