Anne Hutchinson and Robert Williams: Fighters for Religious Liberty

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Recommended: Religion in colonial america post-war

Freedom of dissent

Roger Williams and Anne Hutchinson were one in the same character: A ruthless dissenter who went against the majority. They both believed in conscience liberty, suffered persecution at the hands of the theocrats, and both went on to help dissenters make life anew in the colonies.

First of all, during their time, it was recognized that one did not have a right within the choice of religion versus government. It seemed that whatever one wanted to believe was not an option when it came to following a creed, it was more than probable that one’s government had made that choice for its people. Roger Williams, having been educated by Sir Coke on religious ideals seemed to be bothered by this fact and was fervent to change this as his former master whom had spent time in a London jail for his own ideas (Humanities, 1983). Anne Hutchinson being the daughter of a dissenting puritan minister (Reuben, 2011) had ideas differing from the major religious institutions of her land, and was especially dissatisfied with not being able accept creeds differing from the main. Williams’ works touched on this subject beautifully as he logically, even through quotes in scriptures, explained why it was that if one wished to be a true follower of Christ, that religious tolerance was a must. In The Bloudy Tenet of Persecution, Williams explains that Christ ‘abhors’ the practice of forced worship and persecution of differing beliefs of even those who are not Christian. Anne Hutchinson openly practiced the freedom of conscience as part of her life. She had at one point in England, meetings where she would speak about the doctrines and treatises written by John Cotton, and she would always add in her own interpretations (Anne Hutchinson...

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Gunn, G. (1994). Trials and interrogation of Anne Hutchinson. In G. Gunn, Early American Writing (p. 159...). New York: Penguin Books.

Humanities, R. I. (1983). Retrieved from http://sos.ri.gov/library/history/famous/rogerwilliams/

Reuben, P. P. (2011, October 1). PAL: Anne Hutchinson 1591-1643. Retrieved 2014, from PAL: Perspectives in American Literature - A Research and Reference Guide - An Ongoing Project : http://www.csustan.edu/english/reuben/pal/chap1/hutchinson.html

Roger Williams Family Association. (2013). Roger Williams Biography. Retrieved from Roger Williams Family Association.

Williams, R. (1644). The Bloody Tenent of Persecution.

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