Why Faith Matters: The Pilgrims

Faith is the substance of things hoped for; the evidence of things not seen. Faith is a broad term, used in ways that express a range of different beliefs and attitudes. In its most general sense, though, faith means much the same thing as trust and confidence.

Examples of faith are also reflected throughout history. One of these is the story of the Pilgrims, and their historic journey across the Atlantic Ocean on the Mayflower.

The Pilgrims left Europe to live the way they wanted and practice their faith as they wanted. They had faith they would survive the difficult voyage to America. They also had to have faith that they would be able to survive once they settled in early America. Their faith was one of the main reasons the Pilgrims were able to eventually start a new life and a new colony in early America.

While the Mayflower Pilgrims had similar beliefs, they were still different from many of the Europeans at the time. The Pilgrims who voyaged to the New World on the Mayflower lived according to their customs, traditions, and their faith.

“They were a most unusual group of colonists. Instead of noblemen, craftsmen, and servants – the types of people who had founded Jamestown in Virginia – these were, for the most part, families – men, women, and children who were willing to endure almost anything if it meant they could worship as they pleased.”

Nathaniel Philbrick Author of Mayflower