Can slavery, however modified, be consistent with such a gospel?--a gospel which requires us, even amidst the highest forms of social life, to exert ourselves to raise the depressed by giving our warmest sympathies to those who have the smallest share in the favor of the world?
Those who are in "bonds" are set before us as deserving an especial remembrance. Their claims upon us are described as a modification of the Golden Rule--as one of the many forms to which its obligations are reducible. To them we are to extend the same affectionate regard as we would covet for ourselves, if the chains upon their limbs were fastened upon ours. To the benefits of this precept, the enslaved have a natural claim of the greatest strength. The wrongs they suffer, spring from a persecution which can hardly be surpa.s.sed in malignancy. Their birth and complexion are the occasion of the insults and injuries which they can neither endure nor escape. It is for the _work of G.o.d_, and not them own deserts, that they are loaded with chains. _This is persecution._
Can I regard the slave as another self--can I put myself in his place--and be indifferent to his wrongs? Especially, can I, thus affected, take sides with the oppressor? Could I, in such a state of mind as the gospel requires me to cherish, reduce him to slavery or keep him in bonds? Is not the precept under hand naturally subversive of every system and every form of slavery?
The _general descriptions_ of the church which are found here and there in the New Testament, are highly instructive in their bearing on the subject of slavery. In one connection, the following words meet the eye: "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female; for ye are all one in Christ Jesus."[A] Here we have--1. A clear and strong description of the doctrine of _human equality_. "Ye are all ONE;"--so much alike, so truly placed on common ground, all wielding each his own powers with such freedom, _that one is the same as another_.
[Footnote A: Gal. iii. 23.]
2. This doctrine, self-evident in the light of reason, is affirmed on divine authority. "IN CHRIST JESUS, _ye are all one_." The natural equality of the human family is a part of the gospel. For--
3. All the human family are included in this description. Whether men or women, whether bond or free, whether Jews or Gentiles, all are alike ent.i.tled to the benefit of this doctrine. Wherever Christianity prevails, the _artificial_ distinctions which grow out of birth, condition, s.e.x, are done away. _Natural_ distinctions are not destroyed.
_They_ are recognized, hallowed, confirmed. The gospel does not abolish the s.e.xes, forbid a division of labor, or extinguish patriotism. It takes woman from beneath the feet, and places her by the side of man; delivers the manual laborer from "the yoke," and gives him wages for his work; and brings the Jew and Gentile to embrace each other with fraternal love and confidence. Thus it raises all to a common level, gives to each the free use of his own powers and resources, binds all together in one dear and loving brotherhood. Such, according to the description of the apostle, was the influence, and such the effect of primitive Christianity. "Behold the picture!" Is it like American slavery, which, in all its tendencies and effects, is destructive of all oneness among brethren?
"Where the spirit of the Lord is," exclaims the same apostle, with his eye upon the condition and relations of the church, "_where the spirit of the Lord is_, THERE IS LIBERTY." Where, then, may we reverently recognize the presence, and bow before the manifested power, of this spirit? _There_, where the laborer may not choose how he shall be employed!--in what way his wants shall he supplied!--with whom he shall a.s.sociate!--who shall have the fruit of his exertions! _There_, where he is not free to enjoy his wife and children! _There_, where his body and his soul, his very "destiny,"[A] are placed altogether beyond his control! _There_, where every power is crippled, every energy blasted, every hope crushed! _There_, where in all the relations and concerns of life, he is legally treated as if he had nothing to do with the laws of reason, the light of immortality, or the exercise of will! Is the spirit of the Lord _there_, where liberty is decried and denounced, mocked at and spit upon, betrayed and crucified! In the midst of a church which justified slavery, which derived its support from slavery, which carried on its enterprises by means of slavery, would the apostle have found the fruits of the Spirit of the Lord! Let that Spirit exert his influences, and a.s.sert his authority, and wield his power, and slavery must vanish at once and forever.
[Footnote A: "The Legislature [of South Carolina] from time to time, has pa.s.sed many restricted and penal acts, with a view to bring under direct control and subjection the DESTINY _of the black population_." See the Remonstrance of James S. Pope and 352 others, against home missionary efforts for the benefit of the enslaved--a most instructive paper.]
