Did you all know that the Pilgrims were living in The Netherlands prior to sailing over to the U.S. on the Mayflower?
About a decade prior to this sailing, approx. 100 refugees left England to settle in Amsterdam and soon thereafter moved to Leiden. They were seeking religious freedom. Political and economic changes caused them to eventually set sail across the Atlantic. History shows that they were 'tolerant people' who consciously constructed "a society with separation of church and state".
I plan on attending the non-denominational church service on Thursday, at St. Peter's in Leiden, to celebrate my Thanksgiving Day.
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/The-Pilgrims-Before-Plymouth.html?c=y&page=1&navigation=previous#IMAGES