This dissertation argues that the Old Testament flourished in both Puritan political theory and political practice. Part I, consisting of the first three chapters, traces the intellectual history of Mosaic law through a chronological and regional structure. Chapter 1 begins in the Elizabethan era, when Puritans used the Old Testament to challenge the status quo of church and state. Chapter 2 continues the narrative through early Stuart and Interregnum England, positing that Plymouth Colony drew deeply on Hebraic sources for a variety of political issues. Chapter 3 turns to Massachusetts, focusing on the evolution of political Hebraism in the colony through the career of clergyman John Cotton, whose school of thought had a broad influence throughout the Atlantic world.
Part II, the final three chapters, proceeds thematically by considering case studies of Hebraic political practice in Puritan New England. Chapter 4 considers the enforcement of Sabbath laws, tracing the development of Sabbatarian doctrine from Elizabethan England through its transmission to New England, where colonists uniquely emphasized its judicially binding nature. Chapter 5 examines Puritan prosecution of adultery laws, showing how attempts to resurrect the Mosaic death penalty for adultery radically departed from medieval Catholic and early modern English precedent. Finally, Chapter 6 addresses foreign policy on the North American continent, demonstrating that New England Puritans invoked Israelite models of military law and diplomacy in navigating relations with neighboring natives and French Canadians. Puritan political Hebraism confronted a variety of challenges, including theological difficulties, interpretive ambiguities, and practical issues. Studying both the theory and practice of this endeavor sheds new light on the nature of early New England.
","abstract_html":"<p>This dissertation argues that the Old Testament flourished in both Puritan political theory and political practice. Part I, consisting of the first three chapters, traces the intellectual history of Mosaic law through a chronological and regional structure. Chapter 1 begins in the Elizabethan era, when Puritans used the Old Testament to challenge the status quo of church and state. Chapter 2 continues the narrative through early Stuart and Interregnum England, positing that Plymouth Colony drew deeply on Hebraic sources for a variety of political issues. Chapter 3 turns to Massachusetts, focusing on the evolution of political Hebraism in the colony through the career of clergyman John Cotton, whose school of thought had a broad influence throughout the Atlantic world.</p> <p>Part II, the final three chapters, proceeds thematically by considering case studies of Hebraic political practice in Puritan New England. Chapter 4 considers the enforcement of Sabbath laws, tracing the development of Sabbatarian doctrine from Elizabethan England through its transmission to New England, where colonists uniquely emphasized its judicially binding nature. Chapter 5 examines Puritan prosecution of adultery laws, showing how attempts to resurrect the Mosaic death penalty for adultery radically departed from medieval Catholic and early modern English precedent. Finally, Chapter 6 addresses foreign policy on the North American continent, demonstrating that New England Puritans invoked Israelite models of military law and diplomacy in navigating relations with neighboring natives and French Canadians. Puritan political Hebraism confronted a variety of challenges, including theological difficulties, interpretive ambiguities, and practical issues. Studying both the theory and practice of this endeavor sheds new light on the nature of early New England.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Ben-Porat, Israel"],"institution":"The Graduate School and University Center of The City University of New York","degree_name":"Doctor of Philosophy","degree_level":"Doctoral","degree_discipline":"History","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":["David Waldstreicher"],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":["John Dixon","Sarah Covington","Jonathan Sassi"],"year":2024,"date_issued":"2024-09-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2024-09-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:59:05Z","subjects":["Christianity","European History","History of Religion","Intellectual History","Jewish Studies","Legal History","Political History","United States History","political Hebraism","biblical reception","Plymouth Colony","Massachusetts Bay","Puritanism","Scripture"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/5987","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor.advisor","label":"Advisor","values":["David Waldstreicher"]},{"key":"dc:contributor.committeemember","label":"Committee Member","values":["John Dixon","Sarah Covington","Jonathan Sassi"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Ben-Porat, Israel"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2026-09-30T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["History"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Doctoral"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Doctor of Philosophy"]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["The Graduate School and University Center of The City University of New York"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Christianity","European History","History of Religion","Intellectual History","Jewish Studies","Legal History","Political History","United States History","political Hebraism","biblical reception","Plymouth Colony","Massachusetts Bay","Puritanism","Scripture"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/5987"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["This dissertation argues that the Old Testament flourished in both Puritan political theory and political practice. Part I, consisting of the first three chapters, traces the intellectual history of Mosaic law through a chronological and regional structure. Chapter 1 begins in the Elizabethan era, when Puritans used the Old Testament to challenge the status quo of church and state. Chapter 2 continues the narrative through early Stuart and Interregnum England, positing that Plymouth Colony drew deeply on Hebraic sources for a variety of political issues. Chapter 3 turns to Massachusetts, focusing on the evolution of political Hebraism in the colony through the career of clergyman John Cotton, whose school of thought had a broad influence throughout the Atlantic world.
Part II, the final three chapters, proceeds thematically by considering case studies of Hebraic political practice in Puritan New England. Chapter 4 considers the enforcement of Sabbath laws, tracing the development of Sabbatarian doctrine from Elizabethan England through its transmission to New England, where colonists uniquely emphasized its judicially binding nature. Chapter 5 examines Puritan prosecution of adultery laws, showing how attempts to resurrect the Mosaic death penalty for adultery radically departed from medieval Catholic and early modern English precedent. Finally, Chapter 6 addresses foreign policy on the North American continent, demonstrating that New England Puritans invoked Israelite models of military law and diplomacy in navigating relations with neighboring natives and French Canadians. Puritan political Hebraism confronted a variety of challenges, including theological difficulties, interpretive ambiguities, and practical issues. Studying both the theory and practice of this endeavor sheds new light on the nature of early New England.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Hebraic Puritans: Old Testament Politics in Early New England"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor.advisor":["David Waldstreicher"],"dc:contributor.committeemember":["John Dixon","Sarah Covington","Jonathan Sassi"],"dc:creator":["Ben-Porat, Israel"],"dc:date.available":["2026-09-30T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["This dissertation argues that the Old Testament flourished in both Puritan political theory and political practice. Part I, consisting of the first three chapters, traces the intellectual history of Mosaic law through a chronological and regional structure. Chapter 1 begins in the Elizabethan era, when Puritans used the Old Testament to challenge the status quo of church and state. Chapter 2 continues the narrative through early Stuart and Interregnum England, positing that Plymouth Colony drew deeply on Hebraic sources for a variety of political issues. Chapter 3 turns to Massachusetts, focusing on the evolution of political Hebraism in the colony through the career of clergyman John Cotton, whose school of thought had a broad influence throughout the Atlantic world.
Part II, the final three chapters, proceeds thematically by considering case studies of Hebraic political practice in Puritan New England. Chapter 4 considers the enforcement of Sabbath laws, tracing the development of Sabbatarian doctrine from Elizabethan England through its transmission to New England, where colonists uniquely emphasized its judicially binding nature. Chapter 5 examines Puritan prosecution of adultery laws, showing how attempts to resurrect the Mosaic death penalty for adultery radically departed from medieval Catholic and early modern English precedent. Finally, Chapter 6 addresses foreign policy on the North American continent, demonstrating that New England Puritans invoked Israelite models of military law and diplomacy in navigating relations with neighboring natives and French Canadians. Puritan political Hebraism confronted a variety of challenges, including theological difficulties, interpretive ambiguities, and practical issues. Studying both the theory and practice of this endeavor sheds new light on the nature of early New England.
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