02/06/2011 21:47:00

The histories of most civilizations and many characteristics of those civilizations have been molded by the religions that are represented within those societies. America is no exception to this concept. Despite Americas novel secular government, it is one of the most religious civilized nations in the Western world. However, that may be changing.

Before, analyzing the changing religiosity of Americans and the

influence of religion, we must understand the history of religion in America. The religious characteristics of modern day America were established during the colonial era during which the English empire expanded into North America and allowed thousands of Christians of various sects to flood onto Americas shores. The ideas that these settlers brought with them led to the creation of several of the thirteen original colonies and served as foundations for many of todays religious policies and beliefs. Though all of the colonies were tolerant of different religions, some were more tolerant than others. Perhaps the most popular group of colonists is the Puritan pilgrims. They were a group of English Protestants who disagreed with the Church of England and separated from the church. The Separatist Puritans relocated to Holland and then to America seeking religious freedom. This group contributed to the Massachusetts (Bay) Colony, the least tolerant of the thirteen. One of the Puritans living in this colony, Anne Hutchinson, believed and preached antinomianism: the belief that salvation can be achieved by faith alone and that good deeds are not necessary. Hutchinson was tried for her views and then fled the Bay Colony with her followers and founded the

colony of Portsmouth. Comparable to Hutchinson and a friend of hers was Roger Williams. Williams was an English theologian who left the Plymouth/Massachusetts Bay Colony for reasons similar to Hutchinson. Before Hutchinson formed the Portsmouth Colony, Williams established the Providence Plantation with the concept of religious tolerance in mind. The two colonies were eventually fused to form Rhode Island, a colony that offered religious freedom for all and was perhaps the most tolerant colony. William Penn was also an important religious figure during the colonial era. Penns Holey Experiment created a safe haven for Quakers and other persecuted peoples in the English colony of Pennsylvania, which he founded. Even before America was an independent nation