Discuss The Impact Of Religion On Social Classes In 17th Century Salem

Ever since its creation, religion has been a major form of human culture, expression and faith. However, this principle has also created numerous differences between people. Although variation increases diversity, a multitude of negative impacts have also occurred. These repercussions include the creation of religious stereotypes and spirituality-based social classes. Therefore, religion is a precept embedded in historical and current culture that drives the creation of social statuses and stereotypes. These classes and assumptions define an individual’s opinion and power over others, which influences the process of distinguishing the innocent from the guilty.

The religiously-driven social classes in 17th century Salem highly impacted the

Kirsten Marshall is a subject matter expert on Salem’s history and religion. She asserts that religion clearly encouraged the creation of social classes in 17th century Salem, Massachusetts. In her lecture, Marshall describes that the Puritans believed a social order was a crucial part of god’s divine plan for humans. The religiously devout ministers and preachers were the upper class, followed by the middle group of farmers and shopkeepers. White indentured servants and landless laborers made up the lower class. The rich were more respected and their statements were thus considered more truthful and influential than the lower classes’ ”(Marshall 1). Salem’s social order is directly caused by religion, especially since citizens believed god intentionally created these divisions. An individual’s religious involvement was also a major factor used in distinguishing one class from another. This is clearly evident as the

These assumptions influence the process of determining the innocent from the guilty. The Pluralism Project at Harvard University strives to allow diverse individuals to co-exist in society. These individuals studied the impact of religion on prejudice and stereotypes. Their findings determine that “religion has often been a factor in stereotype and prejudice as the key marker of ‘difference.” (Stereotypes and Prejudice 1). Religion clearly creates differences in individuals that lead to the creation of additional stereotypes and prejudices in modern society. These assumptions and pre-determined beliefs can interfere with the process of determining innocence from guilt. They can also give individuals of a certain faith power over others of a lesser faith. Such religious profiling can be seen in the belief that all muslims are automatically associated with terrorists following the 9/11 attacks. These beliefs can have major ramifications on the process of justice. Such is the case for a muslim student in 2017: “Hasan Al Dewachi was on his way home from a science conference in Vienna.. As he took his seat on the flight home, he sent his wife a text message that the plane was delayed. A woman across the aisle got up and left her seat. Moments later the police arrived. The Iraqi student was asked to leave the plane for four hours and his phone was confiscated. He left the airport with no onward