Our primary focus in the coming months is on the influences and events that led to and shaped the birth of the United States as an independent nation in 1776. [The image above is from U.S. Capitol of William Penn, Founder of Pennsylvania.]
In previous posts we provided excerpts from documents of Virginia, Massachusetts and New England in the first half of the 17th century. In the last half of the 1600s and early 1700s other colonies emerged and expressed their beliefs and worldview in their founding documents and laws. A few excerpts are below from diverse colonies planted by Roman Catholics, Moravians, Quakers, and Anglicans, yet the common Biblical worldview runs throughout the whole collection:
Maryland Toleration Act, 1649
….in a well governed and Xtian CommonWeath, matters concerning Religion and the honor of God ought in the first place to bee taken, into serious consideracion and endeavoured to bee settled. Be it therefore ordered and enacted by the Right Noble Cecilius Lord Baron of Baltemore absolute Lord and Proprietary of this Province with the advise and consent of this ...
