Journal: Eikon
Volume: EIKON 03:1 (Spring 2021)
Article: Puritan Women As Gospel Partners
Author: Nathan Tarr

Eikon 3.1 (Spring 2021) p. 116

Puritan Women As Gospel Partners

Nathan Tarr

Nathan Tarr serves as an adjunct professor at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and as a chaplain in the Air National Guard.

Eikon 3.1 (Spring 2021) p. 117

The Puritans offer a rich vein of example and encouragement we can mine in our own discipleship. They are easy to admire for their doctrinal vibrancy. They are worthy of emulation in their heartfelt piety. And they arrest our temptation toward easy-believism with the testimony of their own suffering. These are a few of the ways our forebears in the faith edify and equip us for a life of biblical faithfulness.

There are additional, if less familiar, aspects of their way of life that we can consider with equal benefit as we seek to imitate their faith (Heb. 13:7). The high esteem in which they held the gifts and graces of the women in their midst is a case in point. Puritan minister John Cotton (1584–1652), preaching on the opening verses of John 12 where Mary of Bethany anointed Jesus’ feet to the consternation of his disciples, marked this observation: “Godly women, being attentive to the ministry of the Word, may sometimes understand and be more apprehensive of the mysteries of salvation than the best ministers of the gospel.” It is difficult to think of a figure upon whom the Puritan community lavished more honor than a faithful minister. And yet, with no indication that he was saying anything extraordinary, Cotton reminded his congregation that, as believing women applied themselves to his word, God may grant surpassing spiritual sensitivity.

The aim of this article is to commend the regard Puritans regularly exercised toward women, not only as co-heirs with Christ, but also as vital gospel partners in the work of becoming more like him. We can be instructed by their example. Because Cotton spent decades of fruitful ministry in both England and the American colonies, we can take him as representative as we explore the collection of his letters to discern four ways he postured himself toward the women in his life.

Holy Helpfulness

In reading Cotton’s letters, it becomes apparent that he made a point of remembering the wives of his male correspondents. Going beyond an appended greeting or brief thanksgiving, Cotton acknowledged the way these women, too — often wives of his ministerial colleagues — were engaged with the situation discussed in the body of the letter. And since the majority of these letters were written to solicit Cotton’s counsel, we can see his recognition of their wives as a gentle reminder for the hus...