My paper about Puritanism, its economic values, and the extent to which they were practiced in colonial New England. Published in The Concord Review, 2025 Fall Issue.

Abstract: Puritan economic theology dignified industrious labor as a divinely-ordained vocation. It sanctioned the acquisition of wealth, but conditioned that it should be motivated by love of community rather than self. Money was a resource to be used frugally and stewarded charitably. Puritanism imbued everyday economic activity with providential significance. Notably, there were conflicting, almost paradoxical forces within Puritan economic theology specifically pertaining to self-interest, charity, and human agency. This paper also covers the changing praxis and evolution of economic values in New England across the 17th and 18th centuries. Analyzing Puritan economic ethics remains relevant for discussion on the economics-theology relationship in American public life and at large.