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The Puritans are one of two Congregationalist movements which emerged from the Anglican Church in the late 16th early 17th centuries as a response to the “Great Compromise” of Queen Elizabeth. The Puritan congregationalists sought to “purify” the existing Anglican Church which was corrupted by its Roman Catholic roots. They sought to do this by reforming it from “within” the Anglican Church. This was the one main distinctive from their counterpart Dissenter Congregationalists who saw the Anglican Church as fully rotten and sought to leave it altogether.
As the Puritans did not have a founder per se, Robert Browne is considered highly influential as an early leader of this group. Browne was born around 1550 and he believed in the autonomy of the local church while rejecting the hierarchical structure of the Church of England. These “dissenting” beliefs would be more embraced by the Dissenters whereas the Puritans sought to rid the Anglicans of leftover liturgical practices which made their way into Church of England liturgies.
Congregationalists advocate for a church governed by its own members rather than Arch Bishops, Cardinals, or even Presbyters (Pastors/Elders/Overseers). They embrace the priesthood of all believers and the authority of Christ and His word alone over the church. They believed in members covenanting together to form a congregation. They practiced adult baptism and viewed the Lord’s Supper as a symbolic remembrance rather than a sacrament.
Puritan Congregationalists held several distinctive beliefs. They emphasized the sovereignty of God (in the Calvinistic sense), the authority of Scripture, and the importance of personal conversion experiences. Education was highly valued, as they believed in the importance of each individual being able to read and interpret Scripture. They are typically amillennialist (No thousand year reign of Christ on Earth) in their eschatology.
The picture above shows the Puritans meeting King James I who is famous for the King James Bible or “Authorized Version” which he commissioned. The Puritans are said to have had great influence in making sure the version was true to the Scriptures and not corrupted by Roman Catholic influence as the Latin Vulgate had been over the centuries.
The most famous Puritan Preacher in history may very well by Jonathan Edwards whose sermon “Sinners in the Hand of an Angry God” touched off the First Great Awakening throughout the American colonies in the late 18th century. Other great Puritan preachers are John Milton who wrote “Paradise Lost” and John Bunyan who wrote “Pilgrims Progress” – although Bunyan may well be categorised as an early Dissenter/Baptist.
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