Who is the Puritan? What is Puritanism?
/kloc-since the first half of the 6th century, the Reformation has swept the whole of Europe. Martin Luther of Germany and Calvin of France became the leaders of Protestant Christianity after the Reformation. In Britain at that time, the Reformation came late because of the tyranny of the Anglican Church, but the British were still influenced by Calvinism. 1524, Englishman william tyndale translated the New Testament into English. He can be said to be the first Puritan in England. The early Puritans hoped to live in full accordance with the principles of the Bible, and obeying the teaching of the Bible was their primary task. Rudin Doyle's goal is to give every literate person in Britain a Bible. Historically, Protestants in England, those who believed in Calvinism and were dissatisfied with the Anglican doctrine, were called Puritans. Because of the religious persecution in Britain, most Puritans fled to the United States, so when people talk about Puritans, they generally refer to the Puritans in the United States.
Puritans are not a faction, but an attitude, a tendency, a value, and a general term for believers. Puritans are the most devout and sacred Protestants. They believe that "everyone is a priest and everyone has a call". It is believed that every individual can communicate directly with God and oppose the tyranny, corruption, red tape and formalism of priests. They advocate that believers live a simple, practical and equal life before God.
In the Puritan era, the concept of occupation really appeared in human history. The word occupation at that time was a call. Calling is calling, calling. Calling means "calling, called by God", which means that God calls you from heaven and commands you to do something. There is no doubt that this meaning contains religious meaning: occupation is a bounden duty and a task arranged by God, which is the original definition of occupation.
In the Puritans' understanding, occupation is a task called, ordered, ordered and arranged by an invisible God, and completing this task is not only the duty and obligation of each individual's talent, but also an act of thanking God for his grace. For example, God once called Abraham to be a pious and rich king, and he finally fulfilled his call by faith and became a rich and productive king of all peoples. Now, God also calls the Puritans to explore the territory of North America, and regards starting a business in the United States as an unshirkable responsibility.
They also affirm real life, which is contrary to the idea of world-weariness. They think: "The world is our monastery" (in Calvin). Secular work is our way of practice, a task arranged by God and a sacred duty. Everyone who wants to practice in the WTO and do his own work and life well in the world is practicing, worshiping and doing his duty as a human being.
They also affirmed the profit-making activities, believing that man is the custodian of God's wealth, and as a custodian, he has the bounden duty to increase the value of wealth. As a Puritan leader named John Ralston wrote in his book, "If someone asks how to know God's will in him, my answer is simple: just look at the legacy God has given him."
Puritans are the spokesmen of entrepreneurship. They believe that people must be abstinent and thrifty when starting an industry. They restrict all indulgence, enjoyment and even consumption behavior, and spend all consumption input and expenditure on productive investment and expanded reproduction, which will inevitably lead to the accumulation of capital and the development of industry. It is not indulgence and greed that accumulate wealth, but temperance and abstinence that increase social wealth.
Puritans advocate commercial and industrial activities. They are honest and trustworthy in business, cherish their reputation and never cheat. Puritan entrepreneurs not only pursue the maximization of profits, but also have the consciousness of repaying society, undertaking social responsibilities and supporting social justice, making great contributions to social welfare undertakings and undertaking huge public undertakings.
The Puritans were full of confidence in everything. Whether engaged in commercial trade or agricultural production, they have the courage and confidence to overcome all difficulties and make extraordinary achievements. They are good at creation and innovation, and constantly explore and conquer. They have a lot of precious spirits worth learning.
/kloc-john wesley, a famous American Puritan missionary in the middle of the 8th century, famously summarized the Puritan spirit: "Earn money, save money and donate money". Earn money desperately, because earning money is a bounden duty; Save money desperately, because they refrain from abstinence and have been living a holy and rational life; Desperate to donate money, because they have to take care of spiritual beliefs, care about the community, the country and other human beings. They donate money and materials and gain eternity in love with the world. These three desperate spirits are undoubtedly the ideological essence of Puritanism.
In a word, the Puritans started their business with a sense of mission and sacredness, and regarded it as an unshirkable responsibility to open up territory, expand industries and increase wealth in the United States. They always live a holy and just life, and they regard all their activities as sacred. Therefore, they set up an industry and foundation for Americans and a model and motive force for the development of market economy for human society. Although not everyone is a Puritan, their spirit is the wealth of all mankind, which is worth learning, mastering and applying by people of any country and any era.
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It is an indisputable fact all over the world that the core and origin of American spirit, especially American enterprise spirit, is Puritanism spirit.
She is the most fundamental driving force for the establishment of American market economy, the start-up of enterprises and the prosperity and development of modern capitalist economy. She is the spiritual and belief pillar for American enterprises and entrepreneurs to develop their industries, expand their wealth and make great achievements in this uncultivated virgin land in North America. The United States took the lead in welcoming the wave of industrial revolution, computer and Internet information industry, which is also the most profound spiritual background.
In A.D. 1607, the first group of Puritans persecuted by the Anglican Church set off from a port in England on the Mayflower and arrived in Plymouth, USA, seeking religious freedom and settling there. They brought the latest teachings to America. These teachings became their spiritual strength to start a career and expand their territory. After 100 years of economic and political efforts, the Puritans adopted the draft declaration of independence at the continental congress on July 4, 776, and declared the independence of the United States. After less than 100 years of efforts, the total industrial output value of the United States jumped to the fourth place in the world in 1860 and to the first place in the world in 1894. Less than 100 years later, the United States launched a wave of computer industry and Internet high-tech information industry, and the new industrial revolution initiated by it led the rapid development of the global economy.
