Religion in the New World exploded into the land with the colonization of thousands of immigrants. It played an important role in the development of thought in the West. Religion was one of the first concepts to spark the desires of people from other countries to emigrate to the new lands. While many religions blossomed on the
American shores of the Atlantic, a basic structure held for most of them, being predominantly derived from
Puritanism. Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement, showed the link the new settlers had to God when Sir Thomas Dale said the following in 1610: Be not dismayed at all For scandall cannot doe us wrong, God will not let us fall. Let England knowe our willingnesse, For that our work is good; Wee hope to plant a nation Where none before hath stood. (Morison, pg. 89) Originally, when
Christopher Columbus landed on the shores of America en route to Asia, he was not interested in discovering new lands. Most Europeans at the time were looking for a way to get at the oldest part of the Old World, the East Indies.
An ocean route was sought to the countries that were believed to contain riches beyond European comprehension, thus avoiding having to pay hundreds of miscellaneous middlemen involved with trade, also making for a shorter journey. These motivations were accompanied by the desire to convert the heathen to Christianity, which had been declining since the rise of Islam. By uniting some of the Western Asian countries with Christianity, Europeans hoped to form a formidable team against the Turks and recover the valuable Holy Land (Morison, p.55).
Columbus was sure that God had sent him to complete this task and that he was destined to carry the good Christian ways to heathen lands. A Spanish settlement was made in
1609 named Santa Fe in what is now New Mexico (Curti,
p.167). Hundreds of thousands of Pueblo Indians were then converted to Christianity. At the same time, across the country, England was establishing its first settlement at
Jamestown. Originally the English, who colonized alongside the French, saw settlements in the New World as strictly trading posts, but they soon realized the valuable opportunities that lay in the virgin lands of America, such as cotton, tobacco, and several other agricultural products that could not be found anywhere else. Many of England’s problems could be solved in America, and so colonization began. When the earliest settlers came, England had the responsibility to continue the Protestant Church, and prevent the Catholic Church from converting the entire
Native American population of North America (Morison,
p.105) A potential Protestant refuge could be based there in the threat of civil wars or a change of religion.
The Roman Catholics were one of the first Europeans to disembark in the New World. In addition, there were the Spanish Catholics. There were two missionary efforts of the Spanish that attempted to convert the Native Americans to Christianity. One of their attempts revolved around the priests and their ability to spread the faith. This attempt did not work for several years, until finally, in 1595, the Franciscans were able to progress with their plans. Furthermore, another attempt was when the Spanish used force to enforce their Christian belief. They were outnumbered by the Indians and therefore brought weaponry and soldiers to keep them at bay. Their reason behind the missionary efforts was that they were ordered to spread Christianity to the Native Americans by a holy spirit.
In 1492, Christopher Columbus was a self-made man who worked his way up to being the Captain of a merchant vessel. He gained the support of the Spanish monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella, for an expedition to the Indies. With the support of the Spanish monarchy, he set off to find a new and faster trade route to the Indies. Upon the arrival of his first voyage, Columbus wrote a letter to Luis de Santangel, a “royal official and an early supporter of his venture,” in February 1493 (35). The epistle, letter, entitled “Letter to Luis de Santangel Regarding the First Voyage” was copied and then distributed in Spain before being translated and spread throughout Europe. The Letter is held in such regard with the people as it is considered the first printed description of the new world. Through his description of the nature of the islands, Columbus decided the future fate of the islands. His description of the vast beauty of the nature around him, declares both the economic and nationalistic motivations for colonizing the new world.
Before Columbus landed in the West Indies in 1492, The Spanish Inquisition made it known to anyone within Spain’s domain of influence that if a person was not of the Catholic religion, they were to be punished severely and sometimes even fatally. This influence would undoubtedly be brought over to the Americas a century later, as the colonization of the New World would begin by then. While it was very essential for the Spanish (as well as the Portuguese) to improve their economy by using the resources they found in Latin America, it seemed to a number of them as if that was the only reason for being there, or the main reason at the very least. During the Spanish Inquisition and from that point after, it was the Pope’s main goal, to convert everyone to Roman Catholicism; an opportune moment arrived as the Americas were found, along with the Natives who resided there who were waiting to be converted.
