Thursday, November 26, 2009

Out Back Question of the Week

What is the difference between a "Pilgram" and a "Puritan"?

Going to elementary school in South Jersey in the late 40s and early 50s I never learned the distinction.  They just sort of ran together in my mind.

Regards  —  Cliff

2 comments:

  1. Not all Pilgrams were Puritans, but all Puritans are (still) Pilgrims?

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  2. Actually, the difference is a bit more defined, yet subtle.

    "The most obvious difference between the Pilgrims and the Puritans is that the Puritans had no intention of breaking with the Anglican church. The Puritans were nonconformists as were the Pilgrims, both of which refusing to accept an authority beyond that of the revealed word. But where with the Pilgrims this had translated into something closer to an egalitarian mode, the "Puritans considered religion a very complex, subtle, and highly intellectual affair," and its leaders thus were highly trained scholars, whose education tended to translate into positions that were often authoritarian."

    Regards,

    Neal

    ReplyDelete

Please be forthright, but please consider that this is not a barracks.