Religion in Todays Society

One of the main reasons that the settlers came and founded America was for religious freedom. Colonist made the long and dangerous journey for other reasons as well, but a major factor was the search for religious freedom. Coming to America alone did not solve this problem; the journey to religious freedom was just that, a journey. Everyone had a slightly different idea of what this new nation’s ‘religious freedom’ should look like and it took many years to come to a compromise.

Since Protestantism was not only a religion but a way of life, and since priests and other clergy members were no longer as necessary in religion, in many countries the state and the church began to fuse, and formed a single, all powerful rule. As a result, many Protestant

This debate focuses on the religious role in colleges. This debate can be extended to colonial government. For example, should there be a separation of church and state?

The separation of church and state was becoming a popular policy with the colonists. Furthermore, the majority of colonists soon decided they wanted the government to have nothing to do with their beliefs. Unfortunately, government passed laws to keep the church in order, however that only fueled the colonists to have a separation of church and state.

The Catholic Church restricted individuals on their everyday life, and Protestantism appeared to be the best choice for many. King Henry VIII also established the Anglican Church, which was strongly enforced on the Englishmen. Protestants and Catholics in this society were treated poorly. Some were even fined by the government or sent to jail. “The English nation was in a state of religious turmoil with no religion to unify its citizens [10].” [10]

New England regions did not believe in separation of church and state. They even banished Roger Williams because he believed in the separation of the two. Government was a way to push Puritan beliefs onto its citizens. You could only vote if you were a male member of the church. African Americans and women could join the church though, but no voting for them.

The Puritans in the northern colonies had little tolerance for differing views and would drive out those who disagreed with their ideology. They were governed by a body called the General Court, which consisted of only men, who also had to be church members. In the beginning, the middle colonies were governed by the British monarchy, until William Penn was granted land and formed Pennsylvania. Anyone who wanted to vote or hold office had to be a Christian. However, the local government didn’t dictate settlers to attend church or pay taxes to support the church as the northern colonies did.

Unlike in modern North America, in many areas, there was relatively no separation of church and state. Puritan colonies, for example, held the belief that god blessed good societies and placed judgment upon those who were not, thus they sought to build Christian states (Goff & Harvey, 2004, pp. 11-12). In the New England colonies, in particular, the civil authorities were not only responsible for civil law enforcement but were additionally “responsible for maintaining religious orthodoxy” (Goff & Harvey, 2004, pp. 233-234). Moreover, those who questioned or rebelled against Puritanism found themselves penalized by the state by means of jailing, whipping, exile, or even execution (Goff & Harvey, 2004, p. 234). Although not all, a number of reigns either answered to or were heavily influenced by

Around this time, many searched earnestly for the truth, so to find it, they came up with different denominations of Christianity such as Puritans, Protestants, and Catholic. These religions drifted away from Biblical principles and turned to what individuals chose to believe and/or not believe. By this, colonies of Rhode Island, Maryland, and Massachusetts were built and greatly influenced by such beliefs.

Throughout the early 17th century, settlements began to form in what is now known as the New World. With a desire for commodities, the Chesapeake region became an attraction for many coming from England. The search for wealth in the Chesapeake region was from Virginia all the way down to Georgia. Furthermore, New England was a place for religious freedom where families could separate from the Anglican Church and be free of England’s demands in beliefs. From Maine to Connecticut freedom of religion was a main appeal for many to populate the colony. Many of these settlers came from the same place, England, they came with similar ideas and philosophies based upon previous experiences. Although, their intentions were entirely different based upon

Religious freedom is one of the main motivations for settlers coming to the New World. Settlers evaded religious persecution in the Americas. Most of the settlers were Anglican or Congregational. The colonies (apart from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island) did not separate church and state. The majority of churches levied taxes in order to support the ministers. Ironically, the colonists were intolerable of other religions; Jews and Catholics were ineligible to hold public office and vote. During the Great Awakening, immigrants broke into their own congregations; creating the Methodist, Baptist,

In New York people of Dutch descent often attended services of the reformed church, well many merchants belong to the church of England, also known as Anglicans and later Episcopalians.

Religious hierarchies and customs became the basis of each colony. Religion was the motivating force for the colonists: “The way to prosper and achieve good success is to...serve and fear God the ruler of all Goodness.” Religion provided the structure for society; therefore, it determined how the colonies were separated and that their main threat was

Another law reduced the power of the church by not allowing the church to own farming

In a national sense, religious belief and identity can separate whole nations from one another, like in the case of Ireland and England, one of the defining differences is our belief in a different branch of Christianity. This can have disastrous effects on the world as a whole. Religion can be held accountable for the majority of warfare and bloodshed in the world today as nations attack each over their differing beliefs and ideals. Many nations will use religion and beliefs to try to justify the awful atrocities they commit on one another. In this sense, religion