There must be great spiritual strength behind any great cause.
There is a reason for a country's prosperity and sustained growth, and there is also a reason for a country's decline and stagnation. Apart from other reasons, the Puritan spirit is undoubtedly the fundamental spiritual reason why the United States can lead the world industrial revolution from scratch many times.
Today, American culture is probably the most diverse, open and mixed culture in the world. Blacks, Indians, Asians, Catholics, Muslims and other cultures constitute important branches of their culture, but almost all sociologists and civilization researchers agree that as the foundation of the United States, as its cultural core and continuous driving force, it is the Puritanism spirit.
Puritan spirit is a great spiritual force for Americans to create prosperous industries.
China is undergoing a transition from a traditional society and a planned economy to a market economy. Enterprises and workers in China are developing market economy and industrial management. The current market economy situation is similar to that of the Puritans before and after the founding of the United States. It will take at least 50 years for China to truly establish a perfect market economy system. In other words, in the next 50 years, we must continue to start a business. What is most needed in the entrepreneurial stage is entrepreneurial spirit. "Stones from other mountains can attack jade", and the entrepreneurial spirit of American Puritans naturally became the spiritual food urgently needed by China enterprises and their employees.
At the China Enterprise Summit of the World Economic Forum, Accenture, the world's leading management and information technology consulting agency, released a three-year report on how to encourage entrepreneurship in 26 countries and regions, saying: What did China enterprises lack most in the 1980s? Their conclusion is: innovative consciousness. 2 1 Century What do China enterprises lack? Their answer is: starting a business. According to the report, quite a few enterprises and political leaders in China have been able to fully realize the importance of entrepreneurship and high cooperation. In China, 97% of senior managers believe that entrepreneurship is very important to their enterprises, and 88% believe that their enterprises will become more entrepreneurial in the next three years.
At present, the top managers of most enterprises in China believe that promoting the entrepreneurial spirit of employees plays a vital role in the sustainable development of enterprises and the future economic prosperity of the country. It is not enough for leaders to make correct and important decisions and give orders; Business leaders should know how to cultivate employees' entrepreneurial spirit, and at the same time pay attention to the survival and development of enterprises. If we want to do this, the key is to encourage entrepreneurial employees, not an entrepreneurial CEO.
Traditionally, the entrepreneurial spirit of many enterprises in China is closely related to the CEO and a group of technical backbones, while the entrepreneurial spirit of other employees is not outstanding. However, more emphasis must now be placed on letting all employees let go of their hands and feet and devote themselves to their work with entrepreneurial spirit.
Always keep the spirit of entrepreneurship, which is a spiritual principle that any enterprise that wants to grow and develop continuously must adhere to. With entrepreneurial spirit, we can be more diligent, confident and brave, and we can't be lazy, comfortable, extravagant and indulgent. Entrepreneurial spirit is necessary at the beginning of the enterprise's establishment, but it still needs to be maintained and carried forward when the enterprise develops to a certain extent. Entrepreneurship is not the exclusive feature of business owners and founders, and every employee in an enterprise should have entrepreneurship. Therefore, entrepreneurship is the spirit that every member of every enterprise should have at any time.
Entrepreneurship is not a boring admission that "only progress is the guarantee to win in an ever-changing world", but a kind of motivation that comes from the deep heart, is internal, can't be suppressed, and even comes from life. It was this motivation that made sam walton, the former president of Wal-Mart, discuss the sales data with a store manager who dropped in on him in the last few days of his life. It is this motive force that makes Ford Company "bet" on its future and boldly move towards the goal of "popularizing automobiles", thus making an indelible contribution to mankind's real entry into the automobile age, and the real source of their motive force is the Puritan spirit rooted in life belief.
In this sense, what we need is the entrepreneurial spirit of Puritans when they explored North America! We need to explore the market like Puritans, try our best to increase the value of wealth and sanctify these commercial activities; We need to "earn money, save money and donate money" like the Puritans. We need to be diligent and abstinent like Puritans, fulfill our vocation, be full of self-confidence and assume social responsibilities; We need entrepreneurs like Puritans and employees like Puritans. Only in this way can we create and possess great wealth, our enterprises and companies can open up markets, expand their inheritance, create brilliant achievements and fulfill their greatest social responsibilities, and our country can establish a perfect market economy and become one of the world's economic powers.
Entrepreneurs in Wenzhou, China also have this puritan-like spirit. They are not afraid of difficulties and regard entrepreneurship as their vocation; They also regard earning wealth as their bounden duty and do not give up easily. In order to get rich, they are very hardworking, dare to take risks and venture into the world. Even in the most difficult places, they can find vitality, take root and sprout, grow and develop, and they will never be satisfied without the idea of "small wealth means security". "Being a boss during the day and sleeping on the floor at night" is a vivid portrayal.
Most private entrepreneurs in Wenzhou get rich by hard work. Nan Cunhui, chairman of Zheng Tai Group, and Hu Chengzhong, chairman of Delixi Group, all started from repairing shoes and doing small businesses. In order to start a business, they crowded the train and ate instant noodles. But when they have accumulated a certain amount of wealth, even if they don't worry about food and clothing all their lives, there is no "small wealth means security", but they continue to struggle to make the enterprise a domestic brand and a world-famous brand.