Red Puritans: The "Praying Indians" of Massachusetts Bay and John Eliot

the first of the Mohegans

“…The work of Jennings (1971 b) and Salisbury (1974) questions this interpretation. Jennings points out that Puritan missionaries, especailly John Eliot, set certain political goals for their missionary activities in additlon to saving souls.…”

“…Jennings (1971b) merely speaks in general terms of the reorganization of traditional political institutions by the missionaries, which resulted in formal submissions to the colonial governments. Salisbury (1974) sees Indian conversion to Christianity as a method of coping with the new conditions of colonization; he does not pursue the implications of his own data that the European invasion of New England accentuated a trend toward greater Indian political centralization (already in progress when the Europeans arrived). Likewise, Sainsbury (1 971) interprets Indian political behavior as being conditioned by White actions.…”

Views of Older Native American Adults in Colonial New England

“…Although missionaries often focused upon judging individual Indians in terms of their devotion to Christianity, when read carefully, the sources they left behind hold important information regarding Native American communities (Cogley 1999;Jennings 1975;Mandell 1996;Morrison 1995;O'Brien 1997;Ronda 1981;Salisbury 1971Salisbury , 1992Salisbury , 2003Silverman 2005;Winiarski 2004). Court records hold information regarding English policies and Indian resistance (Bragdon 1981;Kawashima 1986;Plane 2000;Ronda 1974;Silverman 2005;Winiarski 2004).…”

“…These texts show how the English actually treated Indians, indicating that the English not only held certain ideologies regarding older Native American persons but that they sometimes implemented those ideas in practical ways. Although documents produced by clerics and court officials may seem limited in their generalizability to the larger English community, historians recognize that they are among the only and most useful sources of information regarding English attitudes and behavior towards Native Americans (Cogley 1999;Jennings 1975;Mandell 1996;Morrison 1995;O'Brien 1997;Ronda 1981;Salisbury 1971Salisbury , 1992Salisbury , 2003Silverman 2005;Winiarski 2004). They also hold clues regarding how Native Americans dealt with English rules and laws, whether through resistance, compliance, or selective accommodation (Bragdon 1981;Kawashima 1986;Plane 2000;Ronda 1974;Silverman 2005;Winiarski 2004).…”

“…More often, however, English authors used generic terms such as "Indian" or "our Praying Indians" in their documents. This article will follow the conventions of other recognized scholars in the field and will use tribal designations when possible but, out of necessity, will more often use accepted terms such as "Indian" or "Native American" when referring to indigenous persons (Cogley 1999;Kawashima 1986;Mandell 1996;Morrison 1995;O'Brien 1997;Plane 2000;Ronda 1981;Salisbury 1971;Silverman 2005;Winiarski 2004). …”