Religion in America: Religious History

Catholic alar and altar boys
Figure 1.--Catholocism was a shock to still very Protestant America in the 19th century. Here we see a portrait of a Catholic church altar, priest, and altar boys taken about 1900. . Handwritten on back: “St. Mary’s Church, Gallitzin, Pa. We were all baptized there. Dad helped to dig the foundation and the church pictured was the basement which they used until the building was completed.”

Religion played a major role in the founding and early history of the United States. There were two major traditions. The first was the Church of England or Anglican (Episcopal) Church which was set up at Jamestown (1607) and dominated the southern colonies. The second was the Puritans that arrived on the Mayflower (1620) and other discenter groups which dominated the early northern colonies. The Puritans and other discenters did not believe in religious freedom, they simply objected to the dominance of the establisheded Church of England. As American developed more diversity was injected into the American relgious mosacic. The British annexedd the Dutch and Swedish colonies which introduced Calvanist and Luthern strains of Protestantism. The Great Awakening was an important part of the evolution of religious thought in Colonial America. The Scotts-Irish which settled the back woods of American rejected the established Church and played an important role in the victory of the Colonials in the American Revolution. The rejection od establish religions was inshirined in the Bill of Rights. Germans with strong Lutheran leanings were the principal immigrant group in the early 19th century. While America's religion was diverse it was mostly Protestant with a few Catholics (mostly in Maryland) and Jews (mostly Germans). This changed with the Irish fleeing the Potato Famine on the 1840s. The Irish were the first destinct national group which came in large numbers. Their poverty and Catholcism shocked many Americans. After the Civil War, the influx of Catholics from southern Europe and Jews and Orthodox Christians from Eastern Europe further diversified American religions. Since the 1960s, changes in the immigration laws have increased the immigration from non-Christian countries making Islam and Hinduism a part of America's religious diversity.

Colonial America

Religion played a major role in the founding and early history of the United States. There were two major traditions. The first was the Church of England or Anglican (Episcopal) Church which was set up at Jamestown (1607) and dominated the southern colonies. The second was the Puritans that arrived on the Mayflower (1620) and other discenter groups which dominated the early northern colonies. The Puritans and other discenters did not believe in religious freedom, they simply objected to the dominance of the established Church of England. Anglians (Virginia), Catholics (Maryland), Puritans (Massachusetts), Ouakers (Pennsylvania), and others struggled for religious supremecy. As American developed more diversity was injected into the American relgious mosacic. The British annexed the Dutch and Swedish colonies which introduced Calvanist and Luthern strains of Protestantism. The Great Awakening was an important part of the evolution of religious thought in Colonial America. The Salem Witch Trials severly tarnished New England Puritanism. There was an event strnger element in American Protestantism, the fear and often hatred of Roman Catholocism. This developed in the English tradition of wars against Catholic absolutism (Spanish and French); tales of the Spanish Inquisition; and the experience of Bloody Mary and Guy Fawkes (an early apperance of religious terrorism). While most denominations struggled for establising their church, the Baptists were early proponents of toleration and opposition to the establishmet of any church.

American Revolution (1775-83)

The Scotts-Irish which settled the back woods of American rejected the established Church and played an important role in the victory of the Colonials in the American Revolution. Religion was still an important aspect of American life at the time of the Revolution. Interestingly the religious beliefs of founding fathers were very diverse and surpringly non-conformist, reflecting the impact of the Enlighment. They often used te term "providence" rather than God. Benjamin Franklin had the most non-conformist views. He thought God created the universe, but then turned it over to minor gods a rather Gnostic system. John Adams was prticularly citemptuous of Calvanists whichbhe ranked oly slightly above Catholics. And he was rather ecklectic when it came to Christian theology. In particular he objected to Original Sin. Perhaps bowing to poltical demnds, he joined a Unitarian church which focused on Christ's moral teachings rathar than his divinity. Gorge Washington's religious beliefs are less well unedrstood. As a boy he was brought up in the Anglican Church. As an adult he rarely went to church on Sunday. He refused to knee even though afamous painting shows him doing so in the snow during the Revolutinary War. He also refused to take Communion. He appears to have been much more commtted to Free Masonry than Chrustianity. While his religious beliefs are poorly understood, he was absolutely committed to religious toleration. He wrote, "While we are contending for our libertywe should be very cautious of violating the Rights of Conscious in others, ever considering that God alone is the Judge of the Heartsof men, and to him only in this Case, they are answerable." Tomas Jefferson's religious beliefs are better undrstood and more widely discussed. Jefferson clearly did not believe in divinity, although as a political figure he had to be careful how he expressed himself. He took copy of the New Testament and cut out of the Gospels any reference to miracles and divinity. He saw Jesus as simply an important moral teacher. Madison believed [ ]. Monroe perhaps saw religion as more important than Jefferson, but he clearly was committed to toleration and played an important role in both the Consitution and the Bill of Rights. Monroe wrote, "... multiplicty of sects ... is the best and only security for religious liberty in any society. For where there is such a varirty of sects, there cannot be a majority of any sect to oppress and persecute the rest." [Waldmann] After the Revolutionary generation of presidents (Washingon through Monroe), the religious beliefs of American presidents were much more conformist.

