Early anti-Catholicism was less about personal faith and more about political loyalty. In post-Reformation Britain and the American colonies, the Catholic Church was viewed as a "transnational monolith" led by a "spiritual despot" in Rome.
: Because Catholics answered to the Pope, they were often viewed as inherently unpatriotic or as agents of rival powers like France or Spain. anti-catholicism
: Anti-Catholic sentiment was formalized through laws like the 1875 Blaine Amendment , which aimed to prevent state funding for "sectarian" (Catholic) schools. Early anti-Catholicism was less about personal faith and