“A Model of Christian Charity”

1. “…we shall be as a city upon a hill. The eyes of all people are upon us…” ~ John Wintrhop “A Model of Christian Charity” Today’s Questions: How did the Puritans understand their mission in the world? How has the Puritan belief in divine mission contributed to America’s understanding of itself?

2. Puritan Sermons • Emphasis of Scripture as guide for faith • Importance of “learned ministers” as preachers • Classical ideal (Cicero): oratory should instruct, convince, and excite the listener.

3. Sermon Structure A.Laying open the text 1.Grammatical meaning 2. Logical meaning 3. Figurative meaning B. Doctrine 1. Partition and division of the topic 2. Collects profitable points of Scripture C. Reasons 1. Demonstration of the truth of the doctrine 2. Leads to rational conviction D. Application E. Epilogue 1. Magnifies arguments 2. Leaves listener well-disposed, refreshed, and stimulated to further action

4. “…we shall be a city upon a hill.” What kind of image is this? What do you see in your mind when you hear this phrase? How does the image work symbolically?

5. “…we shall be a city upon a hill.” “For we must consider that we shall be as a city upon a hill. The eyes of all people are upon us, so that if we shall deal falsely with our God in this work we have undertaken, and so cause Him to withdraw His present help from us, we shall be made a story and a by-word through the world. We shall open the mouths of enemies to speak evil of the ways of God, and all professors for God’s sake. We shall shame the faces of many of God’s worthy servants, and cause their prayers to be turned into curses upon us till we be consumed out of the good land whither we are agoing” (Winthrop 105).

6. Journal: Choose one to start; write about both if time allows. • Do you believe that American has a special place in the world? If so, what is it? If not, why not, and what is our proper relationship to other nations? • Independent of your personal opinion, do you think that our country as a whole acts as if it has a special place in the world? Why or why not? Give examples.

7. “American Exceptionalism” • The idea that the U.S. alone has the right, whether by divine sanction or moral obligation, to bring civilization, or democracy, or liberty to the rest of the world, by violence if necessary • Coined by Alexis de Tocqueville in 1831 • U.S. holds a special place in the world • Superiority; model for the world • Self congratulating (We are #1) • Often an association between what the U.S. government does and what God approves of Source: Howard Zinn

8. “Manifest Destiny” • Coined by John Sullivan in 1840 • Expansion to include most of western U.S. • Territory allotted by providence (God) • You need no criteria for human morality once God has given you permission to do something

9. Ronald Reagan’s “City on a Hill” • “A tall proud city built on rocks stronger than oceans, wind-swept, God-blessed, and teeming with people of all kinds living in harmony and peace, a city with free ports that hummed with commerce and creativity, and if there had to be city walls, the walls had doors and the doors were open to anyone with the will and the heart to get here” Source: Reagan’s Farewell Address (1/11/89)

10. JFK’s “City on a Hill” • “During the last 60 days I have been engaged in the task of constructing an administration…. I have been guided by the standard John Winthrop set before his shipmates on the flagship Arabella 331 years ago, as they, too, faced the task of building a government on a new and perilous frontier. ‘We must always consider,’ he said, ‘that we shall be as a city upon a hill—the eyes of all people are upon us.’ Today the eyes of all people are truly upon us—and our governments, in every branch, at every level, national, State, and local, must be as a city upon a hill—constructed and inhabited by men aware of their grave trust and their great responsibilities.” Congressional Record (January 10, 1961)

11. Discussion Questions • Winthrop begins with a discussion of diversity and inequality. What is your reaction to this? What do you think of his “reasons hereof”? Do you see it as a description of diversity, or a justification of inequality (“to justify” is to make right something that is otherwise not right). • What is the relationship between Winthrop’s discussion of diversity/inequality, and his final image of his community as a “city upon a hill”? How does this relate to contemporary America? • Consider Winthrop’s directions about giving, lending, and receiving. What would Winthrop think of our modern economy? Our banking institutions, our home loans, our credit card debts? Do you think that Winthrop’s model is achievable or desirable compared to our modern system? • What is your response to Winthrop’s assertion that a true model community is “knit together” by charity? How would you feel about living in a community that tried to live out Winthrop’s ideal? What might the benefits be? What problems might arise?

12. HW: • Read and annotate Mary Rowlandson Captivity Narrative • Read handout of the Pequot War (as always, expect a reading quiz)