Faith as a Survival Tool: How the New World Held on to Belief

 

Faith is often seen as a matter of culture, tradition, or personal choice. But history shows us another face of faith: its role as a brutal, practical tool for survival.

When early colonists crossed the oceans to settle the New World, they faced a reality unlike anything their ancestors had known. Vast, unmapped territories. Unknown diseases. Hostile environments. Uncertain tomorrows. Their familiar world collapsed into a daily fight against fear, loss, and death.

In such conditions, faith became more than theology or ritual.

It became armor against despair.

Prayer, belief in divine protection, and a sense of cosmic order gave these colonists psychological shelter when no earthly comfort was available. Churches were not just places of worship; they were the first community centers, courts, and schools. Faith welded people into functioning societies when everything else fell apart.

This survival-driven faith did not vanish with time. It hardened into tradition, passed from parent to child, reinforced by community life and education. Even after the immediate dangers receded, the deep imprint of "faith as a survival tool" remained.

Today, we see the lasting effects. In many New World colonies, belief remains stronger, deeper, and more culturally dominant than in their old-world motherlands.

• In the United States, 63% of people say religion is important in their lives, compared to just 23% in the United Kingdom. (Source: Pew Research Center, "The Future of World Religions," 2015)
• In Mexico, about 78% of the population identifies as Catholic, while in Spain, this number drops to around 58%. (Source: Statista, "Share of Catholics in Spain," 2023; "Religion in Mexico," 2023)
• In Brazil, over 80% identify as Christian, compared to Portugal, where about 77% identify as Catholic, but practicing rates are significantly lower. (Source: Pew Research Center, "Religion in Latin America," 2014)

The old countries evolved into more secular societies as stability returned. But in the colonies, faith was never just inherited — it was earned through terror and hardship.

Faith as a survival tool. Raw, simple, and real.

And its legacy is still kicking.