English Protestants first arrived at a place called Plymouth, and then a decade later a much larger group began to arrive just north of Plymouth. These new peoples came in family groups, planning to create communities like the ones they left behind, but instead the wanted to base them off of protestant principles. After Columbus voyaged to west Indies, the Spanish soon established sugar plantations. They first used the natives to work their plantations, but they were soon greatly affected by diseases. When most of the Natives died, they then imported African slave labor remaking the population of the Caribbean. Traditions of government such as regulating land and water use was brought from Spain. New England and Chesapeake both had the goal of self sufficiency. The biggest difference between and the two, was that while the Chesapeake
Religion was the foundation of the early Colonial American Puritan writings. Many of the early settlements were comprised of men and women who fled Europe in the face of persecution to come to a new land and worship according to their own will. Their beliefs were stalwartly rooted in the fact that God should be involved with all facets of their lives and constantly worshiped. These Puritans writings focused on their religious foundations related to their exodus from Europe and religions role in their life on the new continent. Their literature helped to proselytize the message of God and focused on hard work and strict adherence to religious principles, thus avoiding eternal damnation. These main themes are evident in the writings of Jonathan Edwards, Cotton Mathers, and John Winthrop. This paper will explore the writings of these three men and how their religious views shaped their literary works, styles, and their historical and political views.
Some would say that Christopher Columbus was a devout Christian. He believed that "his was a mission that would put Christian civilization on the offensive after centuries of Muslim ascendancy" (Dor-Ner 45). Columbus' original mission was to find a western route to the Indies. But when that failed, his mission became clear: convert these new people to Christianity. Throughout this paper I will show the view of the natives by Columbus and Christendom and how these views changed over a span of fifty years.
The settlers of New England came mostly for religious toleration. Many people that settled in New England were Puritan separatists who disagreed with the cruel religious repression of Charles I. The Puritans came to plant a godly commonwealth in New England's rocky soil. The settlers who immigrated to the Chesapeake region had no intention of finding a place to celebrate their religion. Therefore, New England became a much more religious society than the Chesapeake region. John Winthrop, a Puritan priest states in Doc.A "We must consider that we shall be as a city upon a hill. The eyes of all people are upon us, so that if we 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". This shows that their goal was to create a wholesome Christian community, where Christianity could be worshiped in proper ways. It also shows that they believe if they do not do the work God has given them, that he will refuse to help them and they will perish. They felt that ...
Jack P. Green and J. R. Pole, The Blackwell Encyclopedia of the American Revolution, (Blackwell Publishers) 1991.
Throughout human history, religion has played a fundamental role in societal development, regardless of the culture. Christianity, in particular, has profoundly shaped the last two thousand years of history and continues to do so today. This holds true in the case of European development and exploration of the New World. As exploration in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries flourished, many countries set out to declare land on behalf of their country, and in an effort to bring honor to their God. When English settlers first developed colonies in New England, one of their goals was to share the word of God with the Native Americans they encountered. This drastically conflicted with the views of the Native Indians, and completely altered the development of North America. European religious views in early North American exploration set the tone for America’s development into a commodification driven society that exploited the environment as a means of economic potential.
“And I gave a thousand handsome good things, which I had brought, in order that they might conceive affection, and more than that, might become Christians” (Columbus, 16). Along with colonizing, one of Columbus’s goals was to convert the native people to his holy faith. However, the indigenous people were deeply religious, and a few goods could not sway them away from their religion. Other texts such as Red Jacket’s speech demonstrate how the Indians were very spiritual and did not want to convert to Christianity. Hence, in order to attract the King to fund his trips. Columbus gives off a wrong impression in his letter by making it seem like the native people would easily convert to
Designation of the United States of America as a Christina nation, founded upon Christina beliefs and principles, has remained in dispute throughout history. Regardless of interminable debate by proponents of either side, the impact of Christianity on American culture, government, and national prosperity, is unmistakable. This paper aims to explore the foundations of early American history (prior to 1877), and reveal the inherent importance of Christianity, while displaying the fundamental necessity for interpreting American history through the lenses of Christianity. This examination attempts to provide necessary context to American history, through the identification of integral values comprising the foundation of the nation, rather than defend the Christian belief system, or advocate an organized religious system.
