Native American Religion

There are more than 2,000 primary religious organizations in the United States, taking a number of different forms including churches, sects, cults, temples, societies and missions. Their origins are wide and derive from many sources. Before the introduction of Christianity from Europe to the United States, Native American religion was disparate, separated by tribes, clans or nations. It was unstructured but in general spirituality was inherent in every aspect of their lives; religion was characterized by a oneness with nature and the intense relationship between the indigenous people and their environment.

In the 17th century a wave of European settlers crossed the Atlantic to escape persecution in their native countries. They found in the
America was exceptional in its willingness to embrace diverse religions and was the first western nation to be founded predominately by Protestants rather than Roman Catholics. In fact, religious freedom plays a significant role in the history of the United States. As a result of religious oppression in Europe, those who moved to the New World sought a place in which they were free to practice their faith without fear of persecution. This freedom was enshrined in the First Amendment to the Constitution, which stated that: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." This religious tolerance allowed for the proliferation of many different denominations of the Christian
Originally, 900 Puritan colonists arrived in Massachusetts Bay; by 1640, they were 17,800 in number and in 1700, this had grown to 106,000. It was characterized by self-imposed isolation, religious exclusivity and the belief that people were individually accountable to God. The Puritans were responsible for the first free schools in America. They established the first American college, Harvard, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Later on, Puritanism would lead to the Baptist and Congregationalist movements.

By the end of the 19th century, Roman Catholicism was the largest denomination in the United States. This was due to the sheer size of the population of immigrants who originated from Catholic nations. Its members grew following an aggressive campaign of recruitment, which was meant to counter Protestant sects. American Catholicism demanded a distinctive lifestyle and placed high standards on the members of its church. However, its stronghold gave way to a pluralistic society which began in the