Puritan Sources of Enlightenment Liberty

Key Points

• The chapter aims to explore the historical roots of Enlightenment ideas on liberty and rights in Puritan thought.
• Analyzes Puritan covenantal narratives and their impact on civil and religious liberties.
• Examines the connections between Enlightenment teachings and religious theories from various traditions.
• Argues the dependence of modern notions of liberty on historical theological contexts.
• Highlights that Enlightenment concepts of law and liberty were often derived from earlier religious frameworks.
• Demonstrates that Puritan and other religious theories provided important foundations for modern human rights discourse.
• Suggests that contemporary views on civil liberties remain interconnected with theological principles.

Abstract