Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Kimberly Hayes
Professor Evans
ENG 231
March 1, 2009
Thomas Jefferson, one of America’s most noted historical figures, incorporated the
following famous quote in The Declaration of Independence: "We hold these truths to be self-
evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain
unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” This well-
known sentiment represents American ideals that have stood the ultimate test of time. Many
believe that the basic notions of American equality and freedom began with the brave men who
wrote that important document. However, the ideals of the country America did not originate in
1776. Years before the Declaration of Independence was penned, a diverse group of Puritans
sailed to the American coast, seeking to establish a democratic nation. It was on that journey that
John Winthrop delivered one of the most famous sermons in history, A Model of Christian
Charity. While this address may not be nearly as legendary as the Declaration of Independence
or the United States Constitution, the ideas and mandates that it outlines have been evident
throughout US history and still resonate in American government today. Winthrop's A Model of
that have actually been present in our culture for centuries; therefore the sermon itself can be
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easily seen as an influential part of the foundation of American society and has likewise been
exceptional or unique; the theory or belief that something, especially a nation, does not conform
to a pattern or norm.” Winthrop demonstrates his own exceptionalistic view as he nears the
close of his sermon, when he says of the colony the Puritans are to establish “for we must
consider that we shall be as a city upon a hill. The eyes of all people are upon us” (109).
Winthrop believed that he and the colonists had been entrusted with a holy mission from God
and that their actions would be closely scrutinized by the rest of the world. This attitude of
superiority sparked the beginnings of American exceptionalism. In his article “The Power and
the Glory: Myths of American exceptionalism,” Howard Zinn suggests that Americans entertain
the exceptionalistic view that only they have the right to bring liberty and democracy to the rest
of the world, and that this belief has endured in the centuries since Winthrop’s sermon (para. 1).
The assertion that the United States is a “city upon a hill” is one that has been echoed by
numerous politicians and leaders since the birth of the country. In “Remembering John Winthrop
– Hawthorne’s Suggestion,” Matthew Holland tells us that “Winthrop's name and rhetoric have
been explicitly appropriated by major political leaders from John Adams to Bill Clinton,
including almost every president and major presidential aspirant since John F. Kennedy” (4).
manifest destiny, or the belief that they had a religious duty to build a sustainable society to be
emulated throughout the world. An example of his spiritual vision is reflected when Winthrop
states “God of Israel is among us . . . He shall make us a praise and glory that men shall say of
succeeding plantations, ‘may the Lord make it like that of New England'” (109). Subsequent
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leaders in American history have used this sort of exceptionalism to justify war and expansion,
and some have even invoked God to legitimize their actions (Zinn para. 6). Winthrop, for his
part, saw the colonization in itself as the fulfillment of a covenant with God that had been made
exclusively with his chosen people the Puritans. We see this underlying thread in the sermon as
he describes all that they must do to satisfy the divine contract, and the grave consequences they
will be subjected to if they do not adequately fulfill their holy mission. Winthrop's tone shifts
from a flamboyant one when describing the success of the colony to one that is fear-inspiring
when discussing the wrath God will inflict upon them if they fail. All of these different
components of Winthrop's sermon serve to impress upon his audience an increased sense of
The notion of charity in Winthrop's sermon is suggested in its very title and may well be
the most crucial element of his speech. He was speaking of charity in terms of “agape,” which is
depicted in the New Testament as the highest form of love (Holland Chris.). Ivy Schweitzer tells
us in "John's Winthrop's ‘Model’ of American Affiliation" that this special type of love was
referred to as “Christian brotherhood or fellowship” by the early church fathers, and Winthrop
relies heavily on Paul's first letter to the Corinthians as it is documented in the Bible to
emphasize the “common source” for this kind of love (para. 4-5). There is much historical
evidence that Biblical charity is still quite an essential ideal in modern American politics, as it
has been for centuries, and as it certainly was for those earliest Puritan settlers (Holland Chris.).
Winthrop begins his lecture by claiming that it is the sovereign will of God that there should
always be persons who are rich and poor, powerful and submissive. He believes that God intends
this balance to test His people – if everyone were equally wealthy, there would be no poor people
to whom they could give. He impresses upon his fellow colonists that God has designed the
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world this way so that “the rich and mighty should not eat up the poor, nor the poor and despised
rise up against and shake off their yoke” (Winthrop 99). Charity, he asserts, is vital to the
relationships between givers and receivers alike and promotes the image of people helping
people.
In his article Story Time, Robert Reich equates Winthrop's sense of charity to the term
“benevolent community” (para. 4). This benevolent community, Reich says, is made up of
“neighbors and friends who roll up their sleeves and pitch in for the common good” (para. 4).
