Puritans
Strict English Protestants
Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to purify the Church of England of Catholic practices they considered corrupt.
Many emigrated to New England, where their strict moral code and emphasis on hard work shaped American culture.
Today puritan (often lowercase) describes someone with rigid moral standards who disapproves of pleasure: Her puritan upbringing made her uncomfortable at parties.
Protestant tradition with elder councils
- PilgrimsPlymouth's founding English colonists
- QuakersPacifist Protestant denomination
- BaptistsImmersion-practicing Protestant denomination
- IndependentsThose without party ties
Anglicanism · Church of England · meetinghouse · congregation · minister · elder · deacon
Early Puritan New England settlement
- Plymouth ColonyEarly Massachusetts Pilgrim settlement
- Mayflower1620 colonial transport vessel
- New EnglandNortheast U.S. region
- Great MigrationVast collective relocation
Connecticut · Rhode Island · Boston · Harvard · Thanksgiving · William Bradford · meetinghouse · town common
Divinely predetermined fate
- electionOrganized public voting
- graceEffortless beauty of motion
- sovereigntySupreme independent authority
- reformedImproved after abandoning wrongdoing
John Calvin · TULIP · total depravity · Geneva · Westminster Confession · catechism · elect · reprobation
England's break from Catholicism
- ProtestantismReformation-era Christian movement
- Oliver CromwellEnglish republican dictator
- English Civil War1640s British constitutional conflict
- CommonwealthAssociation of sovereign states
Roundheads · Book of Common Prayer · episcopacy · Charles I · regicide · Glorious Revolution
Sincere religious devotion
- righteousnessMoral correctness or virtue
- virtueMoral goodness or merit
- chastityAbstaining from sexual activity
- conscienceInternal moral sense
uprightness · godliness · sanctification · sinfulness · repentance · confession · propriety · decency
Unadorned, straightforward quality
- simplicityLack of complexity
- frugalityEconomical resource management
- temperanceHabitual moderation in behavior
- abstinenceVoluntary forgoing of indulgences
self-denial · sobriety · modesty · restraint · plain dress · white collar · unadorned · industriousness
Trained self-control or specialty
- sternStrict or ship's aft
- uncompromisingRefusing to yield ground
- rigidUnable to bend
- severeExtremely harsh or strict
orthodoxy · conformity · intolerance · dogmatic · zealous · austere · stringent · devout
Presbyterianism
Protestant tradition with elder councils
- PilgrimsPlymouth's founding English colonists
- QuakersPacifist Protestant denomination
- BaptistsImmersion-practicing Protestant denomination
Independents · Anglicanism · Church of England · meetinghouse · congregation · minister · elder · deacon
Massachusetts Bay Colony
Early Puritan New England settlement
- Plymouth ColonyEarly Massachusetts Pilgrim settlement
- Mayflower1620 colonial transport vessel
- New EnglandNortheast U.S. region
Great Migration · Connecticut · Rhode Island · Boston · Harvard · Thanksgiving · William Bradford · meetinghouse · town common · colonial charter
predestination
Divinely predetermined fate
- electionOrganized public voting
- graceEffortless beauty of motion
- sovereigntySupreme independent authority
reformed · John Calvin · TULIP · total depravity · Geneva · Westminster Confession · catechism · elect · reprobation · sanctification
English Reformation
England's break from Catholicism
- ProtestantismReformation-era Christian movement
- Oliver CromwellEnglish republican dictator
- English Civil War1640s British constitutional conflict
Commonwealth · Roundheads · Book of Common Prayer · episcopacy · Charles I · regicide · Glorious Revolution
piety
Sincere religious devotion
- righteousnessMoral correctness or virtue
- virtueMoral goodness or merit
- chastityAbstaining from sexual activity
conscience · uprightness · godliness · sanctification · sinfulness · repentance · confession · propriety · decency · rectitude
plainness
Unadorned, straightforward quality
- simplicityLack of complexity
- frugalityEconomical resource management
- temperanceHabitual moderation in behavior
abstinence · self-denial · sobriety · modesty · restraint · plain dress · white collar · unadorned · industriousness · thrift
discipline
Trained self-control or specialty
- sternStrict or ship's aft
- uncompromisingRefusing to yield ground
- rigidUnable to bend
severe · orthodoxy · conformity · intolerance · dogmatic · zealous · austere · stringent · devout · fervent
- Colonial SettlersPilgrims, Dutch settlers, indentured servants, freemen, proprietors
- American HistoryAmerican Revolution, Revolutionary War, colonial era, founding fathers, Declaration of Independence
- FaithsChristians, Catholics, Buddhists, Hindus, Jews
- religionChristianity, Islam, beliefs, Judaism, Hinduism
- ChristiansCatholics, Catholic, Protestants, Protestant, Baptist
- Colonial AmericaGeorge Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin, Benjamin Franklin, Declaration of Independence
PuritansCatholics
Christians following Rome
Roman Catholics · Papists · Anglicans · Jesuits · Anglo-Catholics
Puritanslibertines
Morally dissolute individuals
hedonists · sensualists · debauchees · profligates · rakes
- Puritan valuesStrict Protestant moral standards
- Puritan work ethicBelief that labor signifies virtue
- Puritan ethicBelief in disciplined industry
- Puritan ministerStrict Protestant religious leader