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William Penn and the Holy Experiment

“Born into the Church of England, William Penn became a convinced member of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers). As a dissenter, Penn was sensitive to individual leadings in religious matters. When he founded the colony of Pennsylvania in 1682, Penn welcomed practitioners of all faiths. In 1701, Penn issued his Charter of Privileges which specified religious freedom within the colony. Penn's charter contemplates a monotheistic, Christian society in which only Christians were permitted to hold public office.” (National Park Service)

Native American Experiences in the U.S.

Background/Basic Information:

  • Creating a definition of one universal “Native American religion” is impossible; every native tribe throughout the country incorporates different values, traditions and teachings into their own unique religious beliefs.

  • Tribes vary in their theories of creation, how nature and human beings came to exist and where they originated from. Different traditions utilize different gods (The Great Creator, Great Spirit, Earth Mother).

  • Spirituality factored into all aspects of daily life; the natural and supernatural worlds were one in the same, thus incorporating religion into everything.

Traditions took on many similar forms between tribes: ceremonial dances, tribal gatherings and sacrifices of goods were most prominent. Sacred gatherings and insights were led by different members of the tribe (a medicine man or shaman) who possessed the power to engage the supernatural more strongly, through visions and dreams.

Most, if not all Native American religions, functioned under some form of belief in animism. Tendency for tribes to hold polytheistic views led to many early settlers perceiving them as paganistic, therefore different and dangerous. Animism illustrates the belief that a living spirit resides in all things, living or not. Animals, materials, elements of nature such as the sun and the moon, all possessed an individual spirit. Nature is an integral role in spirituality, geography dictating traditions and cultures born out of a constant sense of gratitude; different natural entities played a crucial role in ceremony and worship (Mother Earth, sun and moon gods).

Specifics of any Native American religious or spiritual practices were rarely recorded; oral history passed down through generations was utilized to maintain the upkeep of traditions. Native American culture and religion is still prominent in the United States today, having been passed down through generations. The Native American Church (NAC), or the practice of Peyotism, is one of the most influential religious practices among tribes in the United States today. Officially chartered in the early 20th Century, it integrates Christian principles with ancient tribal traditions and rituals.

St. Lucy’s Home for Girls Raised by Wolves

Strong Medicine Speaks - referenced by Rev. Norwood

Watch: Mark Wallace on the History of the Lenni Lenape and the Crum Woods

The Pluralism Project: First Encounters: Native Americans and Christians, Harvard University.

The Pluralism Project: Native American Church, Harvard University.

Why Native Hawaiians Protesting Giant Telescope on Mauna Kea Aren't Going Anywhere (10:24)

Wounded Knee, the site of a historic massacre

Islam

Islam has the earliest presence in America due to the presence of enslaved persons brought here from Africa in the eighteenth and seventeenth centuries. Approximately 10% to 30% of enslaved persons were Muslims. Although the practice of Islam largely faded from the American landscape by the early nineteenth century, African American Muslims today place great symbolic importance on the presence of these early Muslims.  African Americans were the first in the U.S. to convert to Islam in large numbers. It might seem tedious to learn about obscure and non-orthodox groups like the Moorish Science Temple (MST) movement and the Nation of Islam (NOI), but these groups were deeply important in generating interest in Islamic culture and ideals among African Americans.

The overwhelming majority of African Americans in the Nation of Islam converted to traditional Sunni Islam in the 1970s under the leadership of Warith Deen Muhammad. Malcolm X's hajj to Mecca in 1964 inspired many African Americans to look to Islam. Only about 1% of African Americans identify as Muslim. However, African American Muslims are quite visible in Philadelphia. This chart below from the American Mosque Report 2011. It shows that African Americans are declining their overall percentage of Muslims in the U.S. However, most conversions to Islam in the U.S. continue to occur among African Americans. It is not uncommon for Arab and South Asian mosques to invite African American Muslim preachers to speak to their youth. (See Su'ad Abdul Khabeer's book Muslim Cool)

Reading Suggestion: ‘Acts Of Faith: The Story Of An American Muslim, The Struggle For The Soul Of A Generation.’ by Eboo Patel

“In one of the moments when my father was feeling especially righteous about his “Muslim-ness,” I overheard him expressing concern to my mother that the YMCA, which was after all the Young Men’s Christian Association, was teaching us Christian songs. “Do you think they are trying to teach Christianity to our kids?” he asked, the tone of his voice a kind of auditory chest thumping. “I hope so,” my mother responded. “I hope they teach the kids Jewish and Hindu songs, too. That’s the kind of Muslims we want our kids to be.”

