Yes, it should first be remembered that Jesus never went to church. I'm a descendent of Roger Williams and Anne Hutchinson who challenged Puritan authority in the 1600s. What I've learned:

1) The Puritans were a mid-stage attempt to remove church-state corruption. In England (and elsewhere), the state infected church appointments and vice-versa, far from a meritocracy. The printing press had recently been invented, with people starting to read their own Bibles. They feared that the Catholic "middle management" (priests, monasteries etc) were not doing a good job of saving their souls (which was also expensive).

2) Later, people started questioning the Puritans scaled-down version (small community churches with ministers). Anne Hutchinson started popular "Bible studies" at her house, which threatened the male minister brand. She also felt people could have a direct relationship with God (eliminating the middle man).

3) There was of course much religious ferment in early America, but the Quakers took "church elimination" to the max. In other churches, the minister's power was decreased and buttressed by elders, who became a sort of "help-u-pray" service to many who felt they now were directly empowered to speak w the Almighty and control their own salvation (basically the fundamentalist/evangelical engine)

4) Rev Roger Williams (who had a grounding in British Law) soon realized the well-intended Puritan experiment to marry church-state was highly flawed. It suppressed God's "free will" concept and was bad at converting indigenous people, thus Williams and others started to advocate for church-state separation (essentially a church corruption filter).

5) Franklin, Jefferson et al picked up the ball, and its all worked rather well for our Country. Though there are many weird churches out there, they are free to exist (an expression of church and state free will) and the state essentially keeps them in line with threats of taxation (or jail) if they misbehave.

6) Nietzsche, Mencken, etc think of churches as potential mobs of mediocrity (in contrast to Jesus who was the brave individual willing to die for justice). I'm glad churches provide comfort for the old and sick, but the Jesus route seems more noble, if one is capable and willing.