Christianity and slavery
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[edit] Scope of page or article
This article outlines the approach of Christians and Christianity toward slavery, and the status of slaves within Christian societies. We discuss the thoughts, words and deeds of Christians and Christian organisations.
[edit] The Bible, Old & New Testament
The article includes discussion of how some Christians have interpreted the words of the Bible, rightly or wrongly, on the issue of slavery. It may also include discussion of why the Christian concerned may have said it.
Of course, one reason why a Christian might say something, is because God has inspired him/her to do so, or because the words of the Bible (which that Christian may view as the 'word of God') clearly direct all Christians to do so.
However, like everyone else, Christians may sometimes also be influenced by social and economic forces, or even by personal desires for social status or economic wealth. These influences may be discussed too.
Discussion of the social and economic influences acting on Christians, and their hopes (conscious or sub-conscious) for status and wealth, need not imply that Christianity is merely a thinly-disguised cover for personal gain. It may well be that God speaks to us when we pray, or read the Gospels, if we are willing to let him/her do so. But of course, the willingness of a Christian to listen to God, and put aside considerations of personal gain, is likely to vary from Christian to Christian!
[edit] The 'will of God'
The article does not focus on the 'will of God', i.e. what the Bible actually says, or what God actually wants us to do (assuming, of course, that such a God exists). Some contributors may, of course, find it necessary to mention these topics during the course of discussion.
For fuller discussion of matters relating to the 'will of God', please refer to Slavery and religion|Slavery in the Bible|Judaism and Slavery and religion|Slavery in the Bible|Christianity
This editor does believe in God. But the phrase 'will of God' is placed between single quote marks, out of respect for the right of atheists and agnostics to hold a different point of view.
[edit] Introductory remark
Some Evangelical Christian denominations, such as the Methodists and Wesleyans, were prominent in the movement for Abolition, although others used biblical writings to promote and justify slavery. There is further discussion of this below.
Christians have differed greatly on their views of slavery through the ages.
[edit] Early attitudes
Within Christianity, slaves attained positionspreviously unavailable to them. In Christian cemetaries, when slaves were buried, the gravesite never includedany indication that the person buried had been a slave.
Christianity recognized marriageof sorts among slaves. Freeing slaves was regarded as an act of charity.
But Christianity rarely criticised the actual institution of slavery. Slaves who fled from their masters were, at some times and places in history, condemned with anathema and refused eucharistic communion [Luis M. Bermejo, S.J., Infallibility on Trial, 1992, Christian Classics, Inc., ISBN 0-87061-190-9, p. 313.]
[edit] Serfdom replaces slavery
The barbarian invasions in the early Middle Ages vastly increased the number of slaves, both through capture and through people accepting a servile state in return for protection.Christians endeavoured to fight these enslavements and alleviate the lot of those affected;[citation needed]laws penalized the selling of men into slavery, as if it were murder.[citation needed] As Europe emerged from the early Middle Ages, slavery was transformed into the institution of serfdom, giving the former slaves legal rights and position,in theory at least.
[edit] Limits to serfs' rights
Whether these notional rights were of much practical use to the serf was open to debate. If you have nothing to eat, and no land to grow food with, apart from the land provided by your Lord, then - although you may have a theoretical right to make your own decisions - in practice, you must do your Lord's bidding.
And again, if milord becomes a little heavy-handed, and seems to 'forget' your legal rights, then there might be a theoretical right to challenge his decisions. But in practice, getting the court to see things your way would require a good knowledge of Latin and the law, which only a good education could provide. And to get that education, you'd need the help of the church, since in the Middle Ages, all education was in the church's hands.
As for enforcement of the court's decision, if the decision went your way, it helped if you had a standing army or two at your disposal. Very few serfs did.
Further discussion of the position of serfs, and also of slavery both in England and in British colonies, may be found in A.L. Morton's entertaining book.
(1965) A People's History of England. London: Lawrence & Wishart. ISBN 85315-137-7.
[edit] Role of church
The church played a key role here. In general, the clergy were in favour of the serfs showing respect for the 'rightful authority' of the Lord, and they used their learning, their land and their moral authority to reinforce his power. It was generally in their interests to do so, because in order for the clergy to receive a stable income, social stability was required.
But sometimes, the clergy seemed to develop a taste for some power of their own. So the power-play might become a little more interesting, and perhaps an adept serf might be able to play off one kind of power against another - the church's religious and persuasive power, and its information-handling capacity, against the cruder 'obey-or-I'll-chop-your-neck-off!' power of the Lord, who usually derived that power from the King or Queen.
