John Cotton
John Cotton (born December 4, 1585 in Derby , England , † December 23, 1652 in Boston , Massachusetts ) was an English clergyman, theologian and one of the leading figures of the first generation of Puritans in New England .
life and work
He was the son of a lawyer and first attended school in Derby. At the age of 13 he was sent to Trinity College , Cambridge , and later studied and taught at Emmanuel College . During his student days he was strongly influenced by Puritanism. In 1612 he became vicar of St. Botolph's Church in Boston (Lincolnshire) and in this capacity one of the most influential Puritan preachers in England. The conflict between the Puritans and the Anglican Church escalated after William Laud was appointed Archbishop of Canterbury in 1633. In 1632 Cotton was summoned to a court for his deviant sermons. He evaded the threatened conviction by settling in the Massachusetts colony in North America, founded in 1630 . On September 3, 1633, he reached Boston.
Cotton became one of the most influential dignitaries of the colony alongside John Winthrop , Thomas Hooker and Thomas Shepard , and thus played a decisive role in the development of New England in religious and secular matters until his death. Cotton advocated a decidedly conservative and strict puritanism, and so he was one of the opinion leaders when Anne Hutchinsons was exiled in 1635 (whom he had initially defended), then Roger Williams '.
He was one of the most educated Puritans of his day and published a considerable number of theological treatises. His catechism Milk for Babes drawn out of the Breasts of both Testaments , written in 1646, was in use for decades. His ecclesiastical treatise The Way of the Churches of Christ in New England (1645) is one of the most important historical sources of New England Puritanism. He was the first American theologian to excel at federal theology .
literature
- Norbert M. Borengässer: Cotton, John. In: Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon (BBKL). Volume 17, Bautz, Herzberg 2000, ISBN 3-88309-080-8 , Sp. 244-247.
- Larzer Ziff: The Career of John Cotton: Puritanism and the American Experience. Princeton University Press 1962.
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Cotton, John |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | English clergyman, theologian and representative of the first generation of Puritans in New England |
| DATE OF BIRTH | December 4, 1585 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Derby , England |
| DATE OF DEATH | December 23, 1652 |
| Place of death | Boston , Massachusetts |