Were Quakers Puritans?

With all the talk of “witch hunts” lately, we’ve noticed that sometimes people confuse Quakers with the Puritans. Clearly they haven’t heard the story of Mary Dyer.

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Jon Watts

Jon Watts launched and directed the QuakerSpeak project for its first 6 seasons. Keep up to date with Jon’s work at his website.

4 thoughts on “Were Quakers Puritans?

  1. This is the best Quaker Speaks so far, but the loud tone between segments makes my head hurt.

  2. Thank you, this discussion of Puritans and Quakers is very lucid. As a Quaker I’m grateful for the key theological differences between the Society of Friends and the Puritan movement, such as the universality of Christ’s salvific work. However, as I’ve studied the history of Puritanism more (which reaches back to the Elizabethan era), I’ve been saddened to recognize that Quakers share with Puritans a tendency towards and a history of sectarianism, that boils down to an ambiguous and/or contradictory stance on authority. In the early days I think Quakers persisted not just by bearing persecution but by developing a stronger ecclesiology that Puritans, an ecclesiology that worked towards unity. However, while Quakers maintained unity longer than the Puritan movement, the large schisms still eventually came, and this in a way is a Puritan legacy.

  3. This history is interesting and helpful context. Encourage QuakerSpeak to keep dropping in these pieces periodically.

  4. Max Carter’s description of Quaker beliefs is just what we need to explain ourselves to newcomers. He’s forthright and clear. This is the Quaker Speak I will recommend to first time visitors at our meeting. Thank you, Max!

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