Religion In Colonial America Essay

Even though many had originally come to the New World to practice their own religion freely, not all of them were able to allow others to do the same. The Puritans thought that to ignore God's work was completely unthinkable and when “free-thinkers” such as Anne Hutchinson and Roger Williams chose to speak their minds, conflict was inevitable (“Dissent in Massachusetts Bay”). The economic landscape of the colonies was small and isolated. Tension was inevitable because the colonists did not have much, if any, gold and silver.

In New England, religion played a huge part in there colonies, settlers in Massachusetts

The main reason that the Salem witch trials were relatively well-known was largely due to the horror of what could happen in a society; the hanging of many innocent people. The broader picture of the Salem Witch Trials tells us more than the actual event, the Salem Witch trials contextualize two main ideas; the changing role of women and the Great Awakening. The role of women was very rapidly changing in the colonies, and the Witch Trials were society’s best efforts to stop the women. The women was supposed to be caretaker of the home and the children, when women challenged this idea by owning property and not marrying, they became easy targets for others. Especially due to the movement of Indians,the actions of some eccentric women, and a general fear of outsiders, this lead to the witchcraft accusations.

One of the founding beliefs shared by the early Puritans in the Massachusetts Bay Colony was that they should be role model to all like “a city on a hill” (Evans 21). This belief was shared heavily among the Puritans that came to New England and it can be seen through their beliefs and attitudes. Puritanism was one of the first European religions in America and it has withstood many difficulties in its own way. New England Puritanism had strengths such as a strong work ethic and commitment to self-sufficiency, but was also characterized by strict religious beliefs and intolerance of other religions, which led to the persecution of groups like the Quakers. The banishment of Anne Hutchinson, a prominent Puritan who challenged orthodox beliefs,

What I noticed most about the founding of the American Colonies was the way religion played a vital role both in their establishment and in the early stages of their development. Although MindTap for U.S. History 1st Edition, 1.2 and 2.5 both explain that the primary reason European countries began to explore and colonize was their desire to expand trade and grow their economies, we can still see religion playing an important if occasionally subtle role. In the document, Instructions for the Virginia colony written in 1606, the author states that essential to the colonies success is their ability to be one with each other and with God. As we move further through history we come to the, History of Plymouth Plantation written in 1650 by William

The New Englanders took religion seriously, making unitary laws according to Puritan standards. John Winthrop, later chosen as the first Massachusetts Bay Colony governor, was seeking religious freedom. Wishing to inspire the colonists to dwell in brotherly unity, he summoned them together to remind them “that if we [colonists] shall deal falsely with our God in this work we have undertaken, and so cause Him to withdraw His present help from us, we shall be made a story and a by-word through the world.” On the other hand, those in the Chesapeake region came for the wealth that America promised. They were there to become prosperous or die trying.

Religion has always been one of the most prominent values in American history. In the early 1600s, one group known as the Puritans first sailed to America seeking religious freedom and a way to purify the church. Puritans believed that all people were sinners, but that God was working in their lives, and a lucky few were predestined to go to Heaven. Their religious practices strictly limited them.

Throughout history, religion has played an important role in the lives of the English settlers; many people believed in different religions, and this has caused problems within the New World colonies. Religion was strictly enforced, and punished according to your beliefs. When the English settlers decided to set sail to find refuge from the religious restriction, they were hopeful for a new life. People did not want to stay somewhere where they did not believe in the religion that was practiced, for it was punishable by death.

They wanted to create pure, moral Christian society based on moral living. By hard working, integration of religion in politics, and social development of certain lifestyle practices, Puritans had a large influence on the development of the New England colonies from 1630s through the 1660s. Puritans believed in hard work as the pathway of success since they thought they were favored by God to succeed (Doc I). They tried to shun idleness and believed that being lazy is not profitable (Doc C).

The English Monarch, at the time, wanted power over religion and sought total control. With this goal, practicing other religions, outside the Church of England, punishable by law. Many English wasted to continue practicing their religions, and America offered the potential to do so without the threat of English law. B. Describe the economic systems, social characteristics and political systems of the following colonies.

The Puritans created the Massachusetts Bay colony in the 1620s because they wanted to establish a christian utopia in the New World, free from persecution(Doc A). While the colonists ultimately failed this goal, they still left their mark on New England society, as seen in Document E. In this Document, the Puritans are calling for the regulation of wages in Connecticut . This is because they were against excess, and believed everything should be in moderation. The idea of regulating wages so that they weren’t too big would have been ludicrous to the Virginians.

Throughout the seventeenth century, religious freedom was essentially a key to the new forming colonies. Many pursued the “New World” looking to gain individual rights for their own personal beliefs- which we understand today as religious freedom. The main group seeking this freedom was the Puritans who came to the New World from England. When the Puritans had reached the land where they wished to settle they called it the Massachusetts’s Bay Colony. The colony was said to be a place where one could express their beliefs freely.

As time went by in the new colonies the excitement of being unified in the same Christian beliefs and the “new” wore off the new settlements. People started to get off the straight line of Christian beliefs that people like John Smith and John Winthrop had drawn for the settlers. There was a big gray area of what could be done and what couldn’t be done which caused problems. The judgment of the grey areas was to be left up to the leaders of the colonies which most of the time included the preacher.

Religion played a great role in the establishment of the English colonies. The main reason the English traveled to North America was to escape religious persecution. Once the English settled in they created colonies, and established rules for a religious society. They would also try to convert Natives into Christianity, and they established universities to practice ministry. Once the English settlers got to North America, the House of Burgesses in 1619 said they would try to convert Native children specifically boys into a “ true religion”, then eventually teach them how teach them how to be Christian civil people.

For the New England colonists’ motivation for moving to the colonies, the Puritans of the New England section might comply with the British is because they want to be a model to everyone else. Another reason they might comply is that the Puritans’ religion is based of England’s. Their reluctance to defending the crown includes the reason why they migrated was to escape religious persecution. The Pilgrims’ are very intolerant of other religion. Altogether, for motivation for moving to the colonies, the Puritans might have helped, while on the other hand, the