How Did The Puritans Influence American Behavior

Every action has a cause. Most people only think about the immediate cause, or what just occurred that prompted an action. What many people do not ponder is who taught them how to react in that manner. Oftentimes, traditions are to blame for one’s knee-jerk reaction to a given situation. These anticipated responses may be from how they were raised, or could be traced back tens or hundreds of years in the past. Those who set the precedent likely had no idea the repercussions their beliefs and teachings would have so many years later. This was the case with a group of early American settlers known as the Puritans. Even a cursory observation of modern North American behavior can bring to light some behaviors first displayed by the Puritans in …show more content…
This is especially true in the so-called “Bible-Belt” spanning the central U.S. It is difficult, if not entirely impossible to travel five blocks without passing by a religious building of some kind, more than likely a protestant church. This can be a positive effect. For example, the commonality of religious building does exemplify the United States citizen’s First Amendment right to religious freedom, and few would argue that at least tempered public religious practice is bad. The Puritans can be thanked for this impact because they fought so hard to have religious freedom that they never stopped to think it might eventually allow individuals of other religions to practice theirs as well. Had they known this, some doubt if they would have fought under the banner of religious freedom and chosen instead to construct a state that only allowed Christianity to thrive in its various forms. Some people today share this sentiment, caring only about open religious practice in the context of Christianity, with no concern as to whether other religions are suppressed in the process. Once again, the modern religious community can see the puritan roots in this aspect of its current