Popery
A derogatory term used by early Protestants to describe the religious practices of Roman Catholics. Protestants, including those living in Deerfield considered sinful the Roman Catholic belief in the infallibility of the Pope and other rituals of the church, including the mass. Protestants believed they were ‘purifying’ their own church by purging these elements from their religious practices and beliefs. The people living in Deerfield in 1704 were strongly Protestant and thus were especially hostile to the Roman Catholic faith.