Similarities Between Jonathan Edwards And John Winthrop

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Evanson Michel Elizabeth McColl September, 27 2013 ENG 231 Jonathan Edwards versus John Winthrop American writers Jonathan Edwards and John Winthrop are well-known names in early American literature. Both of these men were wealthy and held high positions in the church and in the government. With such heavy influence they were able to persuade the masses in term of puritan beliefs and values. Each of these men both have a sermons that they are well known for: The Model of Christian Charity and Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God. Both sermons are clearly different at first glance, but the similarities are salient when they are more closely examined. Winthrop was a wealthy English Puritan lawyer and one of…show more content…
The Model of Christian Charity’s tone is more comforting and with great reason, Winthrop was trying to establish a loving comradely between the colonist. This is evident when he says that “all true Christians are of one body in Christ.” Then he compares each person to a body part and according to the sermon “The ligaments of this body are knit together by love. (Lauter 336) ” Winthrop realized that in order for the colony to succeed he had to have the colonist working as one unit especially considering the imminent dangers they were facing in the New World. He also tries to satisfy the individual by addressing the colonist concerns with wealth and social status. Winthrop assures his colonist that being rich, or poor is all part of God’s plan and everyone has a purpose in that plan. The second objective of the speech was show how the colonist should live in accordance to the Word of God. For example in the sermon Winthrop asks: “What rule must we observe in lending?” Then he responded by saying: “thou must give him according to his necessity, rather than lend him as he requires. (Lauter 340) ” This is one of the many lesson Winthrop was trying to
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