Williams was a young man but had many radical ideas and wild language. He considered the Church of England to be too corrupt and urged his fellow believers to secede from it altogether. Additionally, he questioned the role of the clergy in political and judicial matters, as he believed in the separation of church and state. Williams denying the authority of the Puritan civil government over religious behavior was considered a very seditious act. Finally, he challenges the role of the clergy in political and judicial matters, as he believes in the separation of church and state, and he strongly opposes the confiscation of land from indigenous peoples without compensation. His debates with John Cotton led Williams to leave Massachusetts and establish a colony in Rhode.