However, this would have been a risky game, because neither church nor state would have welcomed an increase in the power of the serfs. Besides which, civil disorder could lead to great suffering amongst the poor.
(One famous clash between church and state authority occurred in the dispute between Thomas Beckett and Henry II of England. There seems to be little discussion in most histories of how the serfs viewed this dispute, or whether they stood to benefit from it.)
So, all aspects considered, perhaps serfdom was marginally better than slavery, from the viewpoint of those at the bottom of society. And perhaps we should thank The Lord (the one in heaven, of course, not the one with the castle, chain mail and gallows) that it was.
[edit] Christianity's changing view
Since the Middle Ages, the Christian understanding of slavery has seen significant internal conflict and endured dramatic change. Nearly all Christian leaders before the late 17th century recorded slavery, within specific Biblical limitations, as consistent with Christian theology. But today, nearly all modern Christians are united in the condemnation of slavery as wrong and contrary to God's will.
[edit] Christian advocacy of slavery
Throughout history, passages in the Old Testament of the Bible have been used as justification of the keeping of slaves, and for guidance in how it should be done.
Therefore, when abolition was proposed, many Christians spoke vociferously against it, citing the Bible's apparent acceptance of slavery as 'proof' that it was part of the normal condition.
In both Europe and the United States, many Christians went further, and argued that slavery was actually justified by the words and doctrines of the Bible.
- "[Slavery] was established by decree of Almighty God...it is sanctioned in the Bible, in both Testaments, from Genesis to Revelation...it has existed in all ages, has been found among the people of the highest civilization, and in nations of the highest proficiency in the arts." Jefferson Davis, President, Confederate States of America
- "Every hope of the existence of church and state, and of civilization itself, hangs upon our arduous effort to defeat the doctrine of Negro suffrage." Robert Dabney, a prominent 19th century Southern Presbyterian pastor
And some members of fringe Christian groups like the Christian Reconstructionists, the Christian Identity movement, and the Ku Klux Klan (an organization dedicated to the "empowerment of the white race"), still argue that slavery is justified by Christian doctrine today.
[edit] Enslaving of non-christians by Christians
Christians regularly kept non-Christian slaves up until the abolition of slavery in general. Views on slavery of non-Christians, however, varied from place to place and person to person. Saint Patrick (415-493), himself a former slave, argued for the abolition of slavery. St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) believed that slavery was "morally justifiable". It is said the Teutonic Order opposed strongly the conversion of Lithuania into Christianity in the 14th century, since it meant the end of lucrative slave trading of captured Lithuanians to Tatars.
In 1452 Pope Nicholas V, in his Dum Diversas, instituted the hereditary enslavement of "nonbelievers", though he was the only Pope to condone slavery[citation needed].
In 1488, Pope Innocent VII accepted the gift of 100 slaves from King Ferdinand of Spain, and distributed those slaves to his cardinals and the Roman nobility;[1]
In 1639 Pope Urban VIII forbade the slavery of Indians, yet he purchased non-Indian slaves for himself from the Knights of Malta;[2]
[edit] Enslaving of Christians
The nearly universal consensus throughout the ages has been that Christians must not keep other Christiansas slaves[citation needed].
The Christianization of Europe in the Dark Ages saw the traditional slavery disappearing in Europe and being replaced with feudalism[citation needed]. But this consensus was broken in the slave states of the United States, where the justification switched from religion ('the slaves are heathens') to race ('Africans are the descendants of Ham'). The opposition to the U.S. Civil Rights movement in the 20th century was founded in part on the same religious ideas that had been used to justify slavery in the 19th century.
[edit] Christian abolitionism
Throughout Europe and the United States, Christians from what we might call 'un-institutional' movements, not directly connected with state or church power, were to be found at the forefront of the abolitionist movements.
Many of the early campaigners for the abolition of slavery were driven by a Christian faith, and a desire to see the theoretical Christian view, that all people are equal, made a practical reality. Prominent among these was William Wilberforce. In Britain and America Quakers were active in abolitionist movements.
Disagreements between the newer way of thinking and the old often created schisms within denominations at the time.
[edit] Catholic opposition to slavery
In 1435 Pope Eugene IV condemned ?slavery in Sicut Dudum [1].
In 1462 Pope Pius II declared slavery to be a "great crime" (magnum scelus);[3].
