Religion in America Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Religion in America - Essay Example In 1776, this religious vigor led to rebel of Americans against their colonizers, the Great Britain. In forming governments, at both the state and national levels following these rebellions, American political leaders shared the conviction that religion was indispensable in maintaining the republican institutions. The efforts of these United States’ founders to define the significance of religion during this revolutionary time helped in shaping the American’s future leadership within institutions and communal organizations. Through the same spirit of transformation, religious transformation that took places in different parts of the Europe also affected the lives of African Americans quite significantly. The foundation, creation, and development of purely black churches were the greatest achievements in the reconstruction era. African-Americans conceptualized this reconstruction as freedom (Ebel 24). Notably, churches were the first institutions to be managed and controlled entirely by the black community. Just before the American civil war, many black slaves had secret religious meetings that were held off the presence of their masters/whites. Nonetheless, some free blacks formed part of biracial congregations that were controlled by whites and in most of these congregations; blacks were to sit behind whites during the service (Ebel 200). Blacks sharing churches with a white was a predominant practice in the south and was introduced by the Anglican ministers. Emancipation made blacks withdraw from these white managed institutions. They pulled resources and initiated their own churches.