In more than one connection, the apostle James describes Christianity as "_the law of liberty_." It is in other words the law under which liberty can not but live and flourish--the law in which liberty is clearly defined, strongly a.s.serted, and well protected. As the law of liberty, how can it be consistent with the law of slavery? The presence and the power of this law are felt wherever the light of reason shines. They are felt in the uneasiness and conscious degradation of the slave, and in the shame and remorse which the master betrays in his reluctant and desperate efforts to defend himself. This law it is which has armed human nature against the oppressor. Wherever it is obeyed, "every yoke is broken."
In these references to the New Testament we have a _general description_ of the primitive church, and the _principles_ on which it was founded and fashioned. These principles bear the same relation to Christian _history_ as to Christian _character_, since the former is occupied with the development of the latter. What then is Christian character but Christian principle _realized_, acted out, bodied forth, and animated?
Christian principle is the soul, of which Christian character is the expression--the manifestation. It comprehends in itself, as a living seed, such Christian character, under every form, modification, and complexion. The former is, therefore, the test and interpreter of the latter. In the light of Christian principle, and in that light only, we can judge of and explain Christian character. Christian history is occupied with the forms, modifications, and various aspects of Christian character. The facts which are there recorded serve to show, how Christian principle has fared in this world--how it has appeared, what it has done, how it has been treated. In these facts we have the various inst.i.tutions, usages, designs, doings, and sufferings of the church of Christ. And all these have of necessity, the closest relation to Christian principle. They are the production of its power. Through them, it is revealed and manifested. In its light, they are to be studied, explained, and understood. Without it they must be as unintelligible and insignificant as the letters of a book, scattered on the wind.
In the principles of Christianity, then, we have a comprehensive and faithful account of its objects, inst.i.tutions, and usages--of how it must behave, and act, and suffer, in a world of sin and misery. For between the principles which G.o.d reveals, on the one hand, and the precepts he enjoins, the inst.i.tutions he establishes, and the usages he approves, on the other, there must be consistency and harmony. Otherwise we impute to G.o.d what we must abhor in man--practice at war with principle. Does the Savior, then, lay down the _principle_ that our standing in the church must depend upon the habits, formed within us, of readily and heartily subserving the welfare of others; and permit us _in practice_ to invade the rights and trample on the happiness of our fellows, by reducing them to slavery. Does he, _in principle_ and by example, require us to go all lengths in rendering mutual service, comprehending offices the most menial, as well as the most honorable; and permit us _in practice_ to EXACT service of our brethren, as if they were nothing better than "articles of merchandize?" Does he require us _in principle_ "to work with quietness and eat our own bread;" and permit us _in practice_ to wrest from our brethren the fruits of their unrequited toil? Does he in principle require us, abstaining from every form of theft, to employ our powers in useful labor, not only to provide for ourselves but also to relieve the indigence of others; and permit us _in practice_, abstaining from every form of labor, to enrich and aggrandize ourselves with the fruits of man-stealing? Does he require us _in principle_ to regard "the laborer as worthy of his hire;" and permit us _in practice_ to defraud him of his wages? Does he require us _in principle_ "to honor ALL men;" and permit us _in practice_ to treat mult.i.tudes like cattle? Does he _in principle_ prohibit "respect of persons;" and permit us _in practice_ to place the feet of the rich upon the necks of the poor? Does he _in principle_ require us to sympathize with the bondman as another self; and permit us _in practice_ to leave him unpitied and unhelped in the hands of the oppressor? _In principle_, "where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty;" _in practice_, is _slavery_ the fruit of the Spirit? _In principle_, Christianity is the law of liberty; _in practice_, is it the law of slavery? Bring practice in these various respects into harmony with principle, and what becomes of slavery? And if, where the divine government is concerned, practice is the expression of principle, and principle the standard and interpreter of practice, such harmony cannot but be maintained and must be a.s.serted. In studying, therefore, fragments of history and sketches of biography--in disposing of references to inst.i.tutions, usages, and facts in the New Testament, this necessary harmony between principle and practice in the government, should be continually present to the thoughts of the interpreter. Principles a.s.sert what practice must be.
Whatever principle condemns, G.o.d condemns. It belongs to those weeds of the dunghill which, planted by "an enemy," his hand will a.s.suredly "root up." It is most certain, then, that if slavery prevailed in the first ages of Christianity, it could nowhere have prevailed under its influence and with its sanction.
