Trial of Anne HutchinsonAccording to the Puritans, Anne Hutchinson was a threat to their government. The Puritans believed that if a person knew of a crime committed and did not report it to the government, they were just as guilty as the person who committed the crime. Today we see this because they thought they needed to be this “perfect” community, they wanted to be called a “city on a hill.” If people like Anne Hutchinson were not publicly punished and thought it was okay to associate with people who preach against the government's ideology, their society would fail. The deputy governor indicated that “[she] has so dissuaded many people by resorting to her meeting that she now plays an important role in the country” (39). The government fears that other members of civilization will follow in Hutchinson's footsteps and oppose the government's leaders. They fear that if this event happened, the foundations of their community would crumble, guilty by association. On page thirty-six, Hutchinson asked the governor what law she had broken. He explains that since she supported her brother-in-law's sermons, she was just as guilty as he was. “If he knows it is guilty and hides it, he is guilty of the same thing”(36). According to the Puritans, say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay The government accused her of being a threat to the community pact. According to Puritan belief, the communal covenant was a “contract that God made” (31) to ensure that “the entire community must follow the laws of God as interpreted by Puritan leaders” (31). Since Governor Winthrop accused her of breaking the fifth commandment, which is “honor thy father,” the community was now in danger of being punished by God. If Hutchinson had not been penalized for this wrongdoing, the governor could have put the entire community at risk. Winthrop believed that Hutchinson did not honor members of the Puritan community. “Honor thy father” means that Puritans are supposed to respect the noble people in their community. The Puritans wanted all members of their community to model themselves after the nobles. Hutchinson did not respect the laws of the community and if every person did not follow the laws of the Puritans exactly, their entire civil society would be turned upside down. The Puritan government also saw her as a threat to the functioning of their society. Anne Hutchinson held meetings in her home where she taught different sermons that were not approved by the church or government. Winthrop asserts that her actions were “neither tolerable, nor pleasing in the sight of God, nor fit for her sex” (35). The government did not appreciate that Hutchinson had unbalanced gender roles in society. By doing what a man would normally do, Hutchinson was not following the laws of the Puritans. The Puritans believed that men and women could not share work. They each had a job that the other couldn't do. In this case, Hutchinson could not teach the words of the Bible because it was a man's job. Winthrop also said she would not have been able to instruct the men. He then asks her if “a man should come and say, ‘Mrs. Hutchinson, I have heard that you are a God-given woman and that you have knowledge of the word of God. Please teach me a little. Shouldn’t you teach this man” (36)? Hutchinson replies that she could instruct this man if this event.