Those of you who point out tensions and contradictions within Puritanism are quite right to do so. However, as some of you pointed out, a desire for worldly success and for Christian piety did not have to be mutually exclusive. One reason that Puritans emphasized hard work was because they believed that working kept people of of trouble. Sloth, or laziness, was a sin, in part because it was seen to beget other sins.

Puritans definitely did NOT see themselves as being in control of their spiritual destiny — that position only became popular in New England in the late 1700s and early 1800s. So, within a context of terrible uncertainty, they tried to come up with ways to “prepare” for God’s grace, should they be so lucky as to receive it. The discipline of hard work was a part of the preparation process.

One area of positive influence was the Puritans especially hard work ethic. This work ethic stemmed from their idea of living a virtuous life. There can be no question that this work ethic allowed them to cultivate the land and prosper. This helped pave the ground for what would be the United States of America.

A second positive influence was the fact they were committed to independence. This is true in social, economic and religous aspects, all of which were interelated. In fear of the economic changes taking place in England at the time, the Puritans were afraid they would lose their highly regarded economic independence. This independence was so highly regarded due to the fact that economic independence would allow them to carry on with their vision of a moral and virtuous community. In other words, without economic independence, the Puritans would lose their religous autonomy and sense of “Puritan communitarianism”.

This powerful strive for independence was also apparent in their break with the Church of England. Upset that the Church of England was straying to far from the teachings of Bible, Puritans sought out their own vision of the virtuous life. It should be noted here that economic indepedence was vital to make their vision a reality. This helped lay the groundwork for early Americans to defy England’s control.

In conclusion, it is clear to see that the Puritans had quite a dramatic influence on early American culture. While the negative influences are concentrated on much more frequently, one cannot overlook the many positive influences inherent within early Puritan societies.