The Role of Religion in the Development of America

As we all know, colonist explored and came to America with the hope for a new beginning. Among their many goals perhaps their search for religious freedom was the most influential and morally sound reason to come to this new land. On account of England pulling away from the Roman Catholic Church and creating their own religion, The Church of England was established in the 1500s. As this new church started, many did not accept it including the Puritans and Pilgrims who fled to America because they were being persecuted. For a time, Massachusetts Bay Colony was a religious haven.

It wasn’t until The Great Awakening, which started in the New England colonies, occurred that people rose up and revolted against the norms of religion and began to worship the way they wanted to. This divisive time period greatly impacted the American colonies by allowing true religious freedom to all the people. Prior to The Great Awakening was a period of time called The Enlightenment. During this time, prominent men believed that there was a creator of the world, but they relied on their own personal intellect and science to get through life. They didn’t feel they needed a creator to “save” them, however, the majority of people were commoners that longed for an emotional spiritual experience who needed the guidance of a “savior.” This movement lead some preachers...

Because there is freedom of religion in the United States, all faiths have some sort of impact on the American government. To understand how religion affects the United States government we will have to look back to the formation of America. Religion and politics have always been a hot topic in the States and always will be. It may never be as big of a deal though as it was with our Founding Fathers. Without them and the decisions they made, the America we live in today would be very different.

America has overcome many challenges, and it has undergone many a transformation on its path towards developing an identity as an independent nation. To aid in this transformation, many documents have been adopted as the governing laws of the land. As time has changed, so has our application of the wisdom engraved in the documents that once defined American virtue. These documents continue to influence American development, as well as the world, especially because America applies it to foreign policy. In the beginning, religion was dominant in the colonies, especially since “God” and “Christianity” are the most common words in most of the documents that have framed our country.

As the English began to colonize the Igbo society, there were few natives who opposed it, they others just felt that the English would come and go, but they were wrong. Soon, the English began to introduce "white man's religion." This new religion was completely the opposite from what the natives were accustomed to. Christianity was rather intriguing to many of the natives and many of them turned away from their families and everything they were to become a member of this new religion. Before this, they natives had been very superstious, but as they new religion flooded over the peoples, their superstiousocity began to lessen and their belief in the many gods they had previously believed in.

This reflected America's future acceptance of religion in alternate races other than whites. If anything, these conflicts helped stretch the geographic and social boundaries by which religion can be practiced and valued. Religion has had an immense effect on the moral, social, and political functionality of America. The founders of religion have built rudiments that radiate the founders beliefs and morals which have spread to the modern institutions of tolerance and coexistence. Not only does religion provide a moral basis for almost all family structures of the day, it provides a safe haven for outcasted groups seen in the synthesis of the nation like African Americans, homosexuals, and others.

As James A. Henretta, David Brody, and Lynn Dumenil point out in America a Concise History, the Puritans believed that religion should have more power over the government. In other words the laws of the bible were more important then the laws of the state (45). In John Winthrop’s famous speech, “The Modell of Christian Charity,” he speaks of a few ideals, which sha... ... middle of paper ... ...American’s lives today has diminished, but I disagree. Religion still does play a large role in our lives, but it has gone through many reforms as it has many times in the past. People need something to believe in, whether it is Christianity, Judaism, Muslim or Science, and those beliefs have and always will influence the path that our society takes.

Martin Luther even wrote entire doctrines based on his differences of opinion which would eventually form the basis for the Lutheran Church. The colonists also questioned the authority of their European rulers. Many believed that God himself had put their rulers in charge, but with all the political disasters and condemnation they were seeing they began to question their... ... middle of paper ... ...l people were created equally by God and that those who govern should be allowed to do so only when chosen by the people to do so. The colonists wanted a country where all citizens had an equal right to participate in government and were now ready to fight for that right. The Awakening shaped the way we view religion today, it helped people to view society as a whole instead of the separate religious groups divided by different faiths and beliefs.

They came here not knowing what to expect but they still came with high hopes and the will to make something out of the situation. They had been sick of how they were treated in Britain and now coming to America was a chance at a new start. They had the freedom to worship their own religion and live the life that they wanted to. The Puritans created their own culture very fast. They set up their government and it revolved largely around their religion.

This laid-back style of ruling allowed the colonies to deteriorate or flourish by themselves, as well as let other influences, such as religion, to reign. For the British colonists, Religion was the reason for emigration from England to America, the most important factor in its success or demise, and the provider of stability within colonies. In all honesty, the popularity of immigration into the colonies, let alone the very creation of them, is owed to spiritual reasons. Particularly in New England, the settlers often came seeking some sort of religious freedom or haven to worship as they pleased. This grew to be a popular trend because England often struggled with its official religion and its status, more often than not, was fickle and changed along with royalty.