Wonders, Portents, and Providences in Early New England
March 13 @ 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm
Ships in the sky, “monsters” born to unruly women, babies prophesying from their cradles, flying devils: Welcome to the mental world of 17th century New England. Renowned Harvard historian David Hall explores the way that early New Englanders understood their world. Today we would call this magical thinking; then, it explained the world and its otherwise inexplicable events, large and small, as God’s providences. Don’t miss this presentation!
Free. Registration required.
David D. Hall is a professor of New England church history, emeritus, Harvard Divinity School. He has written extensively on popular religion, political practices, and witch-hunting in early New England. He wrote Worlds of Wonder, Days of Judgment (1989), exploring religious belief in early New England; The Puritans: A Transatlantic History (2019); among others.