British and American Slavery in the 1800s
According to Schmidt: “It is important to note that although by the fourteenth century slavery had essentially come to an end in Europe, including England, it was revived by the British in the seventeenth century, especially in England’s colonies…This revival of slavery was lamentable because this time it was implemented by countries whose proponents of slavery commonly identified themselves as Christians, whereas during the African and Greco-Roman eras, slavery was the product of pagans.”1
Though Christianity declared slavery immoral, sadly many erring British Christians preferred profit to moral theology. However, what we see in the case of England and its colonies, especially in the West Indies, is that Christians armed with correct theology were the key catalysts to slavery’s abolition. Christianity was always at the front of the struggle against the slave trade and in England courageous Christian men such as William Wilberforce and John Wesley worked tirelessly for abolition. Wilberforce and his efforts are a classic example of how a proper understanding of Christianity can prove a powerful apologetic in working for a noble cause. No matter how hard revisionist historians try to discredit the role of Christianity in the abolition of slavery in England and its colonies Schmidt again paints for us the proper picture:
“It is difficult to find a better example than Wilberforce to show the powerful effect the teachings and spirit of Christ have had in fighting the social sin of slavery. No proponent for the abolition of slavery ever accomplished more. Largely as a result of his indefatigable efforts, slavery came to a complete end in all of the British Empire’s possessions by 1840, making it the first modern country to outlaw slavery.”2
In America, according to Jeffrey Russell, “The economic and political interests followed the money, so there was little or no political impetus to abolition: it was almost exclusively Christian moral leaders who achieved the freedom of the slaves.”3 Again in America it was the tireless efforts of people who put Christ first that led the fight for abolition. Christians such as John Woolman, Lyman Beecher, Lucy Stone, Charles Finney, William Lloyd Garrison, and of course Abraham Lincoln were key people in helping to put an end to slavery. And let’s not forget that it was this groundswell of Christian activism that led to the fighting of the American Civil War – which in reality was first and foremost a war against slavery. Christian principles and values, especially against slavery, made the American Civil War a just war since it seemed to be the only way, at least in America, to break the chains of slavery.
According to Coffey: “For American Evangelical abolitionists like Jonathan Edwards Jr, Samuel Hopkins and Benjamin Rush, slavery was incompatible with the Declaration of Independence which stated that ‘all men are created equal and endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights.’”4 I believe that this idea of true equality for all men harkens back to (Galatians 3:28) where we saw that: “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” In the end the Christian ethic was the only power strong enough to break the profitability barrier of slavery.
A shining example of how the Christian value system was able to influence millions of minds can be found in Harriet Beecher Stowe’s classic antislavery novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, published in 1852. In the book Stowe seeks to show how slavery violated the teachings of Christ. And according to Schmidt: “In writing Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe, a Christian, contributed greatly to the shattering of American slavery. Her book ‘took the sting of fanaticism out of abolitionism, and its popularity gave incalculable weight to the idea of emancipation as a moral and historical inevitability.’”5 Despite the relentless efforts of American abolitionists there was still intense opposition to keep slavery legal. For example, Charles Spurgeon had some of his sermons burned in America due to his censure of slavery when he referred to it as “the foulest blot” which “may have to be washed out in blood.”6 According to Schmidt, virtually all of the antislavery promoters were motivated by Christian principles.7 Yes it is true that many Southerners were Christians but only a small percentage of them owned slaves. The real truth of the matter is that almost all of the abolitionists knew that theirs was a religious movement and that the ultimate victory over slavery lay in the hands of God.
Conclusion
When one examines all of the evidence and history of the role of Christianity in the area of slavery two things stand out. First, it can’t be denied that down through the centuries many erring Christians owned slaves and second, despite this sad situation, many more Christians knew that slavery was a sin and fought tirelessly for its abolition. While it would be great to say that in the year 2021 the curse of slavery has been eradicated globally, sadly this is not the case. Sex trafficking today is a multi-billion dollar business and exists in virtually every corner of our globe. Thankfully, Christians, all over the world, have united together to battle this modern day epidemic and with the help of the Word and much prayer this battle can be won. Just what would our world be like without Christianity – I shudder to even think such a thought.
1 Alvin J. Schmidt, Under the Influence: How Christianity Transformed Civilization. (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2001). p. 274.
2 Schmidt, Under the Influence, p. 278.
3 Jeffrey B. Russell, Christianity and Black Slavery, CRI website: http://www.equip.org/article/christianity-black-slavery/
4 John Coffey, The abolition of the slave trade: Christian conscience and political action, Jubilee Centre website: http://www.jubilee-centre.org/the-abolition-of-the-slave-trade-christian-conscience-and-political-action-by-john-coffe/
5 Schmidt, Under the Influence, p. 285.
6 Wikipedia website: Christian Views on Slavery. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_views_on_slavery
7 Schmidt, Under the Influence, p. 283.