''New England's First Fruits'' was a book published in London in 1643 about the early evangelization efforts by the Puritans in colonial

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

in defense of criticisms from England that little evangelism was being pursued in New England. It was the first publication to mention

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...

Content

The book describes various evangelization efforts and results, including the conversion experience of

Wequash Cooke Wequash Cooke (also known as: Wequash Cook or Weekwash or Weekwosh or Wequashcuk) (died 1642) was allegedly one of the earliest Native American converts to Protestant Christianity, and as a sagamore he played an important role in the 1637 Pequot ...

(d.1642) as allegedly the first Native American conversion to Protestant Christianity in New England. The book also describes the conversion of

Dorcas ye blackmore Dorcas ye blackmore (c. 1620 – after 1677) was one of the first named African Americans to settle in New England. In 1641, she became the first known African American admitted to the local Puritan congregation. Born in Africa c. 1620, Dorcas is ...

, an early African slave to

Israel Stoughton Israel Stoughton (c. 1603 – 1644) was an early English colonist in Massachusetts and a colonial commander in the Pequot War. Returning to England, he served as Parliamentarian officer in the First English Civil War. Life Born in England, a yo ...

, who joined the

First Parish Church of Dorchester First Parish Dorchester is a Unitarian Universalist church in Dorchester, Massachusetts. The congregation was founded by English Puritans who initially saw themselves as reformers rather than separatists, but increasingly intolerable conditions in ...

in 1641 and evangelized her fellow Native American servants and eventually attempted to gained her freedom with the help of the local church.

Response

Roger Williams' '' A Key Into the Language of America'' was written partially to contradict the book's claims about successful evangelization in New England, particularly the alleged conversion of Wequash.
''A key into the language of America''
by Roger Williams (Providence, 1936) "To the Reader" (introduction)

References

{{reflist

External links

1643 books 17th-century Christian texts History books about the United States Harvard University Evangelism