I cannot find any passage in the Gospels where Jesus condemns slavery. Have I missed something?
No, you haven’t missed a specific passage on this subject. You are, however, correct in saying Jesus rejected the ideas that one human being can own another in the same way that someone can own land, a house, food, or clothing.
The Bible was written for people and societies that assumed that slavery was inevitable, a fact of life usually caused by nonpayment of debt or defeat in war. Thus, the Hebrews were told to allow their slaves to rest on the Sabbath (Dt 5:14). For example, several New Testament passages assