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American History Lecture One (view source)

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The Congregational Church was started by Pilgrims in Plymouth (1620) as Independents.  Like the Puritans themselves, the Congregationalists declined over time due dispersal of the population on farms, the growth of rationalism, and perhaps the biggest reason of all, prosperity and the arrogance that can engender.
 
The Congregational Church was started by Pilgrims in Plymouth (1620) as Independents.  Like the Puritans themselves, the Congregationalists declined over time due dispersal of the population on farms, the growth of rationalism, and perhaps the biggest reason of all, prosperity and the arrogance that can engender.
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Cracks in Puritan way became clear in the Halfway Covenant of 1657.  It was an agreement at an assembly of Puritans from Massachusetts and Connecticut to allow halfway church membership and baptism for sinners.  Second and third-generation Puritans seemed more interested in money than having the "born again" religious conversion necessary to become a full member of the Puritan Church and required in order to be allowed to baptize their children in the Church.  The Reverend Solomon Stoddard, whose grandson would be [[Jonathan Edwards]] discussed in the next class, proposed partial or "halfway" membership in the Church of children and grandchildren of Church members.  All the children and grandchildren need do was accept the Covenant and agree to the beliefs and rules of the Church, in order to participate in the sacraments of the Church.  But they would not be allowed to vote on any Church issues until they had a spiritual conversion.  This approach was adopted, but continued to be resisted by people on both sides of the issue:  some who thought it was too lenient, and others who found it too strict.
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Debate:  were the Puritans right to be strict and to expel people of other religions?
 
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One prominent text claims, under “Rhode Island,” that “This belief [by Roger Williams] in the separation of church and state became a cornerstone of the American Constitution in 1787.”  That is completely false.  Roger Williams was long dead by 1787, and there is no separation of church and state in the Constitution.  Rhode Island did not even send any representatives to draft the Constitution and it had no role in the drafting of the Bill of Rights.  In fact, Rhode Island did not ratify the Constitution until after George Washington was elected president, and even then it took much arm-twisting to compel Rhode Island to ratify the Constitution.  But some people want to keep religion out of government, and they refuse to admit that the First Amendment only prohibits the establishment of a national church by the government.  Rhode Island was the only colony that supported a "separation" of church and state.
 
One prominent text claims, under “Rhode Island,” that “This belief [by Roger Williams] in the separation of church and state became a cornerstone of the American Constitution in 1787.”  That is completely false.  Roger Williams was long dead by 1787, and there is no separation of church and state in the Constitution.  Rhode Island did not even send any representatives to draft the Constitution and it had no role in the drafting of the Bill of Rights.  In fact, Rhode Island did not ratify the Constitution until after George Washington was elected president, and even then it took much arm-twisting to compel Rhode Island to ratify the Constitution.  But some people want to keep religion out of government, and they refuse to admit that the First Amendment only prohibits the establishment of a national church by the government.  Rhode Island was the only colony that supported a "separation" of church and state.
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