The Slavery Of The United States - 1466 Words

When people think of America, they think of a Christian country. Going all the way back to the beginning of the history of North America, many colonists came for religious reasons, most notably the Pilgrims, who landed in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1620 seeking refuge from the persecution by the Church of England because of their separatist beliefs. They saw America as a place where they could settle and be free to worship God how they saw fit. This idea was prevalent in early American history, including in the amending of the Constitution of the United States of America. Freedoms of all kind, including religion, were so important to Americans at the time that they put them in the first amendment of the Bill of Rights: that â€Å"Congress†¦show more content†¦Prior to much of the debate about the constitutionality of prayer in public schools, the topic was not considered very controversial. In early American history, Protestant religions were not only dominant, but th eir influence and membership grew. This was thanks in part to the Great Awakenings that took place periodically, the First in the 1730s and 1740s, the Second in the 1800s to 1830s, and the Third from the 1850s to early 20th century. The effect of the Great Awakenings on the people can be seen by the fact that during the period from 1780 to 1860, Methodist, Catholic, Episcopal, Baptist, Lutheran, and Congregational churches all saw an increase in the number of local churches, especially after 1800. The number of members in the churches grew as well; the Methodist church saw their membership grow by a factor of almost 30 over a 70 year period during which the population only grew by a factor of 8. Throughout the late 1700s, the 1800s, and even most of the 1900s, it was common for schools to begin the day with a prayer or Bible reading. In Edgerton, Wisconsin in 1886, Catholic parents protested the reading of the King James Bible in