During The American Revolutionary War, the state religion of Great Britain was Christianity?

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The American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), the American War of Independence,[N 1] or simply the Revolutionary War in the United States, was the military rebellion against Great Britain of Thirteen American Colonies which joined together as the United States of America in July 1776. Originally limited to fighting in those colonies, after 1778 it also became a world war between Britain and France, Netherlands, Spain, and Mysore.[N 2]

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Revolutionary_War

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Type: Question • Score: 17 • Views: 40,669 • Replies: 750

View best answer, chosen by oristarA

More specifically, it was the Church of England, also known as the Anglican Church--and yes, that's a chriistian sect.

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@Setanta,

But "Christianity" (or the Church of England) wasn't something what we call "state religion" nowadays: it was a "National Church" in those days, with Puritans and Protestants and even Roman Catholics existing outside the Anglican Church.

Edited: that happened after the Restoration of Charles II:
The Restoration settlements made this situation considerably worse as, much against Charles's will, his Parliament decided on a narrowly defined Church based on hierarchy and ceremony, and expelled from it everybody who preferred a broader-based and more austere one, with a greater emphasis on preaching. This created a major new problem of nonconformity, as several new groups of Protestants formed alongside and outside the national one. Source

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@Walter Hinteler,

It was the established church, Walter. One could not hold public office unless one was a communicant of the Anglican Church. If you were to dig a little deeper, you'd find that the Restoration Parliament also took steps to exclude those professing any other religion from public office. There were a series of Test Acts, beginning in 1673, and the first was intended specifically to target James, Duke of York, who was (correctly) believed to be a secret Catholic. The RC Church later gave dispensation for Catholics to take Anglican communion to get around the Test Acts, so in the reign of Queen Anne, the Parliament passed the Occasional Conformity Act. I do have to wonder how you would define "state religion."

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@Setanta,

True, Set.

So I verify my above post (and change it): the Church of Scotland was/is the national church of Scotland, the Church of England was/is the officially established religious institution in England.

And Christianity was (nearly) the only religious belief in Great Britain during the time of the American revolution.

1 Reply

@Walter Hinteler,

After the Act of Union (1715?), the Test Acts and the Occasional Conformity Act applied to subjects of the newly created United Kingdom equally. The Kirk, although certainly the moral power in Scotland, had no standing in the United Kingdom.

(Either that or it was the Act of Onions--i always get those two confused.)

1 Reply

@Setanta,

In Scotland, the Kirk has been established as the national Church of Scotland by the Revolution Settlement of 1690 (according to its website).

1 Reply

@Walter Hinteler,

OK, i'll take your word for that, but were members of the Kirk entitled to hold public office in the United Kingdom?

Were not onions banned in Scotland by the 1715 act?

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Benjamin Disraeli had to covert to C of E to become an MP.

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@Setanta,

Setanta wrote:

. . . I do have to wonder how you would define "state religion."

In Canada, "hockey".

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@oristarA,

No wonder Thomas Jefferson said:"Christianity is the most perverted system that ever shone on man."
The success of American Independence demanded some degree of anti-Christianity to undermine the morale of the then Great Britain.

4 Replies

@oristarA,

So... then.... why are we sending all of those Bibles to spread Freedom in China?

1 Reply

@maxdancona,

maxdancona wrote:

So... then.... why are we sending all of those Bibles to spread Freedom in China?

A possibility is that the sent Bibles are just by-products of the success of American Independence - the revolutionary ideas of which are well expressed in the declaration drafted by Jefferson "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness." Any forms of slavery preached by the Bible, especially the Old Testaments, have no place before these shining achievements of brilliant human brain.

2 Replies

@oristarA,

oristarA wrote:

maxdancona wrote:

So... then.... why are we sending all of those Bibles to spread Freedom in China?

A possibility is that the sent Bibles are just by-products of the success of American Independence - the revolutionary ideas of which are well expressed in the declaration drafted by Jefferson "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness." Any forms of slavery preached by the Bible, especially the Old Testaments, have no place before these shining achievements of brilliant human brain.

That is, these Bibles just serve as a reminder of American success in their struggle for Freedom. If you are smart enough, DON'T read them, or you'll get poisoned by the slaveholder thought.

1 Reply

@oristarA,

oristarA wrote:

The success of American Independence demanded some degree of anti-Christianity to undermine the morale of the then Great Britain.

It's still Great Britain, the "great" does not refer to the glory of empire, but distinguishes it from lesser Britain, otherwise known as Brittany.

http://0.tqn.com/d/goeurope/1/S/r/s/1/brittany-rail-map.png

1 Reply

@izzythepush,

izzythepush wrote:

oristarA wrote:
The success of American Independence demanded some degree of anti-Christianity to undermine the morale of the then Great Britain.

It's still Great Britain, the "great" does not refer to the glory of empire, but distinguishes it from lesser Britain, otherwise known as Brittany.

Like myself, I believe many Americans just think that Great Britain is great, due to the incorporation of Scotland, Wales, and whatever else, into the English entity of England. In other words, all those other regions are just poseurs, feeding off the English for any national pride.

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@Foofie,

Foofie wrote:

. . . Like myself, I believe many Americans just think that Great Britain is
great, due to the incorporation of Scotland, Wales, and whatever else,
into the English entity of England. In other words, all those other regions are just
poseurs, feeding off the English for any national pride.

Nope. That's just you.

1 Reply

@oristarA,

oristarA wrote:

The success of American Independence demanded some degree of anti-Christianity to undermine the morale of the then Great Britain.

That is utter bullsh*t.

By the way, it was Great Britain then, and it's still Great Britain.

1 Reply

@George,

I put Foofie on ignore a while back, I'm sick of hearing tales of his ignorance. I think it's a miracle he knows which hole to **** out of.

1 Reply

@izzythepush,

Sorry about the quote, then.

1 Reply

During The American Revolutionary War, the state religion of Great Britain was Christianity?

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