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1、The Influence of religion on the AmericaThe United States is one of the most modern societies, and it is a country that has a large number of religious believes. More than ninety percent of Americans say that they believe in god; More than sixty percent of the Americans who claim that religion can n
2、early answer all the current problems; forty percent of Americans regularly go to the church to participate in the religious activities; A third of Americans said that religion can influence on their lives. During this century, the proportion basically changes nothing. The United States is a religio
3、us diverse country and has almost five hundred thousand churches. The proportion of participating in religious activities and having the religious believes is the highest among the western countries. More than half of the people in the America are the church members and the Americans that attend the
4、 church activities are closely related with volunteering, donation, voting. Religion for Americans is not only a kind of belief. It has penetrated into every aspect of American life. First the religious influence on the American political is apparent. For example, the American bill prints the word “
5、we trust god” and there is the sentence “god bless America”. In the United States thirty-nine Presidents are Christian church members and the rest is also close with the church. Second in the American college campus, there are a lot of students religious groups. More than 85% of American students in
6、 the primary school and middle school attend the missionary school. Many famous American universities such as Harvard, Yale and Princeton are originally established by the church. Third the religious influence on the American life can be seen everywhere. The number of people who go to the church are
7、 more than that of people who watch the sports events. And many American marriages are held in the church. All this showed that the influence of the American religion on the America is broad and great. In the 1820s, the French sociologist named Tocqueville said: There is not a country like the Unite
8、d States, which Christian can have such a significant influence on the soul of the nation. Religion is the most important factor that influences American faith, attitude and behavior and deeply dominates American political, culture and family life. How and why religion could have shaped the American
9、 values? First religion is closely related with individual freedom and individualism. The Protestant branch of the Christian faith broke away from Roman Catholic church in Europe in the sixteenth century because of important differences in religious beliefs. In the 1600s there was much bitterness am
10、ong some of the religious groups and many Protestants was killed because of their beliefs .Then many Protestants were ready to leave their countries in order to have freedom to practice their particular religious beliefs. Consequently, among the early settlers who came to America in the 1600s, there
11、 were many Protestants seeking religious freedom. In 1776, the settlers established a new nation, the United States of America. In 1789, when they wrote the Constitution for their new nation, they separated church and state so that there would never be a government-supported church. Also they expres
12、sly forbade titles of nobility. The historic decisions made by those first settlers have had a profound effect on the shaping of the American values. The first settlers including many Protestants created a climate of individual freedom. This is the most basic of all the American values. I think that
13、 the concept of individual freedom had deeply rooted in the American minds since the America was established by the settlers, especially the Protestants .So I think religion influenced the American values. In my opinions, Religious belief encourages people to realize their own value and owe to the G
14、od. In the process, individualism has played a positive role. Individualism emphasizes struggle and adventurism. So the development of education, science and technology in United States is closed related with individualism. Then I think religion encourages the development in education, science and t
15、echnology in the US. Second religion is closely related with self-reliance and material wealth. Protestantism has been a powerful force in shaping the values and beliefs of Americans. Protestantism in the United States is popular. I think that the reason is that the form of American valuesself-relia
16、nce and material wealth depends on Protestantism. One of the most important values associated with American Protestantism is the value of self-improvement. In my opinion, self-improvement encourages Americans to do their best by themselves. Some of the early European Protestant leaders believed that
17、 people who achieved material wealth would be blessed by God. Other church leaders, particularly in the United States think that there exists connection between gaining material wealth and being blessed by God. They believed deeply that material wealth can make the national character sweeter, more j
18、oyous and more unselfish. I think that everyone in the United States have the equal opportunity to be away from privation and let dreams come true, as long as he takes full advantage of the chances and have the strong faith. And the American crucial faith is that God brought rich to America and will
19、 continue to bless the United States.Third religion is closely related with hard work and self-discipline. American religious leaders, however, never encouraged the idea of gaining wealth without hard work and self-discipline. Chinese people working in the foreign-funded enterprises, may have the st
20、rong feeling that the work is stressful heavily, busy and nervous. They often complain that working in the foreign-funded enterprises is very hard and that they could be forced to be a workaholic .But nearly all those foreigners work positively, responsibly and conscientiously. They often work overt
21、ime regardless of tired. There are many people in the United States just liking work. They cannot stop working until finishing todays work, no matter how hard they are. They just enjoy this crazy state and work for joy. I think this is a kind of professional ethics . And the spirit comes from the Pr
22、otestantism. Protestantism encourages Americans to achieve material wealth. And they must work hard to be successful and to get the bless by God. They believe that God can see everything you are doing. So they work hard and become self-disciplinary.Fourth religion is closely related with volunteeris
23、m and humanitarianism. Protestantism thinks that individuals become better by contributing some of their time or money to help others. Historically, some of the extremely wealthy Americans have made generous contributions to help others. (In the early 1900s, for example, Andrew Carnegie, a famous Am
24、erican businessman, gave away more than 300 million dollars to help support schools and universities and to build public libraries in thousands of communities in the United States. John D. Rockefeller, another famous businessman, in explaining why he gave a large sum from his private fortune to esta
25、blish a university, said，”The good Lord gave me my money, so how could I withhold it from the University of Chicago?”) The magazine Timereports that in 2002 Americans donated the amount of $190 billion, which is equal to 2.1% of GDP and the highest in nearly 30 years in the United States. According
26、to the statistics, the donation from the companies and other agencies contributions accounted for only 15%, while 85% are individual donation. Americans contribute not only their money, but also their time. They donate more than 20 billion hours a year, being worth about $200 billion. They teach chi
27、ldren, visit patients and take care of the old. Their impetus of helping others is mainly their religious belief. I think the majority of Americans believe in Christian. In their belief, they can help others to atone for their crime and to be blessed by God. Religion makes American be helpful.All in
28、 all, the influence of American religion on America is broad and great. Religion has penetrated into every aspect of American life and encourages the development of education, science and technology in the United States. Above all Religion is closely related with traditional American values and shapes the values and spirits in the United States.