Mary Rowlandson was taken captive during an attack on the Lancaster settlement during King Philip's War in 1676. Her captivity narrative, written many years later, relays the struggles and hardships she had to endure whilst in the hands of the Amerindians. However, her narrative does more than just document her imprisonment; it also stands as a testament of her faith.
The first few Removes describe the way she was captured, and her initial reaction to her situation. It was during this time that Mary's faith was tested the most, and often she admits her fear that she has not been chosen to be saved, a reflection of the steadfast belief of the Puritans in Predestination. It was not until Mary was offered a Bible by one of the kinder Amerindians (the Third Remove) that her faith really seemed to strengthen and be her crutch through the unbearably cold and starving nights.
In both the Twelfth and Thirteenth Removes, Mary recounts some of the kindness she was shown by the Amerindians, as well as her feelings towards them as a people, and her unshakable faith in God. It was in the beginning of the Twelfth Remove that Mary caught her first glimpse of hope. For when she asked him "whether he would sell me to my husband," he answered in the affirmative. Unfortunately, her spirit was quickly tested by her master's squaw, who took her bible from her and through it out on the ground in a fit of jealous rage, and again when the same mistress slapper her across the face for complaining. Mary, who was weakened by hunger and could have easily given up "lifted up [her] heart to God, hoping the redemption was not far off; and rather because their insolency grew worse and worse." In this statement Mary's thoughts and feelings toward her captors and her captivity are clear: they are heathens, but she believes that God will deliver her from their evil. It is later in the same Remove (12), that Mary catches a glimpse of her salvation. After being kicked out of her master's wigwam and left to fend for herself, Mary was shown kindness by an old Amerindian who "bade [her] to come to him, and his squaw gave [her] some ground nuts; she gave [her] also something to lay under [her] head, and a good fire [they] had." The ever faithful Mary recognized her fortune as God's intervention and mercy, "through the good providence of God, I had a comfortable lodging that night." By this point in her narrative, it seems pretty clear that Mary believes that God has chosen her to be saved.
This observation is made even more evident in the very next Remove, the Thirteenth, which is laced with passages from the bible that helped keep her going during her darkest and roughest times. Despite the sporadic kindness she was shown by some members of the tribe, she was still treated poorly, and Mary still thought the worst of these non-Christian devils, claiming that "Now had [she] need to pray Paul's Prayer 'That we may be delivered from unreasonable and wicked men.'" Her lack of empathy for them is written clearly in her thoughts on the death of her mistress' baby, "I confess I could not much condole with them" and when reflecting on her actions "my conscience did not accuse me of unrighteousness..." She often refers to the Amerindians and "heathens" and "madmen." Though grateful for the small acts of kindness shown to her, Mary believed that they were mainly because of God's plan, and that the Amerindians were still devils. During these moments, Mary gives credit solely to God, "And then the Lord remembered me, whose mercies are great," and she remembers "that comfortable" passage from the bible, "For a small moment I have forsaken thee, but with great mercies will I gather thee." It is during this and the last Removes that Mary speaks of God's mercy for her, lending credence to the belief that Mary does believe that she has been saved.
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