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Subject: [GM-L] New Material Found for John Winthrop on the Internet
Date: Tue, 4 Jan 2000 23:10:43 EST
John Winthrop, Reasons for Emigrating to New England (1631)
Source: Source: R.C. Winthrop, Life and Letters of John Winthrop, 2 vols.
(Boston, 1869)
Reasons to be considered for justifying the undertakers of the intended
Plantation in New England, & for encouraging such whose hearts God shall move
to join with them in it.
1. It will be a service to the Church of great consequence to carry the
Gospell into those parts of the world, to helpe on the coming of the fullness
of the Gentiles, & to raise a Bulwork against the kingdom of AntiChrist which
the Jesuits Iabour to rear up in those parts.
2. All other churches of Europe are brought to desolation, & or sins, for
which the Lord begins allreaddy to frown upon us & to cut us short, do
threaten evill times to be coming upon us, & who knowes, but that God hath
provided this place to be a refuge for many whome he meanes to save out of
the generall callamity, & seeing the Church hath no place left to fly into
but the wilderness, what better worke can there be, then to go & provide
tabernacles & foode for her against she comes thether:
3. This Land grows weary of her Inhabitants, so as man, who is the most
precious of all creatures, is here more vile & base than the earth we treade
upon, & of lesse prise among us then an horse or a sheep: masters are forced
by authority to entertaine servants, parents to mainetaine their owne
children, all townes complaine of the burthen of theire poore, though we have
taken up many unnecessary yea unlawfull trades to mainetaine them, & we use
the authoritie of the Law to hinder the increase of our people, as by urging
the Statute against Cottages, & inmates, & thus it is come to pass, that
children, servants & neighbors, especially if they be poore, are counted. the
greatest burthens, which if thinges were right would be the chiefest earthly
blessinges.
4. The whole earth is the Lords garden & he hath given it to the Sonnes of
men with a general Commission: Gen: I: 28 : increase & multiplie, & replenish
the earth & subdue it, which was againe renewed to Noah: the end is double &
naturall, that man might enioy the fruits of the earth, & God might have his
due glory from the creature: why then should we stand striving here for
places of habitation, etc, (many men spending as much. labour & coste to
recover or keepe sometimes an acre or two of Land, its would procure them
many & as good or better in another Country) & in the meantime suffer a whole
Continent as fruitfull & convenient for the use of man to lie waste without
any improvement?
5. We are grown to that height of Intemperance in all excess of Riott, as no
man's estate allmost will suffice to keepe saile with, his equals: & he who
fails herein, must live in scorne & contempt. Hence it comes that all artes &
Trades are carried in that deceiptfull & unrighteous course, as it is allmost
impossible for a good & upright man, to maintain his charge & live
comfortably in any of them.
6. The fountains of Learning & Religion are so corrupted as (besides the
unsupportable charge of there education) most children (even the best wits &
of fairest hopes) are perverted, corrupted, & utterly overthrowne by the
multitude of evill examples & the licentious government of those seminaries,
where men straine at gnats & swallows camels, use all severity for
maintenance of cappes & other accomplyments, but suffer all ruffianlike
fashions & disorder in manners to passe uncontrolled.
7. What can be a better worke, & more honorable & worthy a Christian then to
helpe raise & supporte a particular Church while it is in the Infancy, & to
join his forces with such a company of faithfull people, as by a timely
assistance may growe stronge & prosper, & for wante of it may be put to great
hazard, if not wholly ruined:
8. If any such as are knowne to be Godly, live in wealth & prosperity here,
shall forsake all this, to join themselves with this Church & to run an
hazard with them of an hard & meane condition, it will be an example of great
use both for removinge the scandall of worldly &sinister respects which is
cast upon the Adventurers; to give more life to the faith of Gods people, in
their prayers for the Plantation; & to encourage others to join the more
willingly in it.
9. It appeares to be a worke of God for the good of his Church, in that he
hath disposed the hearts of so many of his wise & faithfull servants, both
ministers & others, not onely to approve of the enterprise but to interest
themselves in it, some in their persons &, estates, other by their serious
advise & helpe otherwise, & all by their prayers for the welfare of it. Amos
3: the Lord revealeth his secret to his servants the prophetts, it is likely
he hath some great worke in hand which he hath revealed to his prophetts
among us, whom he hath stirred up to encourage his servants to this
Plantation, for he doth not use to seduce his people by his owne prophetts,
but commit that office to the ministry of false prophetts & lying spiritts.
Source: R.C. Winthrop, Life and Letters of John Winthrop, 2 vols. (Boston,
1869)
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John Winthrop by Halsall at Fordham
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1644winthrop-govt.html
Source:
American historical documents, 1000-1904 : with introductions and notes.
[New York : P.F. Collier, c1910]. The Harvard classics v. 43.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
John Winthrop on "Liberty"
http://douglass.speech.nwu.edu/wint_a54.htm
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John Winthrop, Jr., Gov. of CT
http://es.rice.edu/ES/humsoc/Galileo/Catalog/Files/winthrop.html
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John Winthrop and American mulitculturalism
http://mason.gmu.edu/~drwillia/winthrop.html
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John Winthrop
Matthew 5:14 "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be
hidden."
First, the young John Winthrop.
http://dylee.keel.econ.ship.edu/ubf/winthrop.htm
John Winthrop was born in Suffolk, England in 1587. He was his parents'
only son. His father, Adam Winthrop, was the lord of Groton Manor, a
small estate in the English countryside. John grew up on his father's
estate, amid gently rolling hills, fields of wheat and rye, and shallow
ponds (excerpt)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
John Winthrop (1588-1649)"
http://www.csustan.edu/english/reuben/pal/chap1/winthrop.html
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