In 1537 Pope Paul III condemned it in Sublimus Dei [2];
In 1741 Pope Benedict XIV condemned slavery generally; in 1815 Pope Pius VII demanded of the Congress of Vienna the suppression of the slave trade; in the Bull of Canonization of the Jesuit Peter Claver, one of the most illustrious adversaries of slavery, Pope Pius IX branded the "supreme villainy" (summum nefas) of the slave traders;[3] in 1839 Pope Gregory XVI condemned slavery in In Supremo Apostolatus [3]; and in 1888 Pope Leo XIII in In Plurimis [4].
See also The Final Abolition of Slavery in Christian Lands for a full time line.
[edit] Modern consensus
Today, nearly all modern Christians believe slavery is wrong and contrary to God's will, whether other Christians are enslaved or not. The Roman Catholic Church has declared is "intrinsically disordered."[citation needed] Christians are working today for the freedom of slaves in parts of the world where slavery is a practical, if not a legal, fact.
[edit] The Bible's view?
Christians, especially those who tend towards the 'Protest-ant', 'Non-conform-ist' or 'Evangelical' wings, tend to lay great emphasis (some might say, too much emphasis) on 'the teachings of the Bible'.
They see the 'word of the Lord' as a counterweight to the power of an over-centralised and self-interested church; a tool that God has placed in the hands of the individual, the family and the small community, to prevent all the power from ending up in the hands of the Pope. So it might be natural to ask, what view (or views) of slavery does one actually find in the Bible?
Unfortunately, while the question is fairly simple to ask, the answer could be a little complicated! The Bible has been interpreted differently at various times as explicitly endorsing slavery, implicitly condoning slavery, merely describing slavery as a social reality (not a moral good), and advocating the abolition of slavery. Debate still exists as to whether any form of slavery was ever morally justifiable under Christian precepts.
For further discussion of what the Bible actually means or says regarding slavery, please consult the references given above under "The 'will of God'".
Editor's note: My edit ends here.
[edit] History
[edit] In the Roman Empire
Present-day Christians argue that Paul and Peter were not defending or condoning slavery, but simply they recognized it as a fact of life in the Roman Empire. Paul was not a social reformer, but an apostle who was more concerned with the spiritual condition of men and women than he was with their physical circumstances. For this reason Paul, as well as other New Testament writers, instructs his readers on how to be on good terms with God and man no matter what situation they may be in. To have successfully challenged the Roman institution of slavery would have been irrational because it might have deprived the early Christian church of two important sources of converts: slaves and their masters. Slaves would no longer have felt the need for spiritual over real salvation and their masters would have been too resentful to listen to the Christian message and perceive its disempowering effect on their slaves. Christianity itself was not established as a state religion or institution in the days of Roman empire, during the time of the Apostles, until the Emperor Constantine and the subsequent establishment of the central authority of the Vatican therefore it is the Vatican's attitude towards slavery that is perhaps more telling.
Paul, while in prison himself addressed the spiritual attitudes of believers, in order so that people would ultimately find slavery repugnant, by virtue of their relationship with Christ. His letter to Philemon attests to the fact that Paul considered the bondage of one to another to be another example of humanity's lack of spiritual integrity and unity. Paul appeals to Philemon's commitment to the body of Christ "If thou count me therefore a partner, receive him (Onesimus) as myself." 1:17 and "even though I do not say to you how you yourself owe me your own self besides." 1:19.
Supporters point out that for Paul to directly communicate his personal intentions should be indicative of his personal views on the subject. In addition, the nascent Christian community was compelled to write in nuanced and subtle ways as to avoid death. Paul, being in prison could very well guarantee death (and the retainment of his letter, never reaching his recipients) if he openly supported the abolishment of slavery.
[edit] Curse of Ham
See Curse of Ham The Judeo-Christian myth, provided one of the "moral pretext" upon which the Atlantic slave trade grew and flourished. According to Jewish Talmud scholars, and then later other religious groups, Ham was the progenitor of the African race and subsequent translations were stirred to reflect the biases and prejudice of the era. The most profound manifestation occurred in imagery, which constantly portrayed white as God, and black as the Devil.
[edit] United States
During the nineteenth century one of the principal loci of opposition to abolitionism was the southern religious establishment.
By the 1830's tension had began to mount between Northern and Southern Baptists churches. The support of Baptists in the South for slavery can be ascribed to economic and social reasons. However, Baptists in the North claimed that God would not "condone treating one race as superior to another". Southerners, on the other hand, held that God intended the races to be separate. Finally, around 1835, Southern states began complaining that they were being slighted in the allocation of funds for missionary work.