In the eighteenth century, many people believed that society could not function properly without religion, even though the thought of the time was heavily based off of antireligion. The popular and institutional religion differed greatly in the eighteenth century. Churches still remained to be a big part of everyday life. Parish church kept records of births, deaths, and marriages, provided charity for the poor, supervised whatever primary education there was; and cared for orphans. Catholic and protestant churches were conservative institutions that upheld society’s hierarchical structure, privileged classes and traditions. Protestant religions were considered to be more conservative the wealthy people ran them,
These approaches by European Americans were thought to be more socially acceptable means to acquiring more land and expansion of their new world. The missionaries were successful at baptizing hundreds of Native Americans. They used the bible, sermons and Christian beliefs in God to influence tribal members to give up their cultural beliefs. The bible was translated into their native language in order to provide instruction and commitment to the word of God. In this culture, the way to a better life and forgiveness for savage acts, would be offered to all who believe in one God and become Christians. Heaven was introduced to the American Indians as well as a new belief in Hell, as an alternative demise. In all, many Christians came about from the missionaries’ efforts. Catherine Tegahkouita was one of the most celebrated Mohawk convert. There would be no other as devoted to God as she was during this crusade. “Nothing could be more beautiful, but with that beauty which inspires the love of virtue. The people were never weary gazing on her, and each left with his heart full of the desire to become a saint”.5 As more and more time went on, villages grew in Christian numbers. Still the missionaries continued to venture on to new unexplored lands to bring God’s word to them. Their objective, to save them from their barbaric
Religion had a significant impact on the early modern world. One of the goals the Spanish had when they set out to conquer foreign lands was to convert as many foreigners as possible. Missionaries were often some of the first to move to distant lands. Upon arrival, many of the missionaries would set up religious schools to educate locals on Catholic customs. Early Modern leaders used religion as a justification of their blatant mistreatment of human rights. Clergymen were unlikely to argue with the treatment of Native Americans, as they were profiting off of the Spanish invasions of foreign lands. Not only did the church gain more followers as a result of these foreign invasions, but the more money that the Spanish merchants made through overseas exploitation, ...
For many years we have heard about the separation of church and state. Despite being written as part of the First Amendment in the Constitution, can the two really be separated? What law actually dictates the separation of church and state? The truth is that the government has never passed a law implementing a separation of church and state. What is actually written in the Constitution is: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances." America is one of the few nations in the world whose sole existence is due to religion. The pilgrims were the first to settle in America. They came in search of religious freedom, as did many others after them. Many of America's early documents, laws, and freedoms were based on religious beliefs. We could look at several similar examples. The fact is that freedom of religion, speech, press, peaceful assembly, and to petition the government are all covered in the First Amendment. The first of these firsts is the freedom of religion. This most likely means that when the authors of the Bill of Rights prepared the first ten amendment to the Constitution, the first thing on their minds was protecting or possibly creating a freedom of religion; but what about the separation of church and state? If our founding fathers intended the separation we are now levied with would their earliest documents contain phrases such as "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…" This is part of the Declaration of Independence. Here is another example from Lincoln's Gettysburg Address, "…that is this nation under God shall have a new birth of freedom, and that government of the people, by the people, for the people shall not perish from the earth." Even in the Pledge of Allegiance the nation is referred to as "…one nation under God…" Religion also plays an important role in politics. As once stated by Ronald Reagan "politics and morality are inseparable, and as morality's foundation is religion, religion and politics are necessarily related.