Puritan View of Punishment

In our class discussion, someone brought up the point that Puritans generally view trials, tragedies, and trouble as a sign of God's disfavor or a form of punishment. This is very consistent with our study of the witchtrials, yet within the text of Mary Rowlandson's captivity narrative we see a new view of tragedy. Mary Rowlandson viewed persecution as a gift from God. This is still a mainstream christian idea. Originally, the Puritan's were fleeing their country in search of religious freedom free from persecution. I think they realize, when they come to the new world that there is no way of escaping religious persecution, regarless of where you are. However, they themselves add to the religious persecution when they attempt to convert the Native Americans. In return, the Native Americans persecute them. This realization that persecution is inescapable leads to a reformation of their view of persecution. Of course, it has always been a theme within the bible that persecution is a blessing from God. But I think the experiences of the new world didn't so much change the idea that persecution is a sign of God's disfavor, but it reinforced the idea that they are God's chosen people. Mary Rowlandson quotes Hebrews 12:6 in her narrative, "For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every Son whom he receiveth." She then writes, "now I see the Lord had his time to scourge and chasten me...And I hope I can say in some measure, as David did, It is good for me that I have been afflicted." I think it's pretty interesting that the Puritan's set out to teach the Indian savages about their religion, but It really seems like the Indian's taught them more about their own religion than they could teach themselves. One of the bible's main principles is humility, and that is what the Puritan's were lacking. Mary Rowlandson learned this through her experience with the Native Americans. She writes, "I have seen the extream vanity of this World: one hour I have been in health, and wealth, wanting nothing: but the next hour in sickness, and wounds, and death, having nothing but sorrow and affliciton." She specifically notes how she witnessed how God provided for the masses of Native Americans with just the wilderness to sustain them, "I cannot but stand in admiration to see the wonderful power of God, in providing for such a vast number of our Enemies in the Wilderness, where there was nothing to be seen, but from hand to mouth." Basically, She learned of the vanity of the life she had been living when she would be so contented that she claims to have wished for affliction. Her affliction came and did show her how vain her life had been. Because of the lesson her affliction taught her, she really demonstrates that it is a blessing from God to be afflicted, because it leads to a greater understanding of God. She writes, " The Lord hath shewed me the vanity of vanities, and vexation of spirit; that they are but a shadow, a blsast, a bubble, and things of no continuance; that me must rely on God himself, and our whole dependance must be upon him." I think that this is a really profound lesson that Rowlandson is sharing with her community. She's telling them, especially the one's who did not experience such levels of suffering, that their way of life is vain, and that is not how God wants life to be for them. It's even more that she is a woman, at this time, delivering such a strong and influential message.