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While Europeans weren't held in physical bondage, the caste/class system passed down from medieval times oppressed many people. The upper classes could become leaders in government, the military and business. Members of the lower classes could not. America offered opportunities, not only land and economic opportunity, but the opportunity to be equal, and to give your children that opportunity for growth in any area of endeavor. The immigrants also found America to be a place where they could do whatever they wanted in the areas of religion and politics-a land where all were free to practice their faith or to express their political beliefs. This religious tolerance was borne of hard lessons. The New World was discovered in a time when European society was undergoing great social changes. One of the deepest and most difficult changes was the end of a single Christian faith shared by most Europeans, replaced by many new Protestant sects. Many countries fought civil wars, the lines of battle drawn according to religion, and the winners often passed laws forbidding or severely punishing the practice of other faiths. Every English citizen paid taxes to support the official Church of England, regardless of whether they were church members or not. From the earliest days, America attracted people of strong religious beliefs in search of a place where they could live in peace without compromising their faith. It is ironic that while many early colonies were founded by people seeking religious freedom, they were not interested in freedom for all faiths - only for the practice of their own beliefs. Most colonies banned Catholic worship. However, when he established the Maryland colony in 1632, the English Lord Baltimore tried to create a place of religious tolerance - a refuge for English Catholics. Despite efforts to write religious tolerance into law, by the end of the 17th Century, Catholics could only freely profess their faith in Rhode Island and Pennsylvania. Another group seeking religious freedom in the new colonies were European Jews, who were no strangers to religious persecution. Throughout the centuries they had endured massacres and restrictions on both where they could live and how they could make a living. Thus New World colonies that offered religious tolerance soon attracted Jews, and in the 1650s they began to settle in Maryland, New York, Rhode Island and Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania colony, established as a refuge for Quakers, also drew German Protestant sects such as the Mennonites and Amish. The experiences of the early settlers helped inspire the first national government to ensure religious freedom in the Bill of Rights. Even in a country that guarantees religious freedom, it can be hard for people of different beliefs to live peacefully side-by-side and respect each others' faith. However, this promise of freedom continues to inspire people to come to America.
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