Slavery and the ConstitutionBowditch, William I. (William Ingersoll)
Religion
Slavery and the Constitution
Bowditch, William I. (William Ingersoll)
Enslaved persons -- United States -- Social conditions; Slavery -- United States
The Right Rev. George W. Freeman, Bishop of the Protestant Episcopal
Church in Arkansas and Texas, whilst a minister at Raleigh, N.C. Nov.
27, 1836, preached two discourses on the character of slavery and the
duties of masters. In these ("A Reproof of the American Church, by the
Bishop of Oxford; with an Introduction, by an American Churchman;" New
York, 1846, p. 6) he declared "that no man, nor set of men in our day,
unless they can produce a new revelation from Heaven, are entitled to
pronounce slavery wrong;" and that "_slavery, as it exists at the
present day, is agreeable to the order of Divine Providence_." The
Right Rev. Levi S. Ives, Bishop of the diocese, was present; and, though
a northern man, has in writing published that he listened to them "with
most unfeigned pleasure"! (Ib. p. 7.) They were afterwards published
with the bishop's note of approbation, under the title, "The Rights and
Duties of Slaveholders." They were also printed in South Carolina, and
distributed gratuitously as a tract by the Society for the Advancement
of Christianity,--a society composed of clergymen and laymen, with
Bishop Bowen at their head. (Ib. pp. 7, 8.) Rev. Theodore Clapp,[A] the
Unitarian minister of New Orleans, says ("Slavery, a Sermon delivered in
the First Congregational Church in New Orleans, April 15, 1838," p. 11),
"The same _God_ who gave Abraham sunshine, air, rain, earth, flocks,
herds, silver, and gold, _blessed him with a donative of slaves_." Ib.
p. 33: "To succeed, then, in putting down every thing like servitude,
you must annihilate the word of God." Bishop Hedding, of the Methodist
Episcopal Church, says ("The Church as it is," p. 50), "The right to
hold a slave is founded on this rule, 'Therefore, all things whatsoever
ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so unto them.'" The funds
of churches and theological institutions are not unfrequently invested
in slaves. Sometimes these slaves are hired out at auction, and from
their earnings the salaries of the clergymen and professors are paid! At
other times, they are sold in order to change the investment! Thus, in
the "Charleston Courier," Feb. 12, 1835, there is advertised for sale,
by Thomas N. Gadsden, "a prime gang of ten negroes, accustomed to the
culture of cotton and provisions belonging to the Independent Church in
Christ Church parish"! ("The Church as it is," p. 72.) No _incredible_
story, therefore, was told by the fugitive slave, who gave as his reason
for not receiving the Lord's Supper, "I could not bear to go forward,
and receive the communion from vessels which were the purchase of my
brother's blood." In the memorial of the Presbytery of Georgia to the
Presbyteries of the Southern States in 1844, on the religious
instruction of the negroes, it is stated that slaves are "connected with
our churches; nay, more, they are owned by our church members and by our
ministers."--"What is it," asks the Rev. Dr. Albert Barnes (Sermon in
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account