Catholics, Puritans, and other Protestants differences

[FreyaNorse]

I was wondering if anyone could define the differences Catholics, Puritans, and Protestants?

 

[LDNCatholic]

Well…this could take forever, there are hundreds if not thousands of Protestant denominations, all with differing beliefs, from the aforementioned Puritans to Pentacostals, Baptists to Mennonites, Anglicans to so called ‘‘non denominational’’.

Welcome to CAF!

God bless

Peter

 

[Roman_Catholic_1]

I was wondering if anyone could define the differences Catholics, Puritans, and Protestants?

Wow that is a large subject.

First I would say that Puritans are Protestant, however you are right to ask the difference between Catholicism and a particular Protestant tradition. It is very hard to describe the difference between Catholicism and Protestantism, and the conversation always leads to over generalizations.

So with that being the case, I would say that one difference between a Puritan and a Catholic is what they hold to be the authority in matters of faith. A Puritan will look to the Bible while a Catholic will look to the Bible, Sacred Tradition and the Magisterium of the Church.

I apologize for any generalizations that I may have over looked.

God bless

 

[grampben]

Puritans were a massive group. Some were a movement within the anglican church, others were dissenters and founded congregationalism, and they were the first christians in the USA.

 

[Roman_Catholic_1]

Puritans were a massive group. Some were a movement within the anglican church, others were dissenters and founded congregationalism, and they were the first christians in the USA.

Are Puritans an extinct species today? Or have they evolved into something else

I kid but am serious at the same time.

God bless

 

[Cluny]

and they were the first christians in the USA.

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The first Christians in North America were Roman Catholics in Florida and then Anglicans in Virginia.

Puritans are a johnny-come-lately.

One writer has said that Puritanism is more a theory about worship than a theological position, and says that Catholic Monasticism, especially the Cistercians and Carthusians are the most Puritan in this regard.

Swedish Lutheranism with its crucifixes and incense is throroughly protestant, but hardly puritan.

 

[grampben]

Are Puritans an extinct species today? Or have they evolved into something else

I kid but am serious at the same time.

God bless

Well they went on to influence both the congregational and presbyterian denominations, as well as low church anglicanism.
The word ‘puritan’ is often seen as a dirty word. The idea that they were ‘anti-fun’ is a bit of an exaggeration.

 

[FreyaNorse]

I’m asking because we are studying Puritans in American Lit. I. The question was asked by my Professor. Currently, we are studying the Puritans that settled in the Massachusetts Bay Colony from the period of Winthrop to Mather (settlement to the Salem Witchcraft trials.) The Puritans migrated to New England to escape persecution from the Church of England.

 

[Ruthie]

American Lit? Not History?

Keep it simple. Tell your prof that the Catholic Church has been in existence for around 2000 years; that the Anglican church split from the Catholic church; and the Puritans split from the Anglican church.

The Anglican schism declared that the monarch of England, not the Pope, was the earthly head of the Church. The Puritans decided that the King was just as “corrupt” as the Pope, and split from Anglicanism over this. They eventually evolved into the Congregational church.

By the way, the earliest English settlement in America was the Jamestown (VA) colony, in 1607. I don’t know their religion.

God bless you,

Ruthie

 

[grampben]

American Lit? Not History?

Keep it simple. Tell your prof that the Catholic Church has been in existence for around 2000 years; that the Anglican church split from the Catholic church; and the Puritans split from the Anglican church.

The Anglican schism declared that the monarch of England, not the Pope, was the earthly head of the Church. The Puritans decided that the King was just as “corrupt” as the Pope, and split from Anglicanism over this. They eventually evolved into the Congregational church.

By the way, the earliest English settlement in America was the Jamestown (VA) colony, in 1607. I don’t know their religion.

God bless you,

Ruthie

Hmm not quite. Thomas Cranmer was in no way high church. The puritan lobby founded a faction within the church and many other puritans formed congregationalist churches, but the puritans had a major impact on low church anglicanism.

 

[Roman_Catholic_1]

American Lit? Not History?

This is common. My American Lit class studied the time period and history of the Pilgrims to better understand the writings from that time period. Oddly we rounded out the subject with the reading of Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible which was written in the 1950’s

God bless

 

[Roy5]

PURITANS AND OTHER PROTESTANTS

The group known as Puritans gradually produced two major groups: the Congregationalists and, ironically, the Unitarians. Most Congregationalists today are part of the United Church of Christ, which is perhaps the most liberal among the larger, mainline denominations. For example, they ordain gays and lesbians. The Unitarians broke off from the Congregationalists and are more liberal than any other Protestant denomination. Some local Unitarian churches would even avoid the name Christian, as they often read from, say, Buddhist and Hindu scriptures. As the word indicates, their main difference originally was that they deny the Trinity and often regard Jesus as a very special and revered teacher but not as the one and only Son of God who died for our sins.

  Congregationalists came initially in 1620 as the group later known as the Pilgrims. They eventually founded both Harvard, the oldest university in the USA, and Yale. Yale was founded when some Congregationalists thought Harvard was becoming too liberal. For years both had ministers as presidents. Today the president of Yale is a Levin, Jewish, and Summers, recently selected by Obama as a financial whiz, was president of Harvard not long ago, also Jewish. 

   Congregationalists, Presbyterians and the Reformed Church of America are the three major branches of Calvinism in the USA, though the Calvinist emphasis on predestination is rarely found today.

   Actually, Protestantism is more-or-less split between mainline and liberal-dominated denominations (Congregationalists, Presbyterians, Methodists, Episcopalians, Disciples of Christ, ABC - American Baptists, and ELCA - Evangelical Church of America) and evangelical Protestants, the largest of which are the Southern Baptists. Mainline Protestants move easily between one denomination or another. Evangelical Protestants do the same. Many local Protestant churches successfully have a broad theological spectrum within their membership, and usually they dwell peacefully together by not making theology an issue. They are 'big-tent' - tolerant of varying views among their communicants.

  Most Protestants of all kinds identify as Protestants. While they rarely are anti-Catholic today in the old sense, they reject many of the major beliefs of Catholicism, including Papal rule, transubstantiation, praying to Mary and the saints, reverence for relics, indulgences, absolution by priests, etc. They also accept modern birth control though they are split on when abortion should be allowed. Mainline denominations ordain women. All Protestant clergy are permitted and usually encouraged to marry.