“I thought about the meaning of pluralism in a world where the forces that seek to divide us are strong. I came to one conclusion: We have to save each other. It’s the only way to save ourselves.”

“I realized that it was precisely because of America’s glaring imperfections that I should seek to participate in its progress, carve a place in its promise, and play a role in its possibility. And at its heart and at its best, America was about pluralism.”
― Eboo Patel, Acts of Faith: The Story of an American Muslim, the Struggle for the Soul of a Generation

Learning Activities:

Philadelphia Mosques

Christianity

Liberal Protestantism

History & Beliefs

In the 17th and 18th Centuries, Europe underwent radical changes in thought during the period known as the Age of Enlightenment. Intellectual theories regarding areas of study such as science and philosophy began to prevail within society and simultaneously undermine outdated doctrines of politics and religion.

Advances in technology and scientific theories continued after the Enlightenment and began to gain both popularity and criticism from public and private intellectuals.

  • In November of 1859, Charles Darwin published his most famous work On the Origin of Species, which explained his theory of evolution based on natural selection. Within a decade the theory was viewed as a fact by many different communities, scientific or not.

  • The theory of evolution, particularly natural selection, contradicted early Christian scripture such as the creation narrative presented in the Book of Genesis within the Old Testament.

In order to adapt to the changing times and knowledge, liberals developed what is known as “liberation theology” in order to allow religions such as Christianity to enter a more modern context. Liberal Protestantism became an early example of combining Christian principles with modernity.

  • Friedrich Schleiermacher (1768-1834): German theologian and scholar who is considered by many to be the “Father of Liberal Theology,” his work emphasized that religion could and should be experienced through feeling, not through reason. He attempted to take ideas of the Enlightenment and reconcile them with Protestantism.

Opinions vary in liberation theology, though pertaining to the branch of liberal Protestantism:

  • The Bible is open to criticism and interpretation, while examining early scripture and the figure of Jesus Christ from a historical perspective rather than simply based in faith.

  • Instead of being the direct word of God, some liberal Protestants view the Bible as merely scripture about God, through the teachings of Jesus Christ. 

  • Human experience, particularly that of the individual, is emphasized greatly.

  • Elements of superstition were rejected in light of new knowledge and reason (the miracles of Jesus Christ were seen rather as metaphors).

  • The teachings of Jesus Christ are a model of ethics and morality for human beings in the context of the society in which they reside.

Liberal Protestantism in the United States

Fundamentalist-Modernist Controversy: During the 1920s and ‘30s in the United States, a major schism occured in light of opposing views within Christianity. Though taking place primarily in the Presbyterian church, liberation theology was at the heart of much of the debate.

Social Gospel: Amidst the transition from the 19th to the 20th Century, this major social movement within Protestantism applied Christian ethics to problems within society such as poverty, inequality, racism, and labor wages. 

African American Christianity

Richard Allen was born into slavery, but purchased his freedom, became a Methodist preacher, and later established the African Methodist Church after leading a protest walkout against racism at from Philadelphia’s St. George’s Methodist Episcopal Church in the 1780s

African Americans in the U.S. today are not the descendants of immigrants. Their ancestors came to North America in chains on slave ships from West and Central Africa. To gain perspective, view this two-minute interactive graphic. In total, more than 10 million enslaved Africans were brought to the Western Hemisphere from the sixteenth to the mid-twentieth centuries. Approximately 390,000 (4% of the total) were brought to North America. White America’s treatment of African Americans has sometimes been referred to as the nation’s original sin. The Civil War fought to end slavery and the Civil Rights movement to secure political rights were both important, but much work is yet to be done as stystemic racism still permeates many of the nation’s institutions.

The first slave ship arrived in Philadelphia in 1684, just two years after William Penn arrived. Penn’s endorsement of slavery reminds us that even those in the past we view as progressive, are still embedded in social structures built on white supremacy.

