The Puritan Dilemma Responds to questions: According to Edmund Morgan, what was the "Puritan dilemma?" How did the Puritans and/or Winthrop address this dilemma?

The Puritan Dilemma by Edmund Morgan John Winthrop's "Puritan dilemma" arose out of his life long effort to accomplish two goals: to secure a community dedicated to upholding every aspect of God's will and to do this within the context of everyday life. His first challenge dealt with the depravity of the Church of England in the early seventeenth century and how to escape its wickedness without withdrawing from the world. Then, with the founding …

…represents the triumph of individual freedoms over the restrictions of authority. In the same way that Winthrop overcame the "separatist impulse" of a few zealous persons, the American Civil War illustrates the preeminence of the larger society over divisive strands within it. Thus, in the life of John Winthrop, Morgan presents not only the story of the Massachusetts Bay Puritans, but also the greater American struggle to balance individual liberties with the restrictions of authority.