Week 9 -Circulation of Religion

In the British colonies, there were several religious beliefs. The five basic religious beliefs systems during those times were Deism, Calvinism, Arminianism, Methodism, and the beliefs of the Society of Friends. As of today we still see some of those beliefs circulating around us. The two beliefs from the British colonies that I still see in Modern America are Calvinism and Deism.

Calvinism is a series of beliefs that were taught by John Calvin. The teachings of this religion emphasizes predestination, the sovereignty of God, the supreme authority of the scriptures, and the irresistibility of grace (Wikipedia). According to the Calvinism, the salvation is accomplished by the power of the triune God (Father, son, and spirit). They also believe that the father chose people, the son died for them, and the holy spirit makes death effective. Man does not determine who will receive God’s salvation. The people of who go by the beliefs of Calvinism live according to the five points of Calvinism. The five points of Calvinism are total inability, unconditional election, limited atonement, irresistible grace, and perseverance of the saints.

Deism is a religion that bases it’s faith off of reasons. Deist are people who are has a belief in God through reason, personal experience, nature. They believe in free thoughts rather than holy texts or divine revelation. Deists are encouraged to use their own reasons and experience to determine their views on God. Deists believe that reasons are not just used for religious views but for other aspects of life as well. They believe that all men are created equal and have inherent freedom based on the laws of nature. Deism believers believe that humans are free thinkers who will develop their own beliefs.

The beliefs of Calvinism and Deism are shared widely among America’s population. It is not just a minority group that share these beliefs. I have seen some of these beliefs shared by people that I go to school with. The most famous one is Deism. I see the beliefs that I discussed helping those who hold them live what they perceive as “the good life” in America. One of the beliefs that the Deism believe which is all men are created equal is actually something that we all live by because it is in the Declaration of Independence. The way I see the people who share the Calvinism beliefs helping them to live what they perceive as the good life is by encouraging good conduct within the people.

The circulation of beliefs that were in the literature of the British colonies still circulate until this day. “I do not mean by this declaration to condemn those who believe otherwise; they have the same right to their belief as I have to mine” (from The Age of Reason; Being an Investigation of True and Fabulous Theology, Part One). In this quote from Paine, is something that we all live by today. It is one of our rights and in the Constitution it is called “Freedom of Religion”. We have the right to believe whatever it is that we want to believe. Although we all have different religions and beliefs I believe they all coincide with each other.