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Early America Back to History Unit


America as a Religious Refuge: The Seventeenth Century
Library of Congress: Religion and the Founding of the American Republic

Description: This resource is a digital exhibit examining the religious persecutions which led so many Europeans to seek refuge in what they hoped would be a "New World" freed from such constraints. It is notably even-handed in portraying the conflicts between Protestants and Catholics, as well as those between various Protestant groups. While not seeking to deny or downplay the importance of the various economic motives that led Europeans to the American continent, the exhibit helps remind students that --for many immigrants--ideals of religious and personal freedom were as important as material motives.



Teaching Tips:

"Do Now" Suggestions
  • Students could list or explain reasons why individuals (or they themselves) might choose to move to a new country or part of the world. The teacher could solicit as many different responses as possible, and then direct students to explain which of these reasons they find most compelling. Students could then begin exploring this website.
  • Students could respond in their journals to a "current issue" religious controversy question (whether voluntary prayer can be part of public school; whether "religious profiling" of Muslims violates First Amendment guarantees, etc.). Teachers could then lead a short discussion of the role of religious freedom in the United States, and finish by introducing students to this project website.
Suggestion for Using this Resource as Part of a Lesson
  • Students could research a current instance of religious or ethnic persecution, and compare and contrast that current example with one of the examples of persecution discussed in this site. Categories of comparison might include geographic locations for the religion and where the persecution is occurring, instances of conflict, religious practices and disputed beliefs, and possible resolutions. Students could then share their findings with the class.

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