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Religion in early Virginia
In a harsh new world, Virginia's English colonists were supported by an
ancient and familiar tradition, the established church. The law of the land from
1624 mandated that white Virginians worship in the Anglican church (The Church of
England) and support its upkeep with their taxes. Where religion was an
integral part of everyday life in Virginia, the lines blurred between religious and
civil authority. Virginia gentlemen, who supported establishment but disliked
centralized church authority, gained control of parish vestries and county
courts to secure their power over religious matters. Despite establishment, the
religious life of white Virginians was not without diversity. Dissenters from
Approximate words: 1118
Approximate pages: 5
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