The _condition_ in which, in its efforts to bless mankind, the primitive church was placed, must have greatly a.s.sisted the early Christians in understanding and applying the principles of the gospel.--Their _Master_ was born in great obscurity, lived in the deepest poverty, and died the most ignominious death. The place of his residence, his familiarity with the outcasts of society, his welcoming a.s.sistance and support from female hands, his casting his beloved mother, when he hung upon the cross, upon the charity of a disciple--such things evince the depth of his poverty, and show to what derision and contempt he must have been exposed. Could such an one, "despised and rejected of men--a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief," play the oppressor, or smile on those who made merchandize of the poor!
And what was the history of the _apostles_, but an ill.u.s.tration of the doctrine, that "it is enough for the disciple, that he be as his Master?" Were they lordly ecclesiastics, abounding with wealth, shining with splendor, bloated with luxury! Were they ambitious of distinction, fleecing, and trampling, and devouring "the flocks," that they themselves might "have the pre-eminence!" Were they slaveholding bishops! Or did they derive their support from the wages of iniquity and the price of blood! Can such inferences be drawn from the account of their condition, which the most gifted and enterprising of their number has put upon record? "Even unto this present hour, we both hunger, and thirst, and are naked, and _are buffetted_, and have _no certain dwelling place, and labor working with our own hands_. Being reviled, we bless; being persecuted, we suffer it; being defamed, we entreat; we are made as _the filth of the world_, and are THE OFFSCOURING OF ALL THINGS unto this day[A]." Are these the men who practiced or countenanced slavery? _With such a temper, they WOULD NOT; in such circ.u.mstances, they COULD NOT_. Exposed to "tribulation, distress, and persecution;"
subject to famine and nakedness, to peril and the sword; "killed all the day long; accounted as sheep for the slaughter[B]," they would have made but a sorry figure at the great-house or slave-market!
[Footnote A: 1 Cor. iv. 11-13.]
[Footnote B: 1 Rom. viii. 35, 36.]
Nor was the condition of the brethren, generally, better than that of the apostles. The position of the apostles doubtless ent.i.tled them to the strongest opposition, the heaviest reproaches, the fiercest persecution. But derision and contempt must have been the lot of Christians generally. Surely we cannot think so ill of primitive Christianity as to suppose that believers, generally, refused to share in the trials and sufferings of their leaders; as to suppose that while the leaders submitted to manual labor, to buffeting, to be reckoned the filth of the world, to be accounted as sheep for the slaughter, his brethren lived in affluence, ease, and honor! despising manual labor!
and living upon the sweat of unrequited toil! But on this point we are not left to mere inference and conjecture. The apostle Paul in the plainest language explains the ordination of Heaven. "But _G.o.d hath_ CHOSEN the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and G.o.d hath CHOSEN the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; and base things of the world, and things which are despised hath G.o.d CHOSEN, yea, and THINGS WHICH ARE NOT, to bring to nought things that are."[A] Here we may well notice,
[Footnote A: 1 Cor. i. 27, 28.]
1. That it was not by _accident_, that the primitive churches were made up of such elements, but the result of the DIVINE CHOICE--an arrangement of His wise and gracious Providence. The inference is natural, that this ordination was co-extensive with the triumphs of Christianity. It was nothing new or strange, that Jehovah had concealed his glory "from the wise and prudent, and had revealed it unto babes," or that "the common people heard him gladly," while "not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many n.o.ble, had been called."
2. The description of character which the apostle records, could be adapted only to what are reckoned the _very dregs of humanity_. The foolish and the weak, the base and the contemptible, in the estimation of worldly pride and wisdom--these were they whose broken hearts were reached, and moulded, and refreshed by the gospel; these were they whom the apostle took to his bosom as his own brethren.
That _slaves_ abounded at Corinth, may easily be admitted. _They_ have a place in the enumeration of elements of which, according to the apostle, the church there was composed. The most remarkable cla.s.s found there, consisted of "THINGS WHICH ARE NOT"--mere n.o.bodies, not admitted to the privileges of men, but degraded to a level with "goods and chattels;" of whom _no account_ was made in such arrangements of society as subserved the improvement, and dignity, and happiness of MANKIND. How accurately this description applies to those who are crushed under the chattel principle!
The reference which the apostle makes to the "deep poverty of the churches of Macedonia,"[B] and this to stir up the sluggish liberality of his Corinthian brethren, naturally leaves the impression, that the latter were by no means inferior to the former in the gifts of Providence. But, pressed with want and pinched by poverty as were the believers in "Macedonia and Achaia, it pleased them to make a certain contribution for the poor saints which were at Jerusalem."[C] Thus it appears, that Christians every where were familiar with contempt and indigence, so much so, that the apostle would dissuade such as had no families from a.s.suming the responsibilities of the conjugal relation[D]!
