The Apostle Paul
writes in three different letters on the topic of slavery and, in no instance,
does he denounce the practice. To the Ephesians, he writes:
“Slaves, be
obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and
trembling, in the sincerity of your heart, as to Christ” (Ephesians 6:5).
To the
Colossians:
“Slaves, in all things obey those
who are your masters on earth, not with external service, as those who merely
please men, but with sincerity of heart” (Colossians 3:22).
And, to
Philemon:
“For perhaps he was for this
reason separated from you for a while, that you would have him back forever, no
longer as a slave, but more than a slave, a beloved brother, especially to me,
but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord
(Philemon 15-16).
In fact,
Paul sent Onesimus, a slave, back to his former master Philemon. Doesn’t that
demonstrate that Paul approved of slavery?
How widespread was slavery?
Slavery
pre-dated even first century Christianity by centuries and was widely practiced
in the ancient world, from China and India to Greece and Rome. And, most
cultures were accepting of the practice.[1] Some examples of slavery
practiced in the ancient world include Egypt, where slaves were widely used for
many purposes, including the building of the pyramids. Genesis 37 and 39
recount the story of Joseph, who was sold to traders[2] and purchased by an
Egyptian.[3] In that instance, Joseph
was apparently treated well.[4] During the war between the
Persians and the Greeks around 481 BC, both armies employed slaves as soldiers.[5] Thousands of Jews were
taken into slavery in AD 70 when the Romans conquered Judea.[6] So, it is a bit
disingenuous for critics to single out early Christianity for not coming out
forcefully against slavery. Nonetheless, Christians certainly did vigorously
oppose the practice.
Who led the abolitionist movements?
The
leading force behind the abolition of slavery in the British Empire was a
devout Christian, William Wilberforce (1759-1833). He
joined with Thomas Clarkson and others in the campaign for the
abolition of the slave trade and was, for 20 years, parliamentary leader of
this movement. Abolition of the slave trade by the British Parliament was
finally achieved in 1807.[7] Wilberforce
created two formal organizations in 1787: the Committee for the Abolition of
the Slave Trade and the Society for the Reformation of Manners. His antislavery
ideas arose not out of a background of secular liberalism but out of his
religious beliefs.[8]
In
American, one of the most well known voices in the abolitionist movement was
Christian preacher Charles G. Finney (1782-1875), a leading figure in the
Second Great Awakening. Finney stated:
“how could any man persist longer in its use
without damning sin? So of slavery. As soon as light prevails on this subject,
men can no longer go on in the same course of sustaining the system, without
the greatest guilt.”[9]
Does
slavery exist today?
The
U. S. Department of State, in its 2006 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) annual
report, stated “of the estimated 600,000 to 800,000 men, women, and children
trafficked across international borders each year, approximately 80 percent are
women and girls, and up to 50 percent are minors.” The report details some of the practices
in specific nations, including:
“The
Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (D.P.R.K. or North Korea) is a source
country for men, women, and children trafficked for the purposes of forced
labor and sexual exploitation.”
Problems
are also present in modern day Sudan:
“Small numbers of Sudanese girls are
reportedly trafficked within Sudan for domestic servitude, as well as for
commercial sexual exploitation in small brothels in internally displaced
persons (IDP) camps. The terrorist rebel organization ‘Lord's Resistance Army’
(LRA) continues to abduct and forcibly conscript small numbers of children in
Southern Sudan for use as cooks, porters, and combatants in its ongoing war
against the Government of Uganda”
As
well as in Burma:
“Burmese men, women, and children are
trafficked to Thailand, the People's Republic of China (the P.R.C.),
Bangladesh, Malaysia, Korea, and Macau for sexual exploitation, domestic
service, and forced labor -- including commercial labor.’
There
are problems in many nations, even with some reports of forced labor in the
United States by those promising international victims employment and
educational opportunities. Many nations vigorously investigate and prosecute
these cases; though, unfortunately some governments look the other way or even
participate in this activity.[10]
Ideal versus
permitted
One explanation for
the seeming toleration for slavery in the Bible is that God’s ideal is for all
people to be free, but given that slavery and similar forms of servanthood were
widely practiced, He permitted the activity, with restrictions. For example,
Colossians 4:1 states,
“Masters, grant to your slaves justice and
fairness, knowing that you too have a Master in heaven.”
Another example of
this principle of God’s dislike but toleration is found in the issue of
divorce. God’s ideal is that marriage is sacred and He hates divorce[11].
However, because of the hardness of our hearts[12],
God permits divorce in some situations[13].
The Bible
does not approve of slavery.
Paul
makes the point in Galatians that all people are equal in God’s sight:
“There is neither Jew nor Greek,
there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you
are all one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28).