The Constitution (1787)

Despite the fact that religion was very important in 18th century America, this is not reflected in the Constitution. There is no mention in the Constitution of Jesus, Christianity, or God. Here Virginia delegate and furture president James Monroe played an important role, in part because Thomas Jefferson was serving as American Ambassador in Paris.

First Amendment

The Constitutin was a tough sell. There was considerable opposition to it. Jefferson himself had substantual doubts about a stroing central government. The debate over the Constitution can be followed in the Federalist Papers written largely by Hamilton, Jay, and Masison. One outgrowth of the debate over the Constitution ws the Bill of Rights. The Federalists offered thesecresraints on the Federal Government to secure ratfication. The rejection of established religions was thus inshirined in the Bill of Rights. It is no accident that the first amendment was devoted to the religious question. It showed the importance given to the issue. The First Amendment is perhaps the most misunderstood amendment of the ten amendments comprising the Bill of Rights. It did not as it often claimed ensire religious freedom in America. It prohibited the Federal Government from establishing a church, but the wording of the amendment left the states free to do so. The 1st Amendment is elegantly simple and reads, "Congress shall make no laws respecting an establishment of religin, or prohibitingthe free exercise thereof." Monroe helped draft the Amndment, but it was not what he wanted. He wanted a total prohibition on governmnt interfering with relgion. [Waldmann] Here he had the support of many Baptists wh becae the denomination most opposed to government meddling with religion. The Constitution established, however, a Federal System and rights not specifically granted to the Federal Government are reserved for the states. And some states objected tobrestrictions on theirperogativs. Thus the 1st Amendment left state legislatures free to establish a religion.

Utopian Communities

While many Americans were focused on the Western frontier and expanding the nation, other Americans were attempting to perfect human society through a number of utopian communities. Plymouth Colony was founded as a utopian community (1620). The purity and fervor of the puritans proved hard to maintain. The Great Awakening of the 18th century provided a new religious impulse to the developing colonies. The utopian communities established in the United States echoed the Puritans in many ways with the desire to achievevheavan on earth. But there was also some very modern about the utopian communities. They were in fact in many ways an early experiment in socialism before the term was even coined. Curiously despite the American self image of rugged individualism, it was in America that Utopian experiments were persued with a notable idealism and moral fervor. There were some of these communities in Europe, such as New Lanark in Scotland. But the movement was no where in Europe persued with the vigor that was notable in America. And often the European movement (the Paris Commune and Fourierist Phalanxes) were more politically oriented than was the case in America. Some of these communities were founded in the 18th century, but the first half of the 19th century gave rise to the founding to quite a wide range of these comminities. Many of these communities were communistically organized with shared property and wealth. Despite some similarities, they were quite different in goals, methods and achievements. There were both religious-based and secular communities. There were quite a number of these Utopian communities. Perhaps the most successful, certainly the most enduring, were the Shakers. We note two unidentified girls who may be Shakers. Another important group was the Harmonists. Others were individual communities not connected with a larger movement. Perhaps the best known such community was the Oneida Community. Not all of these movements involved communal living. The Mormon's for example, had strong family foundation, althoogh the family was not astandard one because of the polygamy.

