John Winthrop and Thomas Paine each occupied a notable place in early American history and strove to establish freedom in British colonies. John Winthrop, dying nearly a century before Paine's birth, led Reformed Protestants to the New World, pursuing a "wilderness race." It focused on religious freedom. In A Model of Christian Charity, a definitive moral code was established for how the settlers would remain faithful to God by living in a close-knit community. On the other hand, Thomas Paine, although descended from a British Quaker family, was secretly a deist. Although he was not a Christian like his readers, he used the Bible when necessary to try to galvanize them into total revolution against the British crown. In Common Sense, Paine cites passages from the Old Testament to call the citizens of the colonies to action. Both John Winthrop and Thomas Paine use the Bible to support their ideas about freedom, but Winthrop cites the Bible much more frequently than Paine. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essayJohn Winthrop and his colony came to America to practice Reformed Protestantism, free from the oppression of the king. This group already knew each other well having worked in England, and everyone agreed on the nature of their mission in the colony. They were to be a “city upon a hill,” a community functioning solely to worship and love God properly, serving as an example to all. Winthrop's thesis for A Model of Christian Charity is that God allows some to be rich and powerful, but others poor and submissive. He begins his essay by pointing out three reasons for this: first, that he is "delighted to show the glory of his wisdom in the variety and difference of creatures", second, "to have all the more opportunity to manifest the work of his wisdom. “Spirit” to balance the classes, and finally, to form a community so that “each man might have need of the others, and hence they might all be more closely bound together by the bonds of brotherly affection.” In the third reason he begins with quotations from Scripture. Winthrop asserts that man becomes rich only for the glory of God and the common good, and that he should share the gifts He has given him. He cites the book of Ezekiel and writes: “God always reserves ownership of these gifts. » He also emphasizes the need to lend to one's neighbor, quoting the book of Deuteronomy 15:7: "if he has the means to repay you at present, you should consider it, not as an act of mercy, but as a means of commerce, in which you must walk according to the rule of justice; but if his means of repaying you are only probable or possible, then he is the object of your mercy. Winthrop argues that through this type of community one is better formed in the love of God in the development of virtue. Winthrop continues with some questions and answers to the Summa Theologica, quoting the Bible throughout. It begins to focus on love and community as the body of Christ. He writes: “Love is the bond of perfection…Christ and his Church are one body…Eph. 4:16: Christ, by whom the whole body is joined together in every joint…its ligaments being Christ…Christ is love, 1 John 4:8.” What he points out to his people is that the love of Christ binds them all together as so many parts of one functional body, the one that is their colony; they must live in union with each other so that their life “serve the Lord more; the comfort and increase of the body of Christ. Winthrop, as a Puritan, believes that humanity is inherently depraved and very seriously expresses that if people do not follow this covenant described, they will be condemned: "if we neglect the observance of these articles...the Lord will surely burst forth from anger against us." Winthrop ends his essay by exhorting the people: "Therefore let us choose life. Ultimately, he is extremely motivated to develop a colony in all loyalty to God, and his power to help him persuade his people to obey the commission of the colony is religion mixed with an oppressive dose of fear. Thomas Paine has a different view of the use of scripture within his writings. religion and fear, to convince the colonists to fight for freedom from the British crown, Paine was a different man from most of the colonists – secretly non-Christian, deist. But he knew his audience would be more motivated by sprinkling in portions of scripture, so he made sure to do so. His audience was different from Winthrop's in that several Christian denominations existed at that time in the Thirteen Colonies, but he knew that by citing Scripture he could unite the colonists under their common devotion to Christ. Paine begins Common Sense with a deep dive into the “origin and rise of government.” He writes that it is “a mode made necessary by the incapacity of moral virtue to govern the world; here also is the design and end of government, namely liberty and security. Paine and Winthrop find common ground here in that they both realize that human beings are imperfect. Paine recognizes that government must be necessary because of this, but also points out that governments can also be corrupt, particularly that of the English crown, which he considers too complex. Paine begins referencing the Bible in the section "On the Monarchy" with strong language. He writes sensationally about the evils of monarchical government: “Government by kings was first introduced into the world by the heathen, whose custom the children of Israel copied. It is the most successful invention ever devised by the Devil to promote idolatry. He further explains that the monarchy violates the power of heaven over the people. Paine, for example, delves into the story of Samuel. It tells, albeit sensationally, the story of Samuel trying to reason with his people that they had no need of a human king, who would steal their lands and make slaves of the people – ultimately stealing their freedom. And if they had chosen a human king, God would not hear their cries, for they had rejected him by choosing another to rule them. This passage was used purposefully, because Paine knew it could make people fear that by not joining the revolution they were offending God, and also to show them that their freedoms would continue to be plundered and get worse unless They don't rise up for the revolution. After his improved retelling of the Old Testament stories, he begins to experience passionate anti-British feelings, ranging from the colonists being descended from meaningless English families, to no benefits being given to the colonists from them, even the distance between the lands, declaring that it "is a strong and natural proof that the authority of one over the other was never the design of Heaven." He only cites God when he wants to add force to his words, because he knows that his readers will attach themselves to him – especially in his conclusion. In conclusion of his. 2018).