Unlike Europe, the United States upheld a separation between Church and State since the 18th century. In fact, many of the early colonies in the United States were established for the sole purpose of freedom from their religious beliefs being controlled by the government. The newfound freedom gained by the religious groups in America allowed for new denominations and doctrines to form that were free from persecution by the government. Eventually, small communities who disagreed with the current state of the world would arise and use the United States’ separation between Church and State to establish unique societies based on their own view of a perfect world. These communities, such as the Shakers, the Harmony Society, the Oneida Perfectionists, and the Amana Society were known as “Utopias.” In many European countries, especially England, total uniformity of religion was strictly enforced. Since the 16th century, the Church of England would fluctuate between beliefs from Catholic to Protestant depending on the current monarch, and those who did not conform to the Church were often persecuted. People like the Puritans, Mennonites, and the Jesuits were sometimes even executed. With uniformity of religion came fear of new ideas and…show more content… As the community grew, nearby cities in New York grew as well and the Amana Society was forced to relocate to a new plot of land named “Amana” in the state of Iowa. Under the communal system, the Elders of the church became the lead decision-makers of the society as they were the ones thought to be directly influenced by God. People were assigned jobs in village farms and factories by the Elders in order to produce and export goods, and each person was given food, shelter, medicine, and an allowance used to purchase goods in and outside of the Amana
