Well, I am going to conclude that those of you sitting around stuffed with turkey know the story of the Pilgrims, a group of Separatist Puritans who fled to the Plymouth Colony in 1620. Their route was somewhat circuitous, England to Holland to England to America, over the course of more than one generation, but their adventures have been ladled out for centuries with a good dose of hooey.
To put it bluntly, religious freedom my Aunt Fanny. The question is liberty for whom? These people did not, in any way, come to the "New World" to establish this "right" for anyone but themselves.
An example? The Quakers had developed from the same strain of church reform in England, but the people of Massachusetts felt no kinship with them. You see, the Quakers were unashamed of their bodies, temples of their God, and therefore lacked "modesty"--and sometimes clothing--on their stopovers in Massachusetts. Was this sort of behavior fined by law? Of course not. These free spirits were convicted and hanged for their dissension.
Another example? Roger Williams began to work with the Algonquins, translated the Bible into their language, and disagreed with the accepted belief that these natives had no souls. The settlers ran him out of the colony, leaving him to live, teach, work, and create the Baptist Church--all in Rhode Island.
Up for more? What about women? Anne Hutchison, daughter of a minister, began to question the basic tenants of the religion in Massachusetts. After much soul searching, she even went so far as to hold Bible study and liberal discussion in her own home. Her fellow gentry, as you can imagine, were not exactly thrilled with this development. In 1637, during her criminal trial, she declared "you have no power over my body" and then proceeded to basically damn the court. This led to a "religious" trial for blasphemy, resulting in such undue stress that she miscarried a child. Church leaders pointed to this as a sign of her heresy. She and her followers were excommunicated, and, in the end, they too settled in Rhode Island.
Surprised? Shocked? Turkey not so delicious? Let's flip it over, so long as your remember the witch trials came in 1692.
Puritan children (and all Separatists were Puritans, though not all Puritans were Separatists) played ball and practiced other forms of recreation (no cards). Women wore bright colors, from yellow to red, but no fabric patterns. Couples courted in wintertime by bundling, a practice which involved getting in bed together fully clothed, but with a board placed between the parties. Apparently, there were ways around such barriers, for they were less effective than many other forms of birth control. The colony was rife with "seven month" babies, upon which no one looked askance. Bestiality, on the records as being practiced only occasionally with the humble pig, was punishable primarily by time in the stocks. And people gathered together regularly to work and to play.
These were not the dour black and white folks of our Thanksgiving pageants.
Neither were they, however, the great American heroes who died for religious freedom, at least none but their own. Banishment was the preferable alternative if you disagreed with the theocracy. Separation of church and state was not yet so much as a distant dream.
So let your pumpkin pie digest. Realize that these were mere human beings--opinionated, fearsome, stubborn, loving, and giving. We are all Janus, whether we see it in the mirror or no.
So if Grandmaw still believes in Santa or Washington and the cherry tree, you might set her down and discuss life as a so-called Pilgrim.
Have a happy holiday.
VK
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