Abolition Movement: the Struggle to End Slavery

Some of the earliest people to oppose slavery were Quakers and Mennonites. The first written protest against slavery was the 1688 Germantown Quaker Petition Against Slavery. Benjamin Lay was an early abolitionist who disrupted Quaker meetings and called on his fellow Friends to end the practice. In 1780, Pennsylvania passed the Gradual Abolition Act, which declared that persons of African descent born in Pennsylvania would be free. Slavery would not end in the United States until the end of the Civil War.

Key Figures

  • Ona Judge - (d. 1848) born into slavery serving as a slave to the President George Washington's household in Philadelphia, she escaped from the President's house and lived her life as a fugitive in New Hampshire.  

  • Richard Allen - (d. 1831) led a walk-out protest from a predominantly white Methodist church and founded the African Methodist Episcopal Church.

  • Absalom Jones - (d. 1818) first African American ordained as an Episcopal priest. 

  • Jarena Lee - (d. 1864) wrote an account of her religious experience, was licensed to preach by Bishop Allen but was only ordained posthumously by the A.M.E. church in 2016. 

  • Octavius Catto - (d. 1871) African American leader who struggled against segregation and discrimination in transportation, sports, politics, and society; he was murdered on the streets of Philadelphia while fighting for voting rights. 

  • Frederick Douglas - (d. 1895) abolitionist and Christian orator who spoke out against the evils of slavery. 

  • W.E.B. DuBois - (d. 1963) sociologist who wrote a ground-breaking study of African Americans in the city's 7th Ward: The Philadelphia Negro (1899). Read the full-text version, pages 197-234 discuss the social role of the Black church. 

  • Martin Luther King, Jr. - (d. 1968) Baptist preacher and civil rights leader. 

Worship Practices

  • Preaching: often characterized by call and response from the congregation. 

  • Music: Click HERE to learn more about traditional African American music known as spirituals. 

Catholicism in the U.S.

Catholics Sites

Cathedral Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul - 1723 Race St, Philadelphia, PA 19103

Daylesford Abbey (Links to an external site.) - founded in 1954 as the Daylesford Priory at the former Alexander Cassatt Estate in Daylesford, Pennsylvania. The priory moved to Paoli in 1963 where a new building had been constructed. A 700-seat adjoining church was added in 1966.

Roman Catholicism

With over a billion devotees worldwide, Roman Catholicism is one of the largest religious denominations on the planet, and the largest branch of Christianity which stems from the teachings of Jesus Christ.

History & Beliefs

The beginning of Roman Catholicism can be traced back to the beginning of what we know as Christianity; that is to say the life and teachings of Jesus Christ, his death, and his resurrection.

  • Jesus Christ: Also known as Jesus of Nazareth, Christ lived during the 1st Century A.D. and is perceived as the Son of God in Catholic religion. Details on the life of Jesus vary, but many believe that historically Jesus was born a Roman citizen, he was of Jewish descent, and he worked as an artisan/carpenter.

    • The Virgin Mary: the mother of Christ, giving birth to him on what is now recognized in the Catholic community as the holiday of Christmas.

    • The Apostles: the original followers of Jesus Christ, and the teachers of his message after his death and resurrection.

    • Life, Death, and Resurrection: the belief that Jesus was indeed a real person, that he died on the cross and was resurrected three days later; his establishment of Catholic foundations symbolizes the Catholic Church as an extension of his teachings.

  • Holy Trinity: Catholics believe that God as a supreme deity is composed of three individuals: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

  • Spread of Christianity: after his death, the life and teachings of Jesus Christ were spread by his apostles, particularly Paul who incorporated people into the sect who were not Jewish, leading to a more inclusive denomination.

    • Before churches were established in cities, followers of Jesus would conduct early forms of what we now recognize as masses within the confines of their homes.

  • The Pope and the Vatican: many cite the Gospel of Matthew as being evidence in scripture of a foundation of the role of the papacy, proclaiming Peter as the leader of the church. 

    • The Pope is known as the infallible spiritual authority of Catholicism, residing in Vatican City, the headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church.

  • Seven Sacraments: established by Jesus Christ and instituted by the Catholic church as a sacred tradition of devotion to the son of God:

    • Baptism - water ceremony typically done shortly after birth in order for an infant to be relieved of inherent sin and granted access to the kingdom of God.

    • Eucharist - also known as “communion,” the process of ingesting bread and wine, which are in Catholic faith actually the “body and blood” of Christ.

