WILLIAM BRADFORD AND THE PILGRIMS

Roman Catholic Church Puritans Roman Catholic ChurchProtestant reformation 1517 Martin Luther – 95 theses; John Calvin Roman Catholic ChurchChurch of England PuritansPilgrims

 Puritan – someone who wished to further “purify” the Church of England  Felt that the English Reformation (split from Roman Catholic Church) did not go far enough  “Sola fides” – faith alone

 Felt Anglican churches were too lenient in who was allowed to be join church  Unhappy with leadership/clergy  Wanted to eliminate anything not directly related to worship of God  Symbolism, holidays, rituals, clothing, etc. – viewed as unnecessary for worship/reverence of God

 Core beliefs:  “Total depravity” – Original Sin; every person is a slave to sin; natural instincts are to be selfish and sinful  “Unconditional election” – God has chosen who will receive his mercy; people cannot win God’s mercy through virtue, merit, or faith; those chosen are saved, those not chosen receive God’s wrath

 Reconciling predestination with personal responsibility  “Covenant of grace” Submission to God’s rule and living in accordance with his moral law (i.e. “good behaviors”) is a response to grace Good behaviors do not earn God’s good favor – they are the result of accepting his grace and cultivating/applying it

 God’s grace  God chooses who will receive it, and it is irresistible  Must “empty self” to receive God’s grace  Must place total trust in God/Covenant of Grace  Must maintain grace via correct reason and will to combat doubt

 Individual must want to accept grace and then maintain/cultivate saving faith in order to fulfill Covenant of Grace

 Pilgrims – Puritans who saw no hope in reforming Church of England (i.e. “Separatist”)  Wanted to set up individual churches set up by covenants  Each member of church would covenant pledging faith and allegiance to church community

 Individual church covenants – “freely initiated but perpetually binding”

 Separating from Church of England was treasonous by English law – had to remain hidden/secretive or face arrest  Pilgrims (a community of Puritan separatist from Scrooby, Nottinghamshire), to escape persecution, travelled to Netherlands in early 1600s

 Life in Netherlands was far from perfect, so they petitioned England for a grant of land in New World  Originally aimed for Virginia, but ended up in Plymouth, Massachusettes