History Of The Church
Lesson 11: Religion In America – 1600 - 1800

Speaker: John Phillis
Date: November 17^th, 2004, Wednesday Evening Adult Bible Class

We are continuing our study of the church and seeing what happened to the church from the time of Pentecost. We are moving now to what is going on in America, in the early days of our history as a nation. As we conduct this study this evening, we want to see how what was going on in Europe—primarily in England—on the religious scene affected religion in America. The Reformation was going on in England, and some of the difficulties that were going on in the religious world there actually helped to forge and to form what we have now. Many folks who came here came here because of religious persecution and to obtain religious freedom.

What we want to do in this study tonight is to, in a general way, begin setting the stage for our eventual discussion and study of the Restoration. And it will be helpful to us, as we get to that period, to know something of the religious landscape and some of the history here in America. We want to look at events surrounding some of the early settlers in various regions in the early days of our country. And then, we’re going to follow that with a look at denominations in America and how some of those developed. Once again, this will help us to develop the religious landscape for what will eventually come to pass in the early and middle part of the 19^th Century regarding the Restoration Movement.

We have seen, of course, over the past several weeks as we were looking at the Reformation, which had been taking place in Europe, that religion played a very important part in the lives of 16^th and 17^th Century Europeans. It should not, then, be surprising that religion paid an equally important part in the settlement of the New World. Of course, the New World, as it was referred to, was discovered by Christopher Columbus—although revisionists are questioning that. But I learned in school that “In fourteen hundred and ninety two Columbus sailed the ocean blue…” and he discovered the New World. (That was a song that we sang back in school. I don’t know if you knew that, or not.)

Right after Columbus had discovered the New World, the King of Spain—King Ferdinand—began colonization of the New World. This was done by early Spanish settlers. Everywhere early Spanish settlers came into the New World, they were accompanied by Catholic priests—Catholic missionaries. And thus, in South and Central America, these areas were colonized, but there were also had these Catholic missionaries, primarily the Jesuits and the Franciscans. The conversion of the natives was of primary concern. Thus, the Spanish established missions in the southern part of this hemisphere, and even up into what would become North America. We know that this region of our nation where we live (New Mexico) was very heavily influenced by the Spanish in the early days, and was very heavily influenced by Catholicism.

Well, to the north of us—our neighbors to the north—French Catholic missionaries displayed a similar concern for converting the natives of what is now Canada. The French, as the Spanish did, began to colonize the northern part of this continent. They would do so in a similar fashion, sending Catholic missionaries, focusing on converting the natives who lived there. There are exploits of Jesuit priests, like Father [Jacques] Marquette, who is quite legendary in Canadian history. The city of Quebec, for example, was established in about 1608, and was established by these Jesuit missionaries as they went on their way.

Well, the early settlers here in what is now North America in some ways had some missionary zeal, similar to the Spanish and the French, but they didn’t have nearly as much success as did the French and Spanish Catholic missionaries. Part of that reason is because as they—the English primarily—came to this part of the New World with religious freedom in mind, and as they had opportunity, they would teach and preach to the Native Americans. But, their primary focus was farming and agriculture. Historians say that one of the reasons that they were not as successful as their French and Spanish counterparts was because that farming and agricultural focus actually put them in conflict, in some ways, with the Native Americans, because as they were tilling the soil, and what not, they were destroying hunting grounds and sacred areas, and things like that. Well, say, we’re still having problems of that nature, aren’t we?

But even if they did not enjoy a great deal of success in converting the populace that was here, the English did have a great deal of success in transplanting their religion to this New World. After earlier efforts that had been financed by some individuals to establish colonies in the New World, the London Company, which was operated under a charter which was actually authorized and chartered by the throne, succeeded in planting a permanent settlement on the James River in 1607. This settlement was called James Town, and it was (if you remember your American History) Sir Walter Raleigh who laid claim to being the founder of this first successful settlement here in this part of the New World.

