Caleb's Crossing

These chapters directly address the ways Wampanoag beliefs and Christianity differ and clash, and the effects of this clash on Native and settler communities. Bethia wrestles with the tenets of Puritan doctrine. At the same time, we begin to see schisms and sectarian divisions within each religious group—neither the Puritans nor the tribe is a faith monolith.

The Puritans, already a splinter sect of Christianity, are further subdivided in their increasingly narrow understanding of their strict interpretation of scripture. Having fled England to escape persecution for their fundamentalist approach, the Puritans now crack down on dissenters and repress alternative opinions. Bethia’s grandfather and a group of his followers were exiled from the main body of believers because of his slightly unorthodox views. Similarly, the Merrys hold unusual views, which are considered too liberal by mainstream Puritans.

The Wampanoag tribe is also divided into more and less conservative factions. The pawaaws, whose influence over their people is threatened by the proximity and encroachment of the settlers, urge fellow tribesmen to avoid close contact with Coatmen. However, we see other Native people willing to ask the settlers to share knowledge—for instance, coming for aid for Nahnoso’s illness.

What’s interesting is that these internal divisions allow for bridges to be built between the two communities. Outliers like Bethia and the Merrys, who wrestle with the tenets of Puritan doctrine, and their Native counterparts, like Caleb and the Native people who come to see the Merrys, are open to learning from and building relationships with each other. For Bethia, her experiences with Caleb reinforce her original doubts that her father’s strict doctrine, which privileges white males and devalues everyone else, are accurate. She doubts that it is God’s plan to exclude her and Caleb from heaven and from fulfillment in life.