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
How easy it must be for those who cannot read to learn from the holy
book what God requires of them! Mr. Glennie assures his hearers, that
not one of them will be able to say, in the day of judgment, "I had no
way of hearing and learning about my God and Saviour"! (p. 137). May
they not all listen to such words of comfort as fall from his lips? And
how full of comfort to their souls must that book be which tells them
that God intended to make them slaves, and that they must be faithful
and obedient to their oppressors, if they wish to avoid endless
punishment in hell!
Pp. 22, 23: "Our heavenly Father commands that you, who are
servants, should 'be obedient to your masters according to the
flesh;' that is, to your earthly master, the master that you serve
here while in the body. Here is a very plain command: 'Servants, be
obedient;' be obedient to your masters. A bad servant will not try
and obey this command. A worldly-minded servant, who is not living
in the fear of God, will neglect this command. But you, who call
yourselves children of God, will do his will, and be obedient to
your earthly master. You can every day give proof that you wish to
serve God, by your ready, your cheerful obedience.
"You are here directed to be obedient to your master 'with fear and
trembling;' that is, you ought to feel as anxious to discharge your
duty faithfully as to feel afraid of giving offence by any conduct
that looks like disobedience; for, by disobedience, you not only
offend your earthly master, but you sin against God; and of this
every Christian servant will be afraid. A bad servant will be afraid
only of the punishment which he will receive, if his disobedience
should be found out. But a Christian servant must look up always to
his heavenly Master. Therefore, if you love God, whose children you
were made at your baptism, you will do every day all that you have
to do, with fear and trembling; that is, in the fear of God; knowing
that he would be angry with you, if you neglected your duty. If you
love the Lord Jesus Christ, who shed his blood for you, you will do
your daily work with fear and trembling, lest, by any act of
disobedience, you bring reproach on him whose name you bear. If you
desire that the Holy Spirit should abide in your hearts, you will
not willingly be disobedient, being afraid that this Comforter and
Sanctifier would forsake you, if you paid so little attention to the
plain word of God."
How full of comfort must the Bible be to the slaveholder! How gratifying
to him the reconciliation between God and mammon! How interesting to a
reverend father must be the reflection, that, just in the proportion as
he serves his God, by imparting to his hearers gospel truth, he is
serving mammon, and putting money in the purses of his employers, by
making his hearers more valuable as slaves!
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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