Document Type
Article
Abstract
[First paragraph]
In his 1630 sermon, “A Model of Christian Charity,” John Winthrop writes to his peers journeying on the Arabella to the New World to propose how the tenets of their religion will help their community thrive. He begins by acknowledging the reality and divine nature of inequity and uses that foundation to connect to the ideals of justice and mercy, emphasizing the significance of the choices that the Christian individual makes as part of the larger one body in Christ (171). As a way to forestall conflict among his fellow colonists within their future community, Winthrop focuses on the ideals of togetherness and community as a means to avoid the potential pragmatic, moral, and religious failures of their endeavor. He devotes much of his sermon to defining those ideals for his particular Puritan-influenced version of Christianity. His “model” would greatly influence the many colonies, and eventual nation, that would grow from this community.
Repository Citation
Heinert, Jennifer, and Katie Kalish. "Winthrop and Watchmen: Liminality, Transformation, and American Identity." Reconstruction: Studies in Contemporary Culture vol. 17, no. 2, 2017, pp. 1–16. https://digitalcommons.odu.edu/reconstruction/vol17/iss2/4