e English language as quickly as possible. They also made it a point to back Americans celebration of the separation of Church and State and their principle of liberty (Wolfe, 1991).The progressive Judaism movement was also along the same line of thought as the Catholic Church. Jews in America wanted to fit into the modern lifestyle of their new country. For starters, they shortened the worship service, started using an organ, and stopped separating the men and women in worship services. They also became more laxed in the laws regarding food, clothing, and the extreme rituals of traditional worship (Lecture notes, 6-24-99). Judaism decided to welcome Christianity and Islam as partners to spread the notion of a monotheistic God. The progressive Jews made it clear that the Orthodox Jews who would not budge from their old ways would be disowned and left behind. This was the same attitude that the progressives had in Catholicism and Protestantism. Their orthodox counterparts responded by saying that the focus needs to be shifted back to the scriptures (Wolfe, 1991).The three major religions in America, as indicated by Hunter and Rice, are Catholicism, Protestantism, and Judaism. These religions have not only experienced a growing separation between their orthodox and progressive members, but it seems that this division is outweighing and taking precedence over the interdenominational divide. Without the progressive movement in Americas most popular religions, our society would have been much, much slower to change towards our more modern way of life. If the members of Americas religious sects had held steadfast to the orthodox viewpoints, it would have definitely hindered progress in America as a whole. For example, last year, the United American Christian Womens Organization held a convention to discuss the role of women in the church. This non-denominational gathering of the more progressive women in Christian churches nation...