The break was triggered in 1844, when the Home Mission Society announced that a person could not be a missionary and still keep his slaves as property. Faced with this challenge, the Baptists in the south assembled in May of 1845 in Augusta, Georgia, and organized the Southern Baptist Convention.
[edit] Biblical texts on the keeping of slaves
[edit] Old Testament
[edit] Non-Hebrew slaves
It is permissible for men to have slaves, provided the slaves are not brethren, i.e. members of the tribes of Israel:
- "And if one of your brethren who dwells by you becomes poor, and sells himself to you, you shall not compel him to serve as a slave. As a hired servant and a sojourner he shall be with you, and shall serve you until the Year of Jubilee. And then he shall depart from you—he and his children with him—and shall return to his own family. He shall return to the possession of his fathers. For they are My servants, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt; they shall not be sold as slaves. You shall not rule over him with rigor, but you shall fear your God." (Leviticus 25:39-43)
As the continuation makes clear, non-Israelites were genuinely enslaved:
- "And as for your male and female slaves whom you may have from the nations that are around you, from them you may buy male and female slaves. Moreover you may buy the children of the strangers who dwell among you, and their families who are with you, which they beget in your land; and they shall become your property. And you may take them as an inheritance for your children after you, to inherit them as a possession; they shall be your permanent slaves. But regarding your brethren, the children of Israel, you shall not rule over one another with rigor." (Leviticus 25:44-46)
(both quotations from the New King James Version)
[edit] Hebrew slaves
Fellow Hebrews were not kept in bonded service for more than seven years, unless they personally submitted to a longer term, in which case they would become permanent slaves.
- "If you buy a Hebrew servant, he shall serve six years; and in the seventh he shall go out free and pay nothing. If he comes in by himself, he shall go out by himself; if he comes in married, then his wife shall go out with him. If his master has given him a wife, and she has borne him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall be her master's, and he shall go out by himself. But if the servant plainly says, 'I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free,' then his master shall bring him to the judges. He shall also bring him to the door, or to the doorpost, and his master shall pierce his ear with an awl; and he shall serve him forever." (Exodus 21:2-6)
Freed slaves were required to be provided with property, apparently so as to be able to attain economic independence.
- If your brother, a Hebrew man, or a Hebrew woman, is sold to you, he shall serve you six years; and in the seventh year you shall let him go free from you. And when you let him go free from you, you shall not let him go empty-handed. You shall furnish him liberally out of your flock, and out of your threshing-floor, and out of your wine-press; from that which the Lord your God has blessed you, you shalt give to him. (Deuteronomy 15:12-14)
Daughters were treated as the property of their fathers until they were married, at which the ownership would transfer to the husband. Unmarried daughters were permitted to be sold for a period of slavery, with the expectation that the master or his son eventually marry the daughter. Apparently the resulting period of servitude took the place of a dowry.
- "And if a man sells his daughter to be a female slave, she shall not go out as the male slaves do. If she does not please her master, who has betrothed her to himself, then he shall let her be redeemed. He shall have no right to sell her to a foreign people, since he has dealt deceitfully with her. And if he has betrothed her to his son, he shall deal with her according to the custom of daughters. If he takes another wife, he shall not diminish her food, her clothing, and her marriage rights. And if he does not do these three for her, then she shall go out free, without paying money." (Exodus 21:7-11)
The penalty for beating a slave to death may be less than the penalty for murdering a free person.
- "He who strikes a man so that he dies shall surely be put to death." (Exodus 21:12)
- "And if a man beats his male or female servant with a rod, so that he dies under his hand, he shall surely be avenged. Notwithstanding, if he remains alive a day or two, he shall not be avenged; for he is his property." (Exodus 21:20-21)
If, however, verses 20 and 21 are referring only to blood vengeance, then unspecified judicial punishments would still apply to the slave owner.
Many modern translations (such as the New Living Translation, New International Version, New Century Version, etc.) show verse 21 to mean "if the slave lives and returns to health in a day or two, then the owner is not to be punished."
A slave who suffers permanent injury as a result of the master's beating is released from servitude.
- "And if a man strikes the eye of his male servant, or the eye of his female servant and destroys it, he shall let him go free for his eye's sake. And if he knocks out his male servant's tooth, or his female servant's tooth, he shall let him go free for his tooth's sake." (Exodus 21:26-27)
[edit] Slaves as property
If a negligent owner allowed his ox to kill a man or woman, the owner could be punished by death if this has happened before with the owner's understanding. (The ox should already have been stoned.) If the ox killed a servant, however, the owner owed thirty shekels to the servant's master. In any case, the ox is to be killed.
