ROGER WILLIAMS
This is an important quotations for two reasons. First, one of the white Europan myths in the colonial era was that the Native America had not concept of land ownership and title. This quotation clearly refutes that/ Second, this shows that some Europeans coming to the new world opposed the view that the white Christians and a moral right to the Native American “heathen” land. A few like Williams did not.
Williams was the first theologian who not only advocated religious toleration but argued that Christianity demanded it and the separation of church and state.
Roger Williams was a Puritan minister, theologian, and author who founded Providence Plantations, which became the Colony of Rhode Island and later the U.S. state of Rhode Island. He was a staunch advocate for religious freedom, separation of church and state, and fair dealings with Native Americans.
