Religion As A Source Of Comfort . In 1682, Mary Rowlandson

Religion as a Source of Comfort In 1682, Mary Rowlandson published her captivity narrative, the most famous in early American Literature. Mary Rowlandson s captivity greatly substantiated her religious beliefs in God. Her major strategy for survival during her eleven week captivity consisted of beliefs that God had a plan for everything, and would protect her through all obstacles. In times of doubt, she would turn to her Bible and rejoice that god was looking out for her. She believed that if she waited out her time, and allowed for God to do what He intended, she would eventually go back to living a normal life, and would not be held in captivity forever. With this strategy Mary Rowlandson is able to remain calm through many†¦show more content†¦Soon after being held in captivity, Mary Rowlandson’s attitude started changing from hopeless to hopeful; â€Å"Oh, I may see the wonderful power of God, that my Spirit did not utterly sink under my affliction: still the Lo rd upheld me with His gracious and merciful spirit, and we were both alive to see the light of the next morning† (Rowlandson 131). Here Rowlandson is talking about how she is able to keep her spirit up even though her daughter is extremely sick and she has no friends to comfort her. She claims she is able to do this because of the great power of God. It seems like her mind is being uplifted by the thought of God, and she is able to focus on the good things she still has in life. I believe without her religious beliefs keeping her mentally healthy throughout all of her hardships, she would have never been able to handle her captivity as well as she did. Even after her daughter died, she is still able to keep herself together; â€Å"I have thought since of the wonderful goodness of God to me in preserving me in the use of my reason and senses in that distressed time, that I did not use wicked and violent means to end my own miserable life† (Rowlandson 132). She recognizes looking back that she could have easily decided to take her own life after losing her daughter at such a young and helpless age. It is God who protected her and kept her from doing anything bad to herself at such a low pointShow MoreRelatedMary Rowlandson vs Anne Bradstreet Essay994 Words   |  4 PagesMary Rowlandson and Anne Bradstreet are two women with different stories and one similar faith. Their similar faith in God and passion for writing allowed the two women to survive the contrast of hardships each woman had to endure. Furthermore, in this essay, I will compare and contrast the lives and faith of Rowlandson and Bradstreet. In the story â€Å"Narrative of the Captivity and Restoration of Mrs. Mary Rowlandson† written by Mary Rowlandson herself, we read that she is taken captive by a groupRead MoreEssay about A Mercy Notes4980 Words   |  20 Pagesservant; Rebekkah is indifferent, as the girl seems half-witted; but Lina believes Sorrow to be bad luck.       1682   After borrowing money and investing it in slave-trading, D’Ortega’s ship goes down with all his cargo. He summons Jacob to his estate in Maryland, to try to square the debt without actually paying Jacob.   Jacob visits D’Ortega, acquires Florens. He believes Florens will comfort Rebekkah, whose babies have died. During the trip, he hears about investing in sugarcane (rum) in Barbados;