However, Washington believed religion was key to both a disciplined army and maintaining morale, so he arranged for chaplains to be provided to American units. Unlike in the British Army, a religious oath was not required. General Washington took command of the Continental Army in June 1775. However, it was under the leadership of George Washington that freedom of religion was established, writing while president:īeing no bigot myself to any mode of worship, I am disposed to indulge the professors of Christianity in the church, that road to Heaven, which to them shall seem the most direct plainest easiest and least liable to exception. 9 However, during the Great Awakening in the 1740s, there was a growing tolerance of minority religions in some regions of the colonies.Īfter the Revolutionary War, many played a role in shaping the new government to ensure all religions had the right to practice, including Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and John Adams. 8 In Virginia, Puritans and Quakers were barred. 7 Presbyterians and Baptists were banished from New England. The Quakers were expelled from Massachusetts. Discrimination occurred throughout the colonies. Tensions were not just between Protestants and Catholics. They repealed the act and outlawed the Roman Catholic religion. A Toleration Act-one of the very first of its kind-passed, which allowed both religions, but in 1654, the Protestants regained control. By 1649, however, Catholics controlled the Maryland Assembly. 5Ĭatholicism thrived in Maryland in the 1630s, but by the 1640s, Protestants took control and deported many Catholics. Magistrates, considered “public ministers of God,” were expected to use the state to uphold the church’s agenda. Puritans in New England based laws on the Bible, and only full church members were permitted to vote. Laws were established and expectations set based upon religious ideals. 4 Each religious settlement was founded around the community’s beliefs. 3 However, many did not find the peace they had hoped and prayed for.Īt first, these communities in colonial North America looked very similar to the religious states of the Old World. Roman Catholics founded Maryland in 1634, and twenty years later Jews arrived in New York City. In 1620, a group of Puritans arrived at Plymouth, Massachusetts. 2 Wave after wave of religious groups sought sanctuary in North America. 1 Religion in AmericaĪs John Winthrop put it, America became a religious “refuge”. People of persecuted faiths often had to practice in secret or flee. While persecution varied by time and location, it was often merciless. Jews were expelled from a number of countries. In some cases, Protestants killed Catholics and in others, Catholics killed Protestants. Governments were tied to a state-supported religion, and those who did not follow it were persecuted. He reassured people that the federal government would not prevent citizens from practicing the religion of their choice, or any at all.īefore the age of revolution, religious wars plagued Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa for centuries.
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