Essay --

Edmund S. Morgan's book, "The Puritan Dilemma", is an account of the events encountered by John Winthrop's mission of creating a city on a hill. Winthrop leads and directs the Massachusetts Bay Company, to the new world, while trying to find a solution to the Puritan dilemma, which was how they were going to live in the world while trying to live up to the ideals in the Bible. These ideals lead John Winthrop to propose the creation of a â€Å"city on a hill†. His proposition involves reforming the Church of England, in the new world, by purifying the church of all its flaws. It would create a citadel of God’s chosen people, the kind of society that God demanded of all His servants. According to Winthrop, "They should be purified of their unregenerate members, their heretical clergymen, their unwarranted ceremonies, their bishops, and archbishops, but they were nevertheless churches and must be embraced as churches". (Morgan, 27) Winthrop continues to emphasize that they have been selected by God, like Israel of old, to serve as a model society to others; they would be a â€Å"city on a hill† for everyone to see and observe. â€Å"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 this present 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 our professors for God’s sake; we shall shame the faces of many gods worthy servants, and cause their prayers to be turned into curses upon us till we be consumed out of the good land wither we are going.† (Morgan, Page 64) In other words, no matter if the society they set out to create was successful or if they failed in th... ...lects some of the rules that the â€Å"city on a hill† used, in order to maintain structure. Ultimately, Winthrop’s goals were similar to the modern day idea of the â€Å"American dream,† something all individuals in the New World have sought to achieve over its history. The beliefs of the American dream have been redefined over time to accommodate new standards of societal order, as politicians today still continue to create a thriving society with just and godly beliefs. Religion is still important in many facets of society, but not in the same structure John Winthrop had hoped for. Overall, the â€Å"City on a Hill† was meant to serve as an example society for others to study and learn from, no matter if it succeeded or failed, which it ultimately accomplished. Although many Puritan beliefs have gone by the wayside, they were able to set a precedent for future generations.