Religious persecution is the mistreatment of a group or individual for their religions beliefs (Jefferson). In seventeenth century Europe, groups of people with similar beliefs tended to band together and persecute those who did not agree with them (Jefferson). The cause of this is that people with similar beliefs often had the same lifestyle, or morals, and tended to create a society where they participate in only one accepted culture. They thought that there was only one religion that could exist and all others needed to be killed (Jefferson). The state also caused a lot of this persecution. They label certain religions or groups as a threat to the security of the people and their freedom (Jefferson). Many religions groups persecuted those who opposed them to show the world that they were powerful. The worse they treated other cultural groups, the larger the threat they were (Jefferson).

There were many different types of persecution in Europe in the seventeenth century. Some religions groups would simply threaten them to conform their religious practices, while others would torture them, making death a long and painful process (Jefferson). There were many groups who tortured individuals in ways that caused as much pain as they could possibly think to do (Powell). One of the most common forms or torture in this time period, tarring and feathering, caused people to be tortured physically and humiliated (Powell). Europeans did not tolerate having to live with the fear of being tortured or killed and sought after religious freedom elsewhere (Powell).

These persecuted religious groups in Europe, mainly Puritans, looked to North America for freedom from religious persecution (Powell). Starting in 1630, there were as many as 20,000 Puritans that had migrated from England to the new land (Powell). These people are some of the very same men and women who eventually led to establish the Unites States of America. Individuals and religious groups who migrated to America formed their own colonies. Many people in this era considered these colonies to be a “religious experiment” (Powell).

John Winthrop was a major Puritan leader in the seventeenth century. He took a group of Puritans to America and landed in Massachusetts Bay (Powell). Winthrop and his colony mastered the concept of living and thriving off of each other as a colony. Their numbers grew from 17,800 in 1640 to 106,000 in 1700 (Powell). This specific denomination of Puritanism focused on the teachings of John Calvin. This was the idea that their destiny was pre-determined, and that nothing they did on earth could change it (Powell). This was one of the major beliefs that led to the Witch Hunts in 1688 in Salem (Powell).

When establishing churches in America, the Puritans wanted to base them on the same ideas as the Church of England, only with some major reforms (“Puritan Life”). Each one of the churches in America had its own identity and practices varied based on the region, although they were very similar. These churches would only allow members that could prove to the others that they had converted from the ways of the Church of England (“Puritan Life”). Anyone who did not have significant prove would be banned from the church (“Puritan Life”). The hope of the new church system was that the Church of England would imitate what they ha done in America (“Puritan Life”).
The Puritan churches did not teach from the Bible. The religious leaders thought that they should regulate what the common people could read from scripture (“Puritan Life”). They began to distribute books called “Bible Commonwealths” that contained only specific portions of actual scripture (“Puritan Life”). Along with these books, there were a number of written laws that the members of the church must abide by, or they would be excommunicated from the church (“Puritan Life”).

The churches in New England began to create an environment that was very similar to that of Europe. Those who did not have the same beliefs as the Puritan church were not socially accepted (“Puritan Life”). Although the physical persecution of these people was not as severe as it was in Europe, many people still did not have the religious freedom that they had hoped for when migrating to America (“Puritan Life”). Americans began an attempt to reform the church yet again. There were new laws founded in the Massachusetts Bay Colony that stated that opposition of the church was punishable by death (“Puritan Life”). Other laws stated that men were required to attend morning church service (“Puritan Life”). If they did not attend the church of their village, they could be fined. Men could not work or do anything that brought them joy on the Sabbath day, even if they attended the morning service (“Puritan Life”). These laws made religion a chore, and many men and women left the Puritan church.

The religious persecution resulted in over 900 denominations of Christianity, most of which are still around today (Powell). America is founded on a religious basis that is part of the Protestant beliefs, not Roman Catholic (Powell). The religious freedom today would not exist if it were not for the persecution of many people both in Europe, and in America throughout our history.

Works Cited
Jefferson, Thomas; Penn, William; Williams, Roger. “America as a Religious Refuge: The Seventeenth Century”. Library of Congress (1998).
Powell, John. “Impact of Religion on Immigration”. Encyclopedia of North American Immigration. Facts on File, 2013. 30 September 2013
Puritan Life. U.S. History. Independence Hall, 1942. Web. 28 September 2013