How did Puritans express plainness in daily life and worship?

• A. By adopting ornate dress and decorated churches.
• B. By embracing everyday luxury and revivalist ceremonies.
• C. By emphasizing charity and public rituals.
• D. By wearing plain dress, building plain structures, and avoiding adornment.

Answer: (D)

Plainness was at the heart of Puritan practice. They believed that outward display and ceremony could distract people from a sincere relationship with God, so everyday life and worship were marked by simple, unadorned choices. In daily life, this meant plain dress and modest, unpretentious living. In worship, they favored bare meetinghouses, minimal ornament, and a focus on Scripture, sermons, and straightforward prayers rather than elaborate rituals or decoration. This combination—plain dress, plain structures, and avoiding adornment—best captures how Puritans expressed plainness.

The other options describe approaches anti to this mindset: ornate dress and decorated churches contradict the plainness Puritans sought; luxury and revivalist ceremonies align more with other religious movements; and charity and public rituals, while important, don’t define the emphasis on plainness in daily life and worship.