Among the petitioners and the first settlers was an Anglican clergyman. He was, indeed, among the group of the first settlers to land in the Spring of 1607. One of the first things that he did, as the clergyman among this group of settlers, was to begin to provide religious services for the settlers. Well, since the church and the state were united in England, it was perfectly normal for the settlers to create a similar arrangement in the new colony, and so the Church of England, the Anglican Church, was established in the New World.

I’ve read (and some of it is rather interesting) that as a result of that relationship—the church and state being one—that such things as church attendance was required; that the activities of one’s life were very highly regulated and governed by the church/state organization; and also, it was required that one contribute—tithe—to the church. Any breaking of those laws—missing church services, for example—if you didn’t have a good excuse, then you were subject to be punished. Likewise, if you didn’t give your tithe, you were called into account for that.

The ministry—this church/state relationship—was supported not only by the tithe, but also by what was called “Gleeb land” [also spelled Gleebe; Glebe]. That was a practice that actually came from the time of the Middle Ages; it was a practice where there was property that was associated with the church—the congregation—and it was property that was worked, and any profit that came from the working of that land, that property, went to the church. Well, you remember that when the Revolution eventually comes along, one of the issues, one of the problems, that the colonists had with the crown was this business of the church/state relationship, and the paying of these tithes, which went against the colonists’ desires.

The Anglican Church was very strict, not only with those who were members, but they were also very strict about allowing others to be there in that area. Any others who were not Anglicans, who were not members of the Church of England, were considered to be non-conformists. And so, those who were Catholics, or Quakers, or whatever, were just not welcome in this Virginia Colony.

The Anglican Church remained the established (that is, state-supported) church during the whole of the colonial period. The Anglican Church would eventually become the Protestant Episcopal Church.

But a change would take place. And that change would take place for a number of reasons, none the least of which was because as more and more people came to the New World, Anglicans began to be outnumbered in the Virginia Colony. And so, their very strict enforcement of keeping people out would eventually be lost simply because they would be overwhelmed by numbers of others—Puritans, for example.

Religion played a far more important part in the founding and early history of the New England colonies than it did in Virginia. Religion was the prime motive that brought many to this region, and it was religion that sustained them during difficult times.

It would be the Pilgrims who would come first, landing in the fall of 1620. You recall, we talked about the Pilgrims a little bit when we were talking about the Reformation in England. They were dissenters—they had actually withdrawn from the Church of England, and they had formed independent congregations. And so, they came here to the New World looking for this independence—looking for the possibility that they could practice their religion freely.

Many of them had actually made a transition—they had left England and had gone to the Netherlands initially, looking for sanctuary and religious freedom. However, they didn’t find it there, and so they moved on and set out for America and the New World.

Within a few years, they were joined by an ever-increasing stream of Puritans. Now, remember, unlike the Pilgrims, who had disassociated themselves from the Church of England, the Puritans were individuals who were attempting to reform the Church of England from within. They were ones who were disenchanted with the church/state relationship that existed there in England; they were disenchanted with so many of the trappings of Roman Catholicism being a part of the practices of the Anglican Church, and so they were attempting to reform the church from within. However, when those attempts were being resisted and they fell under a great deal of persecution under King Charles I, many Puritans came to this country. As a matter of fact, during the period from 1628 to 1640, a period that is called “The Great Migration,” it is estimated that more than 20,000 made that journey across the ocean to this land.

Well, as a result, the Puritans outnumbered the Pilgrims. But an interesting thing happened. The Puritans who arrived as members of the Church of England, of the Anglican Church, soon found it expedient to adopt a different form of government, a congregational form of church government, and so on. And so, it wouldn’t take them long to no longer consider themselves as Anglicans. Rather, they, instead, referred to themselves as “Congregationalists.”

The Puritans came to gain religious freedom, but it must be understood that they were only interested, really, in religious freedom for themselves. Ones who took exception to Puritan doctrine and practice were soon invited to leave the Colony, or they suffered persecution at the hands of the Puritans, who had suffered persecution in England.

