will come across thieves. Likewise, the Puritans in New England feared witches, and soon they were surrounded by so called witches (Erikson, 1966).With this sociological background in mind, let me explain about the Puritan’s in Massachusetts. The new governor of Massachusetts, John Winthrop, accompanied the first Puritan settlers across the Atlantic Ocean in the early 1630’s. All felt it was their duty to cleanse the world by returning them to the purity known during the days of Christ. In a sense, this revival would change the world into a better place and make history while doing so (Erikson, 1966).In January 1636, John Winthrop and Thomas Dudley, prominent political figures in Massachusetts, had opposing view points on how to handle the court system. Winthrop urged leniency in matters before the court, while Dudley wanted harsh Biblical justice. Henry Vane, acting as a mediator, called a community meeting. In the end, the people of Salem Village sided with Dudley which set a precedent for the years to come—law should be a permanent set of standards (Erikson, 1966).The magistrates of Massachusetts Bay were known for their cruel forms of punishment, which could range from expelling a person to the wilderness, to public hangings. In actuality, Massachusetts was less severe in their punishment. However, the difference was the Massachusetts community did not pay much attention to the motives of the offender, grief of the victim, and were void of any human emotion. Rather, their whole judicial process was based on the laws of nature (Erickson, 1966).According to Puritan religion, only two classes of people were important: those chosen for everlasting life, and those condemned to hell forever. Furthermore, these decisions were made prior to their birth and as a result were called the Doctrine of Predestination. Even though a person’s actions throughout their life did not have any outcome on the decision, eventually p...