    • Confirmation - the understanding and accepting of what it means to be a member of the Catholic church, typically done as the child is older and can appreciate the situation.

      • These first three sacraments are known as the “Sacraments of Initiation.”

    • Penance - also known as “confession,” this involves the reconciliation and absolution of sin by a priest in order to be relieved of past wrongdoings.

    • Anointing of the Sick - also known as “last rites,” this is typically done when an individual is near death, and a priest uses sacred oils and words to comfort and forgive the dying before they pass.

      • These two sacraments are known as the “Sacraments of Healing.”

    • Marriage - the sacred bond of holy matrimony held between a baptized man and woman.

    • Holy Orders - the rising through the ranks within the hierarchy of the church, in which one can become a deacon, priest, or bishop.

      • These last two sacraments are known as the “Sacraments of Service.”

  • Catechism of the Catholic Church: a publication that essentially explains the foundations and beliefs of Catholicism and its faith; the writing includes prayers, sacramental teachings, and the Apostle’s Creed.

Catholicism in the United States

As many Europeans were traveling to America in the 16th Century, Catholic missionaries were often greeted with skepticism, contention, and violence by Native Americans. As the colonies were established in later decades, Catholics were treated as minorities and excluded in many of the English colonies.

  • Coming to the New World to escape the oppression of the Church of England, many colonists were skeptical of Catholics and their Pope. The similarities in elements such as doctrine between the Church of England and Roman Catholicism instilled fear in these Protestant immigrants and established a synonymous relationship between English heritage and anti-Catholic sentiment.

  • As Protestantism became the majority religious denomination in the newly formed United States after the American Revolution, Cathlic immigration increased in America forming gradual tension between Protestants and Catholics.

    • Many Catholics were arriving from areas such as Ireland, Germany, and Poland.

    • All were looking to establish a foundation for themselves and were met with discrimination by Protestants.

      • In 1844, Philadelphia played host to a series of violent events known as the Bible Riots, which illustrated the height of anti-Catholic sentiment in the United States. (See separate case study)

  • As immigrants arrived and settled, many Catholic churches differed in either promoting ethnic or territorial parishes:

    • Ethnic parishes welcomed members of one language group i.e. Polish, Italian, German, Irish, etc.

    • Territorial parishes reached out to all who lived in the neighborhood around the church.

  • As years passed, Catholicism not only increased in popularity but also modernized with the times and established itself with prominence within the United States.

Learning Activities:

Extra Resources

Aly Rahim - A Muslim Citizen of the Democratic West from Growing Up Muslim: Muslim College Students in America Tell Their Life Stories. Cornell University Press, 2014.

“Now Is the Time”: Civic Learning for a Strong Democracy - Sylvia Hurtado

Teaching about the Bible in Public School: Legal or Not? Religion for Breakfast

Look through Engaging Worldview: A Snapshot of Religious & Spiritual Campus Climate

Barack Obama, “Remarks by the President in Eulogy for the Honorable Reverend Clementa Pinckney, College of Charleston, Charleston, South Carolina (June 29, 2015) Watch video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9IGyidtfGI

Listen to The Case for Pluralism in a Divided Democracy - Eboo Patel

Listen to What Is Interfaith Literacy? A Conversation with Eboo Patel

Watch Negative and Positive Responses to Religious Diversity

Listen to Interfaith on the Menu: The Shared Value of Food

Nationalism and Culture wars

Interfaith Ministries of Greater Houston - Dinner Dialogues

US Institute of Peace: What Works? Evaluating Interfaith Dialogue Programs

Interfaith Council of Metropolitan Washington - Guidelines for Dialogue

Essential Partners - Resources

Essentials of Dialogue – Generation Global

Center for Religion and Civic Culture- Foundations of Successful Community Partnership

Common Knowledge: A Podcast about Interfaith Literacy

Interfaith Radio/Interfaith Voices

Read Sarah Chaudhry’s Shadowlands from Growing Up Muslim: Muslim College Students in America Tell Their Life Stories.

Read Muslim Immigrants in 21st-Century Philadelphia Tell Their Stories: Oral Histories from the New Immigrants Initiative

Listen to The Case for Pluralism - Eboo Patel

Watch “Sanjay’s Super Team: The Backstory” American Culture & Modern Film