Religious Influences on the Early colonies

1. Religious Influences on the Early colonies

2. When you start to think about the early colonies, what comes to mind? • The Pilgrims? • The Puritans? • The Quakers? • What about the idea of religious persecution and these people having to flee their country for America? • But what does this really mean? What do we really know about these groups of people and what is their story? • After all, these religious groups did leave a lasting footprint on our society which strongly influenced our culture and traditions.

3. What is religion and why is it so intriguing or important? People are always so curious. They want answers. Religion is the quest for answers. People turn to religion in order to believe in something that cannot be expressed in a traditional manner. Religion is a touchy subject and people have used this as a moral guideline for years. Religion is an expressed belief. Religion is a way of life and people choose to believe. In essence, Religion is something people believe in which makes them feel safe.

4. Church History – Europe in the 1500-1600’s In the second decade of the sixteenth century, a German cleric, Martin Luther, created a rival theology based on the belief that salvation was achieved by faith alone. As Luther's theology spread, it was transformed into a Protestant movement with social and political dimensions. In England, Henry VIII used the Protestant movement as an excuse to break with the papacy in Rome and to create an English national church, known as the Church of England or the Anglican Church. The Catholic Church responded to the Protestant movement with both reforms and aggressive countermeasures.

5. What are some of the different religious beliefs in Europe in 1500-1600’s

6. SplinterGroups Religious diversity had become a dominant part of colonial life.  The colonies were a patchwork of religiously diverse communities and, as a result, the population of America increased quickly. People from all over the world wanted the freedom that was found in America and they began to move their homelands to America.  Groups such as the Scotch-Irish were among the first to begin that emigration to America.  As a result, religious persecution was beginning to diminish and religious freedom began to replace it. Puritans - a group of people who grew discontent in the Church of England and worked towards religious, moral and societal reforms. The followed the writings and ideas of John Calvin. They contended that The Church of England had become a product of political struggles and man-made doctrines. The Puritans were one branch of dissenters who decided that the Church of England was beyond reform. Escaping persecution from church leadership and the King, they came to America. Quakers - The first Quakers, lived in mid-17th century England. The movement arose from the dissenting Protestant groups, breaking away from the established Church of England. These Quakers attempted to convert others to their understanding of Christianity Anglicans - Anglican churches spread along the length of the Atlantic seaboard, the largest concentration being in the coastal South. In these colonies, Anglicanism also enjoyed the advantage of being the established, state-supported church, as it had been in England since the sixteenth century.

7. What problems did they face and how do these religious groups evolve in the Americas? Dissenters (these groups fled from England under heavy persecution) Great Migration (1630-1640 about 20k people came over from Europe) Puritan Values - The New England WayHard WorkEducationRepresentative Government (Democratic Rights) Soon conflict between the competing religious groups – People got in the wayThe Anglicans were already established in most of the colonies and were even part of the group of people that were "persecuted" by the Puritans.  However, after the Puritans began to spread out, the number of other religions in the colonies began to increase.  Baptists appeared in a majority of the colonies, Roman Catholics and Protestants organized in Maryland and even some German religions surfaced in a few of the colonies.  Later came the Lutherans, who formed in the German communities in Pennsylvania, and the Presbyterians, who even had an appearance in the Massachusetts Proposals of 1705.  Fundamental Orders of Connecticut (expanded voting rights non church members Tolerance -In Salem MA, Roger Williams promoted the values of:Not taking Native American landsNom one forced to attend churchPuritan Beliefs not forced on any one elseChurch and State separate

8. What is the Church v. State issue? Eventually, the issue of church and state became a topic of debate.  According to Clifton Olmstead, author of History of Religion in United States, the separation of church and state was completed by the Constitution in 1777.