[Footnote B: 2 Cor. viii. 2.]
[Footnote C: Rom. xv. 26.]
[Footnote D: 1 Cor. vi 26,27]
Now, how did these good people treat each other? Did the few among them, who were esteemed wise, mighty, or n.o.ble, exert their influence and employ their power in oppressing the weak, in disposing of the "things that are not," as marketable commodities!--kneeling with them in prayer in the evening, and putting them up at auction the next morning! Did the church sell any of the members to swell the "certain contribution far the poor saints at Jerusalem!" Far otherwise--as far as possible! In those Christian communities where the influence of the apostles was most powerful, and where the arrangements drew forth their highest commendations, believers treated each other as brethren, in the strongest sense of that sweet word. So warm was their mutual love, so strong the public spirit, so open-handed and abundant the general liberality, that they are set forth as "_having all things common._" [E]
Slaves and their holders here? Neither the one nor the other could in that relation to each other have breathed such an atmosphere. The appeal of the kneeling bondman, "Am I not a man and a brother," must here have met with a prompt and powerful response.
[Footnote E: Acts iv. 32]
The _tests_ by which our Savior tries the character of his professed disciples, shed a strong light upon the genius of the gospel. In one connection[F], an inquirer demands of the Savior, "What good thing shall I do that I may have eternal life?" After being reminded of the obligations which his social nature imposed upon him, he ventured, while claiming to be free from guilt in his relations to mankind, to demand, "what lack I yet?" The radical deficiency under which his character labored, the Savior was not long or obscure in pointing out. If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven; and come and follow me. On this pa.s.sage it is natural to suggest--
[Footnote F: Luke xvii 18-24]
1. That we have here a _test of universal application._ The rect.i.tude and benevolence of our Savior"s character forbid us to suppose that he would subject this inquirer, especially as he was highly amiable, to a trial, where eternal life was at stake, _peculiarly_ severe. Indeed, the test seems to have been only a fair exposition of the second great command, and of course it must be applicable to all who are placed under the obligations of that precept. Those who can not stand this test, as their character is radically imperfect and unsound, must, with the inquirer to whom our Lord applied it, be p.r.o.nounced unfit for the kingdom of heaven.
2. The least that our Savior can in that pa.s.sage be understood to demand is, that we disinterestedly and heartily devote ourselves to the welfare of mankind, "the poor" especially. We are to put ourselves on a level with _them_, as we must do "in selling that we have" for their benefit--in other words, in employing our powers and resources to elevate their character, condition, and prospects. This our Savior did; and if we refuse to enter into sympathy and cooperation with him, how can we be his _followers_? Apply this test to the slaveholder. Instead of "selling that he hath" for the benefit of the poor, he BUYS THE POOR, and exacts their sweat with stripes, to enable him to "clothe himself in purple and fine linen, and fare sumptuously every day;" or, HE SELLS THE POOR to support the gospel and convert the heathen!
What, in describing the scenes of the final judgment, does our Savior teach us? _By what standard_ must our character be estimated, and the retributions of eternity be awarded? A standard, which both the righteous and the wicked will be surprised to see erected. From the "offscouring of all things," the meanest specimen of humanity will be selected--a "stranger" in the hands of the oppressor, naked, hungry, sickly; and this stranger, placed in the midst of the a.s.sembled universe, by the side of the sovereign Judge, will be openly acknowledged as his representative. "Glory, honor, and immortality,"
will be the reward of those who had recognized and cheered their Lord through his outraged poor. And tribulation, anguish, and despair, will seize on "every soul of man," who had neglected or despised them. But whom, within the limits of our country, are we to regard especially as the representatives of our final Judge? Every feature of the Savior"s picture finds its appropriate original in our enslaved countrymen.
1. They are the LEAST of his brethren.
2. They are subject to thirst and hunger, unable to command a cup of water or a crumb of bread.
3. They are exposed to wasting sickness, without the ability to procure a nurse or employ a physician.
4. They are emphatically "in prison," restrained by chains, goaded with whips, tasked, and under keepers. Not a wretch groans in any cell of the prisons of our country, who is exposed to a confinement so rigorous and heart-breaking as the law allows theirs to be continually and permanently.
