The Pilgrims

On a road trip I recently took I listed to a book on CD the Pilgrims, their voyage to America and the story behind their first several years as Americans. History books have become one of my favorite types of books to read. At any rate, I learned something new or rather the book was able to dispel a myth that has long been a part of American history as I understood it.

I’ve always heard it said that the United States was first settled by those seeking religious freedom and liberty. The real reason they came was more practical and less principled. They came so that they could worship the way they felt was most supported by the Word, not because they sought to live in a place where people had the freedom to worship as they pleased. The difference between these two concepts is subtle but real as the Pilgrims on many occasions failed to show the same tolerance they themselves desired. To them it was not about liberty; it was about being right.