Religious freedom, religious tolerance, as we know it, as we understand it today, had many growing pains to go through. There are many examples that could be cited, but one that I thought was interesting was one named Roger Williams, who is actually credited with being the founder of the State of Rhode Island. His founding of the State of Rhode Island grew out of this practice by the Puritans to excommunicate people from their Colony who did not agree with them.

This one, Williams, arrived in Massachusetts in 1631, and he soon found himself at odds with the orthodox leadership of the Puritans. Eventually, he was ordered banned from the Colony, but to escape being deported back to England, he fled into the frozen wilderness. Here he was given refuge by the Narragansett Indians. (After he had first arrived in the New World, he had done some missionary work with these Native Americans.) And so, the following Spring in 1631, Williams and some other exiles founded Providence on Narragansett Bay. Here, in this community, Williams would found what is widely considered to be the first Baptist church in America. Because of the religious toleration that was granted by this Colony, other dissenters were soon attracted to it.

Now we move to the Middle Colonies. Their religious history is quite varied, but also quite interesting.

What is now the city of New York was originally settled by the Dutch, who were members of the Dutch Reformed Church. (By the way, you probably remember from your American History that New York was originally called New Amsterdam.) By the time that the British would take over this Colony, New York City was well on its way to becoming a cosmopolitan community, with a population that claimed membership from several different religious groups.

Pennsylvania became a stronghold for minority groups who were elsewhere persecuted. William Penn, who was a wealthy Quaker, was granted a charter in 1681, and it would be in Pennsylvania where he began what was referred to as his “holy experiment.” This would be a refuge for Quakers, who flocked to the colonies in large numbers. But Penn encouraged other groups to migrate to Pennsylvania, as well. And so, as a result, Pennsylvania became a refuge for many different people with varied religious backgrounds and understandings—German Lutherans, Reformed, Brethren, Mennonites, Amish, and Baptists were welcomed. Many of these were of German extraction, and because they retained their German ways for several generations, they became known as “The Pennsylvania Dutch.” Later, they would be joined by a large group of Scotch/Irish Presbyterians.

One named Cecil Calvert, who was the Second Lord Baltimore, founded Maryland. And it was founded to provide a refuge for Roman Catholics.

So, we see, then, that here are these colonies—the Virginia Colony; the New England Colony; and these Middle Colonies, and we see something of their religious makeup, and how that came about.

Now, there was something that would take place in the early to middle part of the 18^th Century known as “The Great Awakening.” What was “The Great Awakening”? Well, it was something that began to take place in Europe—on the European continent—as well as in the British Isles. Many of those who were very religious in their understanding, regardless of what their religious persuasion was, had been very fervent in the practice of their religion. But over time, that religious fervor had begun to wane. And, that was the case here in America, as well.

For example, that religious fervor that motivated the Puritans especially lost its intensity from one generation to the next. Historians say that that was for many reasons, none the least of which was because they had trouble transferring that religious fervor and zeal from one generation to the next. Another reason was because they were no longer a persecuted people. They had been persecuted in England. That had caused so many of them to come to this land. When they came here and experienced the religious freedom that they had…they might have had to move around a little bit, but eventually they found sanctuary, and so they were no longer persecuted…they could practice their religion freely. Well, that contributed to their loss of fervor.

Also, the rigors of those who had been part of that settling group, who had made the arduous journey from England, and who would come to this New World where it was frontier and where the hardships were many, and many were lost to disease and to Indian raids, and all kinds of other troubles...those people tended to rely upon God. They had deep faith in God to provide for them; to provide their sustenance; to provide their safety, and that kind thing. Well, Puritans in the 18^th Century, by comparison, had attained a level of comfortable living, of safety, that would have been branded by their grandfathers as being “unspeakable luxury,” as one writer put it.

And the conclusion is that few things can extinguish the flame of fervor more quickly than material wealth. Some things never change, do they?

This brings about, then, this period that called “The Great Awakening.” There are many things that can be said about that, many things which would take place, but we’ll mention a couple of well-known figures from that time.

