5 Minutes in Church History with Stephen Nichols A Little Church History of a Middle Colony: Early Influences
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Dec 10, 2025 Delaware's rich church history is unveiled, showcasing William Penn's vision of religious freedom. The podcast discusses how Dutch, Swedish, and English influences shaped the colony. Emanuel Church's Anglican roots and its significance during the Revolution are explored. The enduring Old Swedes Church, established in 1698, highlights the area's early faith traditions. A focus on Pennsylvania and Delaware's unique religious climate contrasts their freedom with the rigid faiths of Puritan New England and the Anglican South.
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Penn's Radical Religious Freedom
- William Penn's Frame of Government established broad religious freedom in 1682 for those who acknowledged the one almighty God and lived peaceably in society.
- This freedom set the middle colonies apart from Puritan New England and Anglican South and shaped Delaware's religious character.
Emanuel Church's Loyalist Majority
- Emanuel Church on the Green in Newcastle began as an Anglican missionary congregation and grew prominent in the 1700s and Revolutionary era.
- Its congregation leaned loyalist during the Revolution except for George Read, who signed the Declaration of Independence.
Old Swedes: Continuous Worship Since 1698
- Old Swedes Church was built in 1698 by descendants of the New Sweden colony and has hosted continuous worship since then.
- It began Lutheran and became Episcopalian in the 1850s, preserving Swedish colonial heritage in Delaware.
