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“”I am instead taking issue with the pat idea that Protestantism proved an ideological bulwark in the New World against religious oppression””

Protestantism because of it’s ability to divide individuals in Christianity can be used by communist and socialism and other groups as a tool as Pope Leo XIII pointed out.

Excerpt from Encyclical written in 1949
http://www.papalencyclicals.net/Pius09/p9nostis.htm

“You are aware indeed, that the goal of this most iniquitous plot is to drive people to overthrow the entire order of human affairs and to draw them over to the wicked theories of this Socialism and Communism, by confusing them with perverted teachings. But these enemies realize that they cannot hope for any agreement with the Catholic Church, which allows neither tampering with truths proposed by faith, nor adding any new human fictions to them. This is why they try to draw the Italian people over to Protestantism, which in their deceit they repeatedly declare to be only another form of the same true religion of Christ, thereby just as pleasing to God. Meanwhile they know full well that the chief principle of the Protestant tenets, i.e., that the holy scriptures are to be understood by the personal judgment of the individual, will greatly assist their impious cause. They are confident that they can first misuse the holy scriptures by wrong interpretation to spread their errors and claim God’s authority while doing it. Then they can cause men to call into doubt the common principles of justice and honor.”