John Winthrop Essays

Submitted By kristinarivera
Words: 351
Pages: 2

John Winthrop’s wife had received a letter informing John that it might be of best interest for him and his family to leave England, for John this was a warning sign from God. John believed that God had sent this warning to save him and his family from the wrath that was about to be delivered upon England. By warning him, God would provide them a sanctuary from this desolation. John was a visionary, he had envisioned a superior new world were religion would significantly influence law and social society. This community would be a model for the rest of the world to see, it would be a true Christian community “A City on a Hill” as John would later refer to it. John was born into a prominent English family with a large estate. Religion was constantly a big part of Johns’ life, from an early age he was familiar with God and prayer, this continued to be the basis throughout his teen and adult life. Even as he attended college to study law religion was always on his mind. John was married to his first wife at the age of 17, which was quite young for a man in this era; to Mary Forth. John’s first wife introduced him to a Puritan minister by the name of Ezekial Culverwell. Through minister Culverwell religion took a strong foothold in John’s heart and he became a Puritan believing strongly in the scripture. The Massachusetts Bay colonial experiment was based on freedom from religious persecution and to build a community based on a Christian community as Jamestown was