Mather, Increase (1639-1723), was the most influential pastor and theologian among the second generation of Puritan ministers in colonial New England. The Puritans were Protestant reformers who advocated simpler forms of worship and stricter morals. Richard Mather, his father, and his son Cotton Mather were also Puritan leaders.
Mather wrote many books and pamphlets on a wide variety of topics. He believed there was a general spiritual and moral decline in New England. He repeatedly denounced this trend in sermons. He interpreted a witchcraft scare in Salem in 1692 as God’s judgment on a disobedient New England. Among Mather’s most celebrated causes was opposing the more lenient standards of Congregational minister Solomon Stoddard on church membership and Holy Communion.
Mather was born in Dorchester, Massachusetts. In 1664, he accepted the position of teacher at the Second Church, or Old North Church, in Boston. He remained there until his death, even while serving as president of Harvard College from 1685 to 1701. His successful diplomatic efforts in England from 1688 to 1692 secured a new charter for Massachusetts. Mather’s religious conservatism led to his resignation from the Harvard presidency and gained him a reputation as a staunch defender of traditional Puritan ways.
