This Day in Religious History: On October 18, 1595, religious separatist and future governor of Plymouth Colony, Edward Winslow was born in Droitwich, England. Winslow first rose to prominence when he and his partner William Brewster began publishing religious pamphlets critical of King James I and of the Church of England. In the pamphlets, they expressed their disgust at the corrupt clergy and ways of the Church of England and also stated their desire for a purification of the church. These ideas would form the basis of what would become the Puritan religion. As can be imagined, his publishing of the pamphlets did not sit well with the King and the monarch soon ordered Winslow’s arrest. After spending time in hiding, doing whatever possible to avoid the King’s men, Winslow, along with a group of dedicated fellow separatists, decided England was no longer the place for them. They decided to escape persecution and arrest by sailing to the New World, where they could more freely practice their beliefs. Leaving England on September 6, 1620, Winslow and 102 fellow passengers would sail to the New World aboard the ship Mayflower making landfall near present day Massachusetts’s Cape Cod. Their colony, which would become known as Plymouth Colony, would eventually grow to occupy the entire southeast portion of Massachusetts. Edward Winslow would serve as governor of the colony in 1634, before returning to England to support Oliver Cromwell and the new Puritan government.
Posted on: Sat, 18 Oct 2014 15:27:15 +0000
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