How did Milton feel about religion during his time?

John
Milton is usually described as a Puritan, as indeed he was. But during the religious ferment of
the seventeenth century, there was significant variation in beliefs among Puritans. What we can
say is that he steadfastly opposed the established Church of England, a position that informed
his support for the overthrow of King Charles I. He shared with Puritans a belief that religious
institutions and beliefs must be founded upon Scripture, rather than the established traditions
of a formal church that lacked biblical justification. He was suspicious of a church that tended
to foster temporal hierarchies, writing that bishops and other officials occupied a
"misgoverned and haughty palace." Unlike many Calvinists, however, Milton was a
radical freethinker, and while he did not advocate total religious freedom (a concept virtually
unknown in Milton's day) he did believe that people could not be authentically compelled to
embrace religious faith. Rather, he regarded faith as the product of reason, which could only
take place if people were allowed to think--and write--freely about religion. This was one
reason he never really embraced the Calvinist doctrine of predestination, which ran counter to
his belief in free will, a theme often repeated in Paradise Lost. This was
also at the heart of his argument in Aeropagitica, his most famous
pamphlet, in which he argued against government restraints on publications. It should also be
added that Milton's religious beliefs changed throughout his life. So though his fundamental
beliefs were Calvinistic, he remained outside the mainstream of Puritan
orthodoxy.

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