- "If an ox gores a man or a woman to death, then the ox shall surely be stoned, and its flesh shall not be eaten; but the owner of the ox shall be acquitted. But if the ox tended to thrust with its horn in times past, and it has been made known to his owner, and he has not kept it confined, so that it has killed a man or a woman, the ox shall be stoned and its owner also shall be put to death. If there is imposed on him a sum of money, then he shall pay to redeem his life, whatever is imposed on him. Whether it has gored a son or gored a daughter, according to this judgment it shall be done to him. If the ox gores a male or female servant, he shall give to their master thirty shekels of silver, and the ox shall be stoned." (Exodus 21:28-32)
[edit] New Testament
[edit] Christian slaves enjoined to obedience
- "Slaves, submit yourselves to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh." (1 Peter 2:18)
- "Bondservants, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in sincerity of heart, as to Christ; not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, with goodwill doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free. And you, masters, do the same things to them, giving up threatening, knowing that your own Master also is in heaven, and there is no partiality with Him" (Ephesians 6:5-9)
- "Teach slaves to be subject to their masters in everything, to try to please them, not to talk back to them, and not to steal from them, but to show that they can be fully trusted, so that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive." (Titus 2:9-10)
- "Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to win their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. Anyone who does wrong will be repaid for his wrong, and there is no favoritism." (Colossians 3:22-25)
- "Let as many servants as are under the yoke count their own masters worthy of all honour, that the name of God and his doctrine be not blasphemed." (1 Timothy 6:1)
[edit] Biblical figures who kept slaves
[edit] Spiritual slavery
Christian writers from Biblical times onwards have used the image of the slave to represent the Christian spiritual view. In many Christian views all people are 'slaves to sin'; they are unable to free themselves from a way of life where they do evil. However God 'redeems' those whom He calls; they are "bought with a price", removing them from the control of sin and become God's "property", who then loves and protects them. (It is important to note that the "bondage" that results is beneficial to all parties and is in no way degrading.)
- "Masters, provide your slaves with what is right and fair, because you know that you also have a Master in heaven." (Colossians 4:1)
The Holy Spirit:
- "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body." (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)
- "For he who was a slave when he was called by the Lord is the Lord's freedman; similarly, he who was a free man when he was called is Christ's slave." (1 Corinthians 7:22) "Paul, a slave of Jesus Christ" (Romans 1:1).
[edit] Against the keeping of slaves
[edit] Old Testament
Escaped slaves may not be returned to their masters.
- "You shall not give back to his master the slave who has escaped from his master to you. He may dwell with you in your midst, in the place which he chooses within one of your gates, where it seems best to him; you shall not oppress him." (Deuteronomy 23:15-16)
[edit] Apostle Paul
"In Christ, there is neither slave nor free." (Gal 3:28)
"Were you a slave when you were called? Don't let it trouble you—although if you can gain your freedom, do so. For those who were slaves when called to faith in the Lord are the Lord's freed people; similarly, those who were free when called are Christ's slaves. You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of human beings." (I Corinthians 7:21-23, NIV)
[edit] See also
- Religion and slavery
- Slavery and Islam
- Slavery and Buddhism
- Abolition
- Pro-Slavery Thought in the Old South
- Slavery
[edit] References
- ^ Luis M. Bermejo, S.J., Infallibility on Trial, 1992, Christian Classics, Inc., ISBN 0-87061-190-9, p. 315.
- ^ Luis M. Bermejo, S.J., Infallibility on Trial, 1992, Christian Classics, Inc., ISBN 0-87061-190-9, p. 316.
- ^ a b Allard, Paul. (1912). "Slavery and Christianity". Catholic Enycyclopedia XIV. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Retrieved on 2006-02-04.
- Lewis, Bernard (1992). Race and Slavery in the Middle East. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-505326-5.
[edit] External links
- Louis W. Cable - SLAVERY and the BIBLE
- African Holocaust
- Christianity and Slavery
- DeBow's Review (September 1850): "Slavery and the Bible"
- Collection of religious antislavery literature, from the Antislavery Literature Project
- Passages from the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament) and from the Christian Scriptures (New Testament)
- Christianity and slavery on ReligiousTolerance.org
- Texas Baptists Committed
