Churches and the people who led and attended them.
Originally a colony of Great Britain and under the rule of King George III, the Founding Fathers of the United Sates were opposed to a state religion (King George III was the head of the Church of England as is Queen Elizabeth today). In fact, they even wrote it into the Constitution:
And yet, many today say that the U.S. is "a Christian nation". Indeed, Christianity is the most populous religion - followed by Judaism, Islam, and Buddhism. Worldwide, Christianity is also the most followed (2.4 billion), closely followed by Islam (1.8 billion). Then comes Agnostic/Atheistic (1.2 billion), Hinduism (1.15 billion) and Buddhism (521 million). Fifteen other religions (for instance, Judaism - 14 million and Chinese traditional religions - 394 million) round out the rest of us. So religion is a way of life for billions of the people around the world.
Some facts about religion in the United States:
- Hindus have the highest rates of education among religious communities - 48% of all Hindus have a post-graduate degree.
- The number of Mormons in the U.S. today are equal to the number of Anglicans/Episcopalians - 1.7% .
- Six of the Supreme Court justices are Catholic and three are Jewish - about half of the population identifies as Protestant.
- Only 10 U.S. states have weekly church attendance above 50% - they’re all in the South. 11 states have weekly church attendance below 33% - and no, one of them is not California or New York!
- The Southern Baptist Convention has twice as many churches as the Catholic Church, despite having 1/4th the membership.
- The first Muslims in the U.S. were African slaves - about 10% of slaves were Muslim.
- 40% of the U.S.’s 1.2 million Buddhists live in Southern California.
- The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is the fifth largest religious organization - the Catholic Church (66 million), the Southern Baptism Convention (16.5 million), the United Methodist Church (8.4 million), and the National Baptist Convention, U.S.A., Inc. (8.2 million) are larger.
These are the photos of people practicing their religion in the past - the buildings, leaders, and congregants of the past two centuries. From weddings to baptisms to confirmations to funerals, most people have participated in at least one religious activity in their lives.
Taken
at St. Peter's Church,
Plattsburgh, Clinton County, NY United States in .
A photo of Blanche Laravie posing for her Solemn First Communion at St.... more
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on May 27, 2015 by
A photo of Valdimar Eylands
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on Apr 14, 2015 by
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in .
A photo of Priscilla Allen Scroggins and family. The lady to the right is... more
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on Mar 27, 2015 by
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in .
A photo of a portrait of Really A. Rabbi Jacobs. This is one of our ancient... more
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on Mar 18, 2015 by
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in .
A photo of Martha J Smigielski at Holy Communion
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on Feb 13, 2015 by
A photo of Hilary Andrew Leister at his Confirmation
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on Feb 10, 2015 by
A photo of Kate (Cunningham) Pilcher
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on Jan 24, 2015 by
Rev. John Walker's Church 2nd Creek Baptist, Hazard, Ky
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on Jan 20, 2015 by
A photo of Maurilio Ponce and Lucia Reyes
baptizing a baby.
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on Jan 2, 2015 by
Taken
in New York, NY United States in .
A photo of Joseph H Myers Sr
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on Dec 6, 2014 by
A photo of Anastasia (Schneider) Lavallee
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on Dec 8, 2018 by
A photo of Rosemarie (Canavan) Noeldechen
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on Nov 7, 2018 by
Photo found at Garage Sale Warehouse in Beaverton, Oregon, September 2018.... more
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on Oct 20, 2018 by
A photo of my First Communion - Debra Marie Valentine
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on Sep 12, 2018 by
Taken
in Sumner County, KS United States.
After the original Dalton M.E. Church burned down a new one was erected in... more
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on Aug 22, 2018 by
Taken
in Sumner County, KS United States.
A photo of the M.E. Church in Dalton Kansas built in 1903
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on Jul 1, 2018 by
A photo of Osvaldo Mion with sister Ines at niece Maria’s baptism.
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on Jun 30, 2018 by
Taken
in Hamilton, Butler County, OH United States in .
The alter at St. Joseph's Catholic Church in 1908. The church was built in... more
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on Jun 19, 2018 by
A photo of Rosemarie (Canavan) Noeldechen
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on May 18, 2018 by
Taken
in Troy, Miami County, OH United States in .
I’ve “rescued” an old photograph of Rev. W. R. DILL which was taken at... more
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on May 5, 2018 by
A photo of Elizabeth Mercy Kerwen's priest Fr. Robert Ecker who also spoke at... more
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on Apr 23, 2018 by
A photo of Elizabeth Mercy Kerwen's Catholic Church, Our Lady of Angels.
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on Apr 23, 2018 by
This is a view of St. Mary's Catholic Church, Abbottstown, PA taken on Sept.... more
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on Apr 14, 2018 by
This is a picture of two Catholic priests--Father Murray on the left and... more
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on Apr 14, 2018 by
This is Father Hayden, a Catholic priest, standing on the steps of the Our... more
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on Apr 14, 2018 by
This church has been tore down in 2010 outside of Odin, Watonwan, Minnesota... more
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on Mar 20, 2018 by
A photo of the SWEET HOME SOUTHERN BAPTIST CHURCH, BELTON ARKANSAS
Merrell... more
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on Mar 16, 2018 by
Taken
at Bethesda Lutheran Church,
Ames, Story County, IA United States in .
A photo of the Bethesda Lutheran Church Class of 1944!
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on Mar 9, 2018 by
Taken
in Kansas City, Jackson County, MO United States on .
I've "rescued" an old photograph of Father Thomas C. MOORE which was taken at... more
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on Feb 6, 2018 by
Taken
in Sumner County, KS United States in .
A photo of a Sunday School Class in Dalton, Kansas, in 1913.
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on Feb 5, 2018 by