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The Salem Witch Trials
1692-1693
The Salem Witch Trials erupted on the heels of centuries of European witch trials and decades of colonial upset. Strict Puritans clashed increasingly with more progressive Puritan and economically savy families (The Smithsonian Magazine). Reverend Joseph Green assumed the role of Minister in the wake of the trials and successflly reunited the Puritan factions of Salem (The Danvers Library).. -
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The First Great Awakening
Disillusioned with The Church of England, predestination and the wealth and greed that was spreading throughout the colonies, a variety of new denominations arose in the wake of The Enlightenment. These denominations were more democratic and their leaders were often not ordained - bringing the role of a minister down from the ranks of the upper classes (USHistory.org). Gilbert Tennet, Jonathan Edwards, and George Whitfield ushered in a new era religious practice and philosophy. -
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The American Revolution
Aside from religious motivations behind the colonial break from England, the Revolution also ushers in new Christian denominations and the employment of chaplains by the American Army - making them the oldest branch of the army, second only to the infantry. -
The Separation of Religion and Government
Thomas Jefferson drafts the first legilsation advocating the separation of church and state titled the Virginia Bill Estalishing Religious Freedom. Jefferson argued that people must find God on their own and that civic rights should not depend on religious beliefs. This bill would not become law until 1786 but would lay the fondation for future documents including the First Amendment to the Constitution.(The National Archives - Founders Online). -
The A.M.E Church is Born
Richard Allen founds the African Methodist Episcopal Church in Philadelphia as a haven for African Americans to practice religion free of racial discrimination and persecution. A.M.E churches would grow and spread, particularly during the Civil War, and can stil be found throughout the nation as healthy, practicing congregations today (ame-church.com). -
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The Second Great Awakening
This period largely sought to instill feelings of personal salvation. The Second Great Awakening led the way for religious activism that would later be known as the Third Great Awakening and The Restoration Period. By the early 1800s, the relationship between a man and God no longer required a path through the pulpit and the sense of indiviual responsibility in faith would lead to the boom in evangelism and missions ministry.
