Religion In Colonial America

After reading the U.S Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, and Thomas Jefferson’s Letter to the Danbury Baptists in 1802. I realized that all three of these documents have common signers and Thomas Jefferson as the creator of these documents. God also plays a major role in these documents. As mentioned in the Declaration of Independence “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness (Declaration, 2016, p. 1)”. This document, which was created, first in order to assure our countries stability states that our country has been built on God, and it united the thirteen colonies.

Religion played a significant role in shaping the political and social landscape of the colonies during the revolutionary era and played a multifaceted role in the development and eventual success of the revolutionary movement. Both individuals and groups were major in uniting the minds and movements of American people towards a common cause. Movements like The Great Awakening changing the rituals, ideologies, and giving people self-awareness provided a basis for unified movement and thought. Religious groups like the Quakers, in advocating for nonviolence and civil disobedience as a means of resistance to British rule, helped shape the ideology of the Revolution. Many of the founding fathers, such as George Washington and Benjamin Franklin,

Many circumstances have, and will arise, which are not local, but universal, and through which the principles of all Lovers of Mankind are affected, and in the Event of which, their Affections are interested (Paine, 1776)”. Thomas Paine disagrees with the British government and the way they handling business he encouraged Americas to declare their independence. The Declaration of independence was a documented created by Thomas Jefferson that announced the split from the colonies and Great Britain, it. The Declaration of Independence states “we hold these…all men are created equal...with certain unalienable rights...that when any form of government becomes destructive... It is the right of the people to alter or abolish it (Jefferson, 1776)”.

On one hand the fledgling government strived to apply considerably fair republican and Enlightenment ideas to the new system. Through this strong belief in the natural rights of life, liberty, and property, the colonists were able to unite and connect under one American identity. No longer did they identify with the despicable British, the colonists were now free, American men ready to reap , as stated in Document B, “the sweets of independence.” People were ready for the new promise of equality, with no all-powerful aristocracy or church to govern the day to day lives of the common. For example, Document D describes the freedom of religion in Virginia and thus showing a moderate progression toward the separation of church and state.

More than 80% of Americans have Puritan ancestors who emigrated to Colonial America on the Mayflower, and other ships, in the 1630’s (“Puritanism”). Puritanism had an early start due to strong main beliefs that, when challenged, caused major conflict like the Salem Witch Trials. Puritanism had an extremely rocky beginning, starting with a separation from the Roman Catholic Church. Starting in 1606, a group of villagers in Scrooby, England left the church of England and formed a congregation called the Separatist Church, and the members were called The puritans (“Pilgrims”).

Colonists felt that they were entitled to explore this newly found land, despite that the land was already occupied by people we now know as Native Americans. American society, which valued freedom so much, could support slavery and other forms of coercion because freedom is only applied to white males who owned property, aka the elites, because of the Constitution, paternalism, and Manifest destiny. The idea of freedom

Thomas Jefferson’s works and ideas laid the foundation for several key aspects on the limits of the United States government, the idea of separation of church and state, and the importance of personal rights. Jefferson wrote many influential pieces of literature which pushed the concept of having limited government power. Jefferson wanted America not to be like the European monarchies that fell due to religious strife, so he emphasized a secular government. Jefferson, following closely with the ideas of John Locke, stressed the importance of the protection of individual rights against the government. Thomas Jefferson believed that a government should have limitations.

Religion in the Southern colonies wasn’t as big of a deal like it was in the Middle, and Northern colonies. The main religion in the south was, Anglican. The economy in the south was like no other. The South has warm weather and a good amount of rainfall. The two main crops included: tobacco and rice.

Like most things that are society based, religion has evolved alongside our own culture. America is a melting pot of different ethnic backgrounds and cultures making it a perfect place for religion to adapt and flourish. For this analysis, I am drawing from “Civil Religion in America” by Robert N. Bellah (1967) on his ideas of American civil religion. In the text Bellah (1967) argues that civil religion is an important dimension that needs to be recognized in sociology. While Bellah focuses specifically on the United States of America, he still gives a valuable perspective on civil religion and how it plays a part in religion as a whole.

Enlightenment views on government and policy helped the two new governments create their own unique system for governing. One ideal of enlightenment was equality. America believed in equality before the law. In the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson wrote, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created

Dontae Joseph AP U.S. History Grade 11 Europeans had gone to the New World is search of wealth, power, or religious reasons, all had hoped for a better than in Europe. Religion was one of the reasons why the colonies had first developed, it helped create religious freedom and allowed people to continues their religious practice without persecution. However, not all the colonies had centered themselves around religion. In the early American colonies religion had a big impact on the development in the New England, Chesapeake, and Mid-Atlantic Colonies.

The American Revolution had an immense impact on the institution of slavery in the American colonies, shaping the way it was viewed, and setting in motion a series of events that would eventually lead to its abolition. On the one hand, the ideals of freedom and equality that were at the heart of the revolution challenged the legitimacy of slavery, and how someone would even go about abolishing the institution in the new Americas. Many of the Founding Fathers, including Thomas Jefferson, believed that slavery was a violation of natural rights and it needed to be abolished. The Declaration of Independence itself, which declared that "all men are created equal" and that they have "certain unalienable Rights," including "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness," was a direct challenge to the institution of slavery.

Thomas Jefferson in particular wrote the Declaration of Independence, which stated “that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator

The people of America (colonists) were tired of being controlled by England. They wanted to be free and independent. They believed that they were able to control themselves and be their own country. They wanted England to let go of their control and to view them as independent and their own country.

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.