Although many colonies were founded by English settlers to gain religious freedom, these settlements wanted religious freedom for themselves, not other religions. This lead to disputes between the colonies and their religious dissenters and, eventually, the banishment of these dissenters. One such individual was a Puritan woman named Anne Hutchinson. This woman believed that she was allowed to counsel people in the Word because she was called to by God. The following excerpt from Anne Hutchinson’s trial displays the intolerance of the Puritan society: “Mrs. Hutchinson, you are called here as one of those who have troubled the peace of the commonwealth and the churches here” (RTAP, 22 “The Trail of Puritan Dissenter Anne Hutchinson”). Some dissenters, such as Roger Williams, were banished and created their own settlements. Roger Williams was a Puritan dissenter who founded the colony of Rhode Island. These dissenters changed the shape of American history. Rhode Island was a successful colony and grew until it reached statehood. Without the religious influences of the time period, America would not have the same states that it has in modern …show more content…
This, surprisingly, had a religious aspect. When slaves first arrived in the Americas, they were primarily Muslim. The colonists abided under the rule that a Christian could not enslave their fellow Christians. However, as time progressed, some of the slaves converted to Christianity. This raised the question “can you still own a slave who is a Christian?” This lead to the legislative decisions that Christina slaves were still slaves. This was a controversial religious act at the time, and paved the way for future religious acts in the leadership of the colonies and, eventually, the