Probably the best known is one named Jonathan Edwards of Massachusetts. He was the son and grandson of Congregational ministers. He graduated from Yale at the young age of seventeen, and he had developed quite a reputation for both his scholarship and for his piety. In 1727, he became an assistant to his grandfather, who ministered to the church at North Hampton, Massachusetts. At the death of his grandfather, young Jonathan became the full-time minister of that church. And his sermons, they say, could hardly be categorized as “sensational.” Nevertheless they had a particular air about them. They were probably what we might categorize as “hellfire and brimstone” sermons, very much getting the attention of members of his congregation. As a matter of fact, this one, Jonathan Edwards, became so well-known for his preaching the wrath of God and these hellfire and brimstone sermons that many were, as they referred to it, “restored” in their attendance and in their fervor for the church. Many were converted, and so on. He is well-known, and some of you may be familiar with the title of one of his sermons that has lived, low, these many years: “Sinners in the Hand of an Angry God.” That is a sermon that is still in print and still can be found. And it was in that sermon that he characterized man as being like a spider, dangling from a silk web—a silk thread—dangled over the fire of hell, and the flames licking up all around; and at any moment, one of those flames might singe that thread, and the person would fall into the fires of hell. Well, that is a picture that has been perpetuated, and is in the minds of many, even to this day.

Well, of course, there were some others who were associated with The Great Awakening—William Tennet and his sons stirred the Presbyterians; one named George Whitefield stirred the Anglicans.

The results of The Great Awakening were rather short-lived. They were successful for a while; this fervor was rekindled, but it would not take long before people began to, once again, change their focus from religious matters to political matters. And of course, what was successful about The Great Awakening was many-fold, no doubt. But there was a renewed interest in education and scholarship. So, as an indirect result of The Great Awakening a number of educational institutions were begun in this country that still exist today. Several universities were started as a result of the revival spirit: Princeton, Rutgers, Brown, Columbia, Dartmouth, and Washington and Lee. Many of those schools make up the “Ivy League” schools that are still around today. And, yes, they did have their origin as religious schools.

During this period of The Great Awakening, there was also a new concern about Indian missions—taking the “gospel” to the natives. And there were indeed some other good things that came about from this Great Awakening.

The attention, as I said, would not stay long on spiritual things. And one of the things which would dictate the citizenry’s attention was the sound of the drums of war, looking toward what would eventually be the Revolutionary War, and disconnecting from the crown. There would be, as regards spiritual things, religious things, as a result of the war and dislocations from families and many other things that resulted from war in that day, and result from war even today, the result that churches became weak; people became more immoral, and those sorts of things. And so, when peace came upon the land in 1783, churches—and speaking now generically across the board—churches found themselves to be in something of a weakened condition.

But, we would see, though, that with freedom, with the declaration of our independence, and winning our independence from England, there would also be a great impact on these churches. They would see that where many of them had had this connection, as well, back to England, that connection was now severed. And so, it did not take them long after the Revolutionary War to begin to sort of restructure themselves and change the way that they looked on the world, the way that they conducted themselves, the way they organized, etc.

The religious picture in America at the close of the 18^th Century was not especially promising. The strong religious motivation that was so conspicuous in the early colonial days had long since disappeared. Even The Great Awakening had not for long stemmed the tide running against religion. It has been estimated that less than ten percent of the population belonged to any church by 1800. The Episcopal Church, which had been the established church in several of the Southern colonies, had lost these privileges, to its dismay. The Congregational Church was, before long, to lose similar privileges in New England. Most would agree that separation of church and state has proved beneficial in the long run to both church and state, but at the time that the established churches lost these privileges, few of their leaders were able to foresee the advantages that that separation would bring.

Again, this was very, very cursory, but we see, now, where we stand in this country at the end of the Revolutionary War—nearing the end of the 18^th Century. Next time, we’re going to look at the further development of denominations, the establishment of new denominations, in this country. And then, that’s where we will set the stage for our discussion about the Restoration.