Mormons


Catholics

Catholics today are the largest single Christian denomination in America, although collectively there are more Protestants. The Catholic role in buildingAmerica is not always prnately features, in part because America yntil the latec19th cebtyry was so ovrwealmingly Protestant. There were Catholics in colonial America, most primantely in Maryland. Catholics because they were a minority were a force for toleration in America, in contrat to their general role in Europe. Catholic missions played a role in developing California during the Spanish colonia period. The first major group of Catholic immigrants wee the Irish as a result of the Potato Famine (1840s). In the samecdecade the Mexican-American War with the acquisition of the Southwest brought Mexicans into the United States. After the Civil War, lrge scale immogration from Europe began. This included many Catholics from Italy and the great European empires, especially the Austro-Hungarian (Crotia, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia)) and Russian (Lithuania and Poland) Empires. Most of the immogrant from the German Empire were Germans. Many of these Catholic immigrants sought work in the rising industrial cities of the mid-West from Chicao east to western Pennsylvania. Theu thus served as the back bone of the industrial work force and the American labor movement. As the public schools were stringly influened by Protestants, Catholics beginning with the arival of he Irish began bulduing a separateprochial school system. Many Catholics entered the American middle-class after World War II, assisted by the GI Bill. Protestants continued to look with suspicion on Catholics in the 20th century. Catholic Al Smith was decisively defeated in the 1928 election in part because he was Catholic. Catholics came to play an importan political role in America. Acceptance to Catholic voters largely determined whether a Democrat or Republican was elected folloing the New Deal. The major turning point forvCatholics in merica was the election of President Kennedy (1960). The increase in the Hispanic population since the 1960s has substantially increased the Catholic population in America.

Jews

The Jews were not a national group and came from many countries. The economic and social impact of Jews on America varied coincerning their origins, but my far the most important wre the Russian and other Eastern European Jews. The vast oproportion of Jews who emmigrated to America came from Russia and eastern Europe, but primarily Russia. (Large areas of Poland at the time were part of Tsarist Russia.) The reason of course was the terrible oppression visited upon the Jews by the Tsarist regime and the Cossacks. Not only were there legal restrictions, but vicisious programs massacred Jews in the thousands. The primary impetus for Russian immigration to America was the pogroms directed at Jew in the wake of the assaination of Tsar Alexander II (1881). A substantial proprtion of the Russian immigrants were Jews. This was the largest group of European Jews to come to America. Earlier Jewish immigrants had been primarily German, but they were realtively small in number compared to the numbers of Russian Jews that began to arrive in America during the 1880s. This same oppression drove Jews into Western Europe, especially Germany which under Bismarck had emancipated the Jews. The Jews are notable for several reasons. Notably the Jews were most likely to stay in America. Few returned to Europe. The Jews were also the immigrant most willing to aid new arrivals. They actively support relief agencies for the new arrivals. The most important impacts of the Jews is surely the impact on American intellectual and political thought.

Slavery

The religious community in 19th century America was split oin the issue of slavery. Churches in the South supported slavery. There was, hwever, variation within church figures aboyt religion for the slaves. The fact that missionaries in Jamaica were accused of provoking the Great Revolt (1831) was not lost n many Southern slave owners. Black slaves found considerable solace in Christiamiy, especially the importance of Mpses leaving the Jews out of slavery in Egypt. Northern churches in the 19th century became the crucible for the Abolitionist movement. This is very important. The abolitionist movement did not come out of academia, business, or political leaders--it developed out of churches. The same was true with the ctitically imprtant British abolitionist movement.

Civil War (1861-65)

The Civil War had a huge impact on America. We do not know at this time, however, just how it impacted religion. One exception here is the 14th amendment, one of the most signiicant of all the amendments. The wording of the amendment extended the 1st Amendment to also prohibit state govrnments from establishing a church. The Amendment included the prvision, "No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privilges or immunities of citizens of the United States."

Immigration

Immigration has had a major impact on the American religious mix. Germans with strong Lutheran leanings were the principal immigrant group in the early 19th century. While America's religion was diverse it was mostly Protestant with a few Catholics (mostly in Maryland) and Jews (mostly Germans). This changed with the Irish fleeing the Potato Famine on the 1840s. The Irish were the first destinct national group which came in large numbers. Their poverty and Catholcism shocked many Americans. After the Cicil War, the influx of Catholics from southern Europe and Jews and Orthodox Christians from Eastern Europe further diversified American religions. Since the 1960s, changes in the immigration laws have increased the immigration from non-Christian countries making Islam and Hinduism a part of America's religious diversity.

Civil Rights Movement


Sources

Waldmann, Steven. Founding Fathers: Providence, Politics, and the Birth of Religious Freedom in America (Random House, 2008), 277p.








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Created: 6:14 AM 3/23/2007
Last updated: 12:46 AM 4/10/2008