Thursday, August 30, 2012
Are we still the "shining city on the hill"?
During class we discussed Winthrop's speech "A Modell of Christian Charity", which discusses Winthrop's thoughts on why the Puritans were coming to America and the responsibilities they had in the New Land. He had specific qualities that the Puritans coming to the new land should demonstrate. Winthrop's speech and these qualities have been brought up in today's politics. If John Winthrop was alive today, what would he say about our society? Do you think he would admire the values we have or think we have corrupted our society?
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If he were alive today, I would say he would think that our society is corrupt. I think this because in his sermon he clearly and repeatedly said how Massachusetts Bay is founded as a Puritan establishment. Religion is such a large part of his sermon that he would think that our society has gone astray and lost sight of the most important thing, christianity. He explicitly states his warning at the end of his sermon. It says how if the settlers (all inhabitants in America) ever lose sight of religion, then society will have and America will "perishe out of the good Land" (159). Some might say that he would admire our work ethic and how everyone looks at America as inspiration but to him work ethic and American exceptionalism should be based in Christianity and for the love of Jesus. But clearly today's society is not centered around religion
ReplyDeleteI agree with Arnav. I think Winthrop would be throughly disappointed and troubled by our society today. Winthrop's idea of America was one that focused directly on God, and his divinity. In today's society, it is socially acceptable(for the most part) to not believe in a God, or to believe in a divine power other than God. Winthrop's idea of America was one where we "love the Lord our God, and to love one another to walke in his wayes and to keepe his Commaundements and his Ordinance, and his lawes, and the Articles of our Covenant with him"(159). I believe that none of these things still play a big role in our governing system. Our country is not one that is centered around a single deity ,unlike the one that Winthrop was trying to create.
ReplyDeleteI think Arnav and Katie are talking about that the core value of Winthrop's society -- Christianity -- is lost in nowadays American society and hence. And I feel like touching on the general form of the society. Whether we admit it or not, Winthrop's model city draws some comparisons with Marx's ideal communism society -- not the crappy one in U.S.S.R. and China -- but the original Marxian scheme in which a communist state gradually forms when the financial disparity among citizens simultaneously fades. However, looking at nowadays American society which is based on capitalism, Winthrop's model city -- which kind of has the same results as Marxian's ideal society -- does not likely to exist.
ReplyDeleteI agree with all of you. In fact in my opinion the thing that characterizes the present american society is that it is made up of people from different religions, traditions and cultures: Christianity is not the basis of it anymore. Moreover Winthrop talks about the justification of hierarchy and authority, that are both determined by God : I don't think that this idea still exists nowadays, because people justify those things according to abilities, work and money, surely not to God.
ReplyDeleteIf Winthrop were alive today, he would be very disappointed by today's society. He would think we have completely forgotten the most important thing: religion. In his Puritan society, Christianity was the center focus and what formed pretty much everything; and this is what I think he'd hope it would be today. Unfortunately for Winthrop, society is not centered around religion. I agree with Katie that in today's society, it is acceptable to not believe in a God or a divine power. I think Winthrop would be unhappy about this remark and that America didn't turn out as he hoped it would. For the most part, I think Winthrop would think today's society is corrupt. But I agree with Arnav in that he would like the fact that many people go to America as a place for religious freedom. So even though society isn't necessarily centered around religion, religious freedom is still a significant reason for why people come to America.
ReplyDeleteIn opinion I think that Winthrop, based on what was said on a "A Modell of Christian Charity," would think that we have indeed corrupted our society. That is we have strayed from our deep Christian roots. Winthrop thought that religion was the most important thing and life and that it needs to stay at the center of society. He thought that we needed America to be the "savior" of Christianity. Winthrop had a idea that religion should be part of the government as well as everyday life. While religion is important in politics in modern time, it doesn't run our government and life. America's religious freedom would be something that Winthrop would be proud of, I don't believe that he would be proud of America because Christianity is not the center of our society and culture.
ReplyDeleteI agree with all of you guys, though I think that Winthrop was a wise man and he knew that as time goes by people will change. Even during the colonial era people weren't that religious everywhere. I think that what Winthrop wanted to accomplish was to find something that would connect all of them. In those days it was the religion that connected them. Nowadays, it is the American dignity that connects all of the Americans. I don't think that Winthrop would be that disappointed, because the world was corrupted ever since the people were able to think and every wise man knows that this won't change. What I wanted to say is basically that Winthrop knew what he wanted to do and religion was in these days great way to lure people to do something. In my opinion Winthrop wanted from people coming to America to find their dignity and the feeling of being the city upon hill.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with Ryan in the sense that religious freedom plays an enormous role in the choice to come to America for a lot of foreigners. I also think that Winthrop would be disappointed not so much in the idea of a not particularly Christian nation, but more so disappointed at the fact that nobody really wants to be the religious "savior" anymore. Nowadays, with all of the tolerance and freedom we instill among our nation's people, it's almost as if being religious is synonymous with being an outcast in society. I think Winthrop might see that, yes, Christianity has grown and that's never a bad thing; however, he'd be very disappointed in our lack of will and drive to be better Christians, not just people who chose a faith because it was something new to try out for a little while.
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