God
rescued the Israelites from slavery:
“You shall remember that you were
a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God brought you out of there by
a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm” (Deut. 5:15).
The point
should be made that, when Paul admonished slaves to be obedient to their
masters, “he is not thereby approving of the institution of slavery, but simply
alluding to the de facto situation in his day.”[14] Furthermore, Paul
encouraged Philemon to accept Onesimus back to him, not as a slave, but a
“beloved brother”.
What did Jesus say?
We have no record
that Jesus Christ spoke of slavery directly. However, it should be noted that
He did not speak of other social issues directly, such as taxation or the rule
of Palestine by the Romans. In fact, though He referred to tax collectors in
less than favorable terms, Jesus paid his required taxes.[15]
He also recognized that the poor would always be among us as well as
recognizing, though not approving of, certain political situations.[16]
Jesus intentionally did not work to change the social conditions on a large
scale, but sought to convert one life at a time. Once a person is born again
(John 3:3), he or she then is expected to “love your neighbor as yourself”
(Matthew 22:39) and “In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you
want them to treat you, for this is the Law and the Prophets” (Matthew 7:12).
So, although Jesus may not have specifically denounced slavery, he clearly
taught how we should treat other people.
Conclusion
When Jesus walked the
earth, He sought to reach people one at a time and change the heart first. The
primary message of the Bible is not a top-down approach to societal change,
rather bottom-up, one soul at a time. Numerous Bible verses instruct us to
treat others well; in fact, Paul wrote that we should “regard one another as
more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal
interests, but also for the interests of others” (Philippians 2:3-4). Paul also
wrote: “The entire law is summed up in a single
command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’" (Galatians
5:14). So, whereas slavery appears to be tolerated in the Bible, mistreatment
of anyone is clearly condemned. We are commanded to treat all other persons
with the highest dignity and respect.
[Biblical quotations are
from the NASB version unless otherwise indicated.]
[1]
D’Souza, Dinesh, What’s So Great About
Christianity, (Washington, DC:
Regnery Publishing, 2007), p. 70.
[2]“ Then some Midianite traders passed by, so they pulled him
up and lifted Joseph out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty
shekels of silver. Thus they brought Joseph into Egypt” (Genesis 37:28).
[3] “Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt; and Potiphar, an
Egyptian officer of Pharaoh, the captain of the bodyguard, bought him from the
Ishmaelites, who had taken him down there” (Genesis 39:1).
[4] “Joseph found favor in his sight and became his personal
servant; and he made him overseer over his house, and all that he owned he put
in his charge” (Genesis 39:4).
[5]
Packer, J.I., Merrill C. Tenney and William White, Nelson’s Illustrated Encyclopedia of Bible Facts, (Nashville,
TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1995), p.
151.
[6]
Packer et.al., p. 400.
[7]The
Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition (Columbia University Press, 2008), cited
on HighBeam Encyclopedia, accessed 8 Oct 2008, <
http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-WilberfW.html>
[8]
Encyclopedia of World Biography, (Gale Group, 2004), cited on HighBeam
Encyclopedia, accessed 8 Oct 2008, <http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3404706863.html>
[9]
Finney, Charles G., “Guilt Modified by Ignorance – Anti-Slavery Duties”,
Reprinted from The Oberlin Evangelist,
1852, The Gospel Truth website accessed
18 Oct 2008, <http://www.gospeltruth.net/1852OE/520818_guilt_ignorance.htm>
[10]
U. S. Department of State, Trafficking in
Persons Report, report
dated June 5, 2006, accessed 13 Oct 2008,
<http://www.state.gov/g/tip/rls/tiprpt/2006/65983.htm>
[11]“’I
hate divorce’, says the Lord God of Israel” (Malachi 2:16).
[12]
“Moses permitted you to divorce
your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the
beginning” (Matthew 19:8).
[13]I
Corinthians 7
[14]
Geisler, Norman, and Thomas Howe, When Critics Ask (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1992), 510.
[15]“When they came to Capernaum, those who collected the
two-drachma tax came to Peter and said, ‘Does your teacher not pay the
two-drachma tax?’ He said, ‘Yes.’ And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke
to him first, saying, ‘What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the
earth collect customs or poll-tax, from their sons or from strangers?’ When
Peter said, ‘From strangers,’ Jesus said to him, ‘Then the sons are exempt.
However, so that we do not offend them, go to the sea and throw in a hook, and
take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a
shekel. Take that and give it to them for you and me’” (Matthew 17:24-27).
[16]‘Jesus
said to them, ‘You know that those who are recognized as rulers of the Gentiles
lord it over them; and their great men exercise authority over them. ‘But it is
not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be
your servant; and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be slave of all’” (Mark
10:42-44).
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