The name "Puritan" was first applied to any person who belonged to the Protestants in England. Puritan beliefs were first expressed in England in the late 1500's, and the actual name "Puritan" was first used around 1566. The beliefs varied widely, yet they held to a simple common ideal of a total reformation for the glory of God. They wanted simple religious beliefs, a simple order of worship, and a simple organization of the church. They wanted the church to be purified of its priestly vestments, its elaborate ceremonies and man centered ideas, insisting instead on a return to the pure doctrine found in the Word of God, and for life to be lived for the glory of God alone. Disagreements arose amongst the Puritans, which led to small groups breaking away from the Church of England during the reign of King James I. These independent groups were known as Separatists or Brownist after Robert Brown, one of their early leaders. The Separatists under the leadership of William Brewster in 1608 fled from England to Holland to avoid persecution. While in Holland, the Separatists discovered they preferred farming to city life and they feared their children were becoming more Dutch than English (there was also the looming threat of a war between Spain and Holland). The Separatists longed to return to their English way of life and still keep their own kind of worship. The new land in America therefore appealed to them. In July 1620, the group, under the leadership of William Brewster, was led back to England. In September of 1620 they set sail for America. They landed in what is now Provincetown Harbor, on November 20, 1620, and settled in Plymouth Colony on the shore of Cape Cod Bay. The term Pilgrim might have been taken from William Bradford's History. He wrote "they knew they were pilgrims when they left Holland." They set sail on the Mayflower, built in 1610, looking much like any other ship of its time. It consisted of two decks, three masts and resembled a cods head and a mackerel's tail in shape. It was around 90 feet long and weighed 180 tons. On board the Mayflower, the 102 passengers took with them The Geneva Bible. Concerned about the influence that the Roman Catholic Church had on the existing translations of the Bible from the Latin, the Geneva Bible of 1560 was the first complete Bible to be translated into English from the original Hebrew and Greek texts (before the KJV of 1611). It was the first to have Bible chapters divided into numbered verses, as well as the first to contain marginal study notes. These notes were authored by men such as John Calvin, John Knox, and many other leaders of the Protestant Reformation. The Geneva Bible provided much of the inspiration which carried those courageous and faithful souls through their trials. It also provided the spiritual, intellectual and legal basis for establishment of the original Colonies. After facing many perils and hardships during the first winter, nearly half of the colonists had died. New hope grew in the summer of 1621. Gov. William Bradford decreed that a three day thanksgiving feast be held. Though this event was never repeated, the custom of Thanksgiving spread from Plymouth to the other New England Colonies. President Lincoln proclaimed that the last Thursday in November 1863, as a "day of thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father." Each year afterwards, for 75 years, the President would formally proclaim that Thanksgiving should be celebrated on the last Thursday in November. In 1941, Congress made it official, ruling that the fourth Thursday in November be observed every year as a legal federal holiday. On this day, people give thanks with feasting and prayer for the blessings they have received during the year. |
THANKSGIVING AND THE PURITAN PILGRIMS Pastor John Samson |
