Anne Hutchinson and the Antinomian Crisis
https://archives.nbclearn.com/portal/site/k-12/browse/?cuecard=1656
General Information
Source:
NBC News
Resource Type:
Creator:
N/A
Copyright:
Event Date:
Air/Publish Date:
1630 - 1643
09/27/2007
Copyright Date:
Clip Length
Video iCue MiniDocumentary [Explainer]
NBCUniversal Media,
LLC.
2007
00:02:55
Description
Anne Hutchinson, an extreme Separatist, threatens to split the Puritan community in Massachusetts by
preaching that some people are pre-ordained. She is eventually driven out of Massachusetts to Rhode
Island.
Keywords
Anne Hutchinson, Massachusetts Bay, Puritans, John Winthrop, Commonwealth, Separatists, Anglican
Church, Church of England, Separatism, England, Antinomianism, Heresy, Rhode Island, New York,
Massachusetts, Religious Freedom, Religion, Karen Ordahl Kupperman, New York University, NYU
Citation
© 2008-2012 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Page 1 of 3
MLA
"Anne Hutchinson and the Antinomian Crisis." NBC News. NBCUniversal Media. 27 Sep. 2007. NBC
Learn. Web. 5 September 2012
APA
2007, September 27. Anne Hutchinson and the Antinomian Crisis. [Television series episode]. NBC News.
Retrieved from https://archives.nbclearn.com/portal/site/k-12/browse/?cuecard=1656
CHICAGO MANUAL OF STYLE
"Anne Hutchinson and the Antinomian Crisis" NBC News, New York, NY: NBC Universal, 09/27/2007.
Accessed Wed Sep 5 2012 from NBC Learn: https://archives.nbclearn.com/portal/site/k12/browse/?cuecard=1656
Transcript
Anne Hutchinson and the Antinomian Crisis
NARRATOR: Although the Puritans separated from the Church of England to form the Massachusetts
Bay Colony, there was a group among them who felt the Puritans were losing their strict conviction, and
wanted further separation. One member of this group was a charismatic woman who almost destroyed the
unity of the Puritans by taking Separatism to an extreme. Her name was Anne Hutchinson and she was
married to a man whom Governor John Winthrop described as very mild tempered and wholly guided by
his wife. Together they had 15 children.
Professor KAREN ORDAHL KUPPERMAN (New York University): What she started doing first, was
having meetings in her house. On Sunday afternoon, people would get together and discuss the sermon.
Which is what Puritans did in England. And it was a good thing, you know.
NARRATOR: Hutchinson claimed that good works and a holy life were no sure sign of salvation,
implying that the saved had no need to obey local laws and religious codes. She believed that the Holy
Spirit was already in the hearts of true believers. Her stance, which was called “antinomianism” from the
Greek word meaning “against the law”, undermined the power of local officials. In addition, her behavior
challenged the idea that women should be deferential and retiring. Still, she continued to draw people to
her sermons.
KUPPERMAN: But then, pretty soon, it wasn't just women coming. It was men coming. And it was
huge crowds coming. And more and more, it seemed like they weren’t just discussing the sermon.
Hutchinson was actually presenting her viewpoint. And so they felt that she was she had stepped over a
line.
NARRATOR: As her influence grew, she charged that many of the Bay Colony’s ministers were not
among those chosen by God. Shocked, the ministers condemned her words as heresy and brought her to
trial in 1638.
KUPPERMAN: She was tried before a jury of ministers. And they kept pressing her on how she could
© 2008-2012 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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know that she was right and all of these learned ministers were wrong. And she seemed to indicate that
she had had direct revelation from God, which was something that was very problematic for these people.
NARRATOR: Her assertion that God had spoken directly to her proved too much for Puritan magistrates,
who convicted her of sedition and banished her from the colony. The pregnant Hutchinson led her large
family through Rhode Island on foot, and they eventually arrived in New York, where she was killed by
Indians. Residents of the Bay Colony interpreted this fate as part of God’s will. Though an outcast in her
day, Anne Hutchinson’s religious conviction and her challenge of authority has since made her a legend in
Massachusetts.
© 2008-2012 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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