Reich further suggests that this idea of Benevolent Community is illustrated by the Social
Security Act, in which all Americans share the financial risk of unemployment and of “retiring
without adequate savings” (Reich para. 13). Throughout A Model of Christian Charity, Winthrop
discusses various ways in which a Christian may be charitable. He says that charity can be
readily shown by giving material things to those who need them, forgiving a debt that is owed,
and offering unconditional love to others. This general theme of friendship is non-
discriminatory; in other words, Winthrop believed that God intended them to show compassion
to all men equally. To stress this point, he quotes the scripture from Matthew 5:44: “Love your
enemies…Do good to them that hate you.” Winthrop's vision of the world as a chosen Christian
fulfilling a sacred mission of God as depicted in his sermon revolved around the intention of
showing charity to all as a model for the entire world to watch and follow. He was personally an
advocate of peace throughout his life, personifying his assertion in the pivotal “Model” speech
that “There are two rules whereby we are to walk one towards another: Justice and Mercy.”
The concept of communalism, defined as a type of cooperative society that puts the
interests of the total community above those of the individual, is further addressed in Winthrop's
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sermon A Model of Christian Charity. In spite of the fact that he believed it was God's intent for
there to always remain an imbalance of wealth among the people, he clearly felt that as
Christians, he and his people had a responsibility to do all that was in their power to remedy that
practice that has historically been implemented by U.S. Leaders in response to various types of
national crisis and can be readily seen in Franklin Delano Roosevelt's New Deal, Harry S.
Truman's Fair Deal, John F. Kennedy's New Frontier, and Lyndon Johnson's Great Society
(Reich para. 13-14). An example of communalism in today's America is evidenced by the current
implementation of President Barack Obama's Bailout Plan, introduced to help Americans and
American businesses overcome the recent economic crisis. These policies, all designed to assist
the American community as a whole, share several similarities with the mandates laid down by
Winthrop in his sermon. While the reasoning and basis for these ideals may differ, they are quite
alike in essentials. To emphasize this idea of communalism, Winthrop suggests in his sermon
that in times of crisis, the colonists should seek “more enlargement towards others and less
respect towards ourselves and our own right” and also that “We must be willing to abridge
ourselves of our superfluities, for the supply of others' necessities”. Similarly, he says “For it is a
true rule that particular estates cannot subsist in the ruin of the public” (Winthrop). His ultimate
vision was that of a vibrant community filled with citizens who worked together so that the entire
colony would succeed in becoming the ideal “city upon a hill” that he hoped the world would
strive to emulate. He knew that their colony had to flourish in order for others to follow their
example. In looking at the colony's actual progress, we see that Winthrop was a man who
practiced what he preached. Matthew Holland sums up this idea well in “Remembering John
Winthrop's stand was more than rhetorical. On his watch, considerable care was
rendered to the poor. For those unable to support themselves in that somewhat infertile,
hostile wilderness, a solid mix of public and private support was provided even when the
The guiding principles outlined in A Model of Christian Charity show that Winthrop
sought to form a united communalistic society reflective of Christian love. He believed that the
manifestation of such charity was essential “for the preservation and good of the whole.” “We
must bear one another's burdens,” he says. “We must not look only on our own things, but also
on the things of our brethren” (Winthrop). This common thread of communalism persists still
today and is an intrinsic component of freedom and prosperity; essentially, the American dream.
A Model of Christian Charity sets forth principles that have been successfully used in American
government and politics for centuries. The oppression of the Puritans and their courageous move
to build a new life in a strange unknown world serves as an ongoing inspiration to all American
people. Winthrop intended for his sermon to inspire the colonists to strive for a common goal of
ultimate Christian unity. The original inhabitants of the Massachusetts Bay Colony represented a
mixed collection of people who were commonly united by the mere fact that they opposed the
Church of England. Likewise, the United States is made up of citizens with all sorts of
contrasting backgrounds that share the common desire for a free and democratic nation. In his
speech, Winthrop uses the commonalities among the population to unite them in their quest,
making the point that although in England they “were absent from each other many miles, and
had our employments as far distant” they are all devoted to God and therefore united in Christian
love (Winthrop). When John Winthrop gave his maiden speech to those early Puritan colonists
so long ago, he probably never envisioned that he was laying the conceptual foundations for an
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entire country of free men and women that make up today's America. His ideas of
exceptionalism, charity, and communalism have persisted throughout the entire history of
America and are still practiced, to some degree, in modern society. Matthew Holland’s article
further asserts that regardless of what one may think of the “supporting religious framework and
demands of Winthrop's concept of love, the result is a quite compelling vision of community”
(Rem. 5). Winthrop's philosophies have traveled through the centuries and have prevailed again
and again in the United States of America. A Model of Christian Charity is truly a literary
cornerstone for this unified country of equality and freedom for all. As Peter Gomes states in his
abstract of “Best Sermon; A Pilgrim’s Progress”, this speech represents “perhaps the most
enduring metaphor of the American experience – that of the exemplary nation called to virtue
Works Cited
“Exceptionalism.” The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language. 4th ed. 2000.
<http://nclive.org>.
<http://www.nclive.org>
Peter J. Gomes. "Best Sermon; A Pilgrim's Progress." New York Times Magazine. 18
<http://www.nclive.org>.
.Reich, Robert B. "Story Time. (Cover story)." New Republic 232.11/12 (2005):
Winthrop, John. “A Model of Christian Charity” Anthology of American Literature. 9th ed. Ed.
.Zinn, Howard. "The Power and the Glory: Myths of American exceptionalism." Boston