5. And then they are emphatically, and peculiarly, and exclusively, STRANGERS--_strangers_ in the land which gave them birth. Whom else do we constrain to remain aliens in the midst of our free inst.i.tutions? The Welch, the Swiss, the Irish? The Jews even? Alas, it is the _negro_ only, who may not strike his roots into our soil. Every where we have conspired to treat him as a stranger--every where he is forced to feel himself a stranger. In the stage and steamboat, in the parlor and at our tables, in the scenes of business and in the scenes of amus.e.m.e.nt--even in the church of G.o.d and at the communion table, he is regarded as a stranger. The intelligent and religious are generally disgusted and horror-struck at the thought of his becoming identified with the citizens of our republic--so much so, that thousands of them have entered into a conspiracy to send him off "out of sight," to find a home on a foreign sh.o.r.e!--And justify themselves by openly alledging, that a "single drop" of his blood, in the veins of any human creature, must make him hateful to his fellow citizens!--That nothing but banishment from "our coasts," can redeem him from the scorn and contempt to which his "stranger" blood has reduced him among his own mother"s children!
Who, then, in this land "of milk and honey," is "hungry and athirst,"
but the man from whom the law takes away the last crumb of bread and the smallest drop of water?
Who "naked," but the man whom the law strips of the last rag of clothing?
Who "sick," but the man whom the law deprives of the power of procuring medicine or sending for a physician?
Who "in prison," but the man who, all his life is under the control of merciless masters and cruel keepers?
Who a "stranger," but the man who is scornfully denied the cheapest courtesies of life--who is treated as an alien in his native country?
There is one point in this awful description which deserves particular attention. Those who are doomed to the left hand of the Judge, are not charged with inflicting _positive injuries_ on their helpless, needy, and oppressed brother. Theirs was what is often called _negative_ character. What they _had done_ is not described in the indictment.
Their _neglect_ of duty, what they _had_ NOT _done_, was the ground of their "everlasting punishment." The representative of their Judge, they had seen a hungered and they gave him no meat, thirsty and they have him no drink, a stranger and they took him not in, naked and they clothed him not, sick and in prison and they visited him not. In as much as they did NOT yield to the claims of suffering humanity--did NOT exert themselves to bless the meanest of the human family, they were driven away in their wickedness. But what if the indictment had run thus: I was a hungered and ye s.n.a.t.c.hed away the crust which might have saved me from starvation; I was thirsty and ye dashed to the ground the "cup of cold water," which might have moistened my parched lips; I was a stranger and ye drove me from the hovel which might have sheltered me from the piercing wind; I was sick and ye scourged me to my task; in prison and you sold me for my jail-fees--to what depths of h.e.l.l must not those who were convicted under such charges be consigned! And what is the history of American slavery but one long indictment, describing under ever-varying forms and hues just such injuries!
Nor should it be forgotten, that those who incurred the displeasure of their Judge, took far other views than he, of their own past history.
The charges which he brought against them, they heard with great surprise. They were sure that they had never thus turned away from his necessities. Indeed, when had they seen him thus subject to poverty, insult, and oppression! Never. And as to that poor friendless creature whom they left unpitied and unhelped in the hands of the oppressor, and whom their Judge now presented as his own representative, they never once supposed, that _he_ had any claims on their compa.s.sion and a.s.sistance. Had they known, that he was destined to so prominent a place at the final judgment, they would have treated him as a human being, in despite of any social, pecuniary, or political considerations. But neither their _negative virtue_ nor their _voluntary ignorance_ could shield them from the penal fire which their selfishness had kindled.
Now amidst the general maxims, the leading principles, the "great commandments" of the gospel; amidst its comprehensive descriptions and authorized tests of Christian character, we should take our position in disposing of any particular allusions to such forms and usages of the primitive churches as are supposed by divine authority. The latter must be interpreted and understood in the light of the former. But how do the apologists and defenders of slavery proceed? Placing themselves amidst the arrangements and usages which grew out of the _corruptions_ of Christianity, they make these the standard by which the gospel is to be explained and understood! Some Recorder or Justice, without the light of inquiry or the aid of a jury, consigns the negro whom the kidnapper has dragged into his presence to the horrors of slavery. As the poor wretch shrieks and faints, Humanity shudders and demands why such atrocities are endured? Some "priest" or "Levite," "pa.s.sing by on the other side,"