The Religious Effects On Early American History

2 Pages 585 Words

Several nations contributed to the early American colonies. They were

people of varied backgrounds, habits and theological ideas. Immigrants came in

from England, France, Spain, as well as other places and started to form their

own settlements with each settlement having its own culture. Despite their

biggest cultural difference, religion, the time came for them to come together and

they did it without any major distress. The Puritans of New England, the Friends

of Pennsylvania , the Roman Catholics of Maryland and the Churchmen of

Virginia, though often narrow in their theological views, manifested a common

love of liberty, and acted upon the common rule that the majority should govern.


Many of those who came to America did so to remove themselves from

persecution in their homeland. For example, The Puritans came to America

fleeing from the Church of England. They saw the flaws in the Church of

England and came to a New land hoping to build a society on what they

thought to be the proper religious standards. The ways and beliefs of the

Puritans made them somewhat less tolerant than other colonial cultures, but they

were making a slow progression from what they came from to the foundation of a

new inclusive nation. Furthermore, The Quakers (Friends) of Pennsylvania,

founded by William Penn, not only wanted to establish a place for their own

people, but were also open to the idea of people with other belief systems living

in and contributing to a larger society. The Society of Friends was one of the first

early American cultures to really come close to what America is today. They

realized that people of differing beliefs could come together and build a

productive society if the people were willing to accept each other. Both the

Puritans and Quakers had the similar goals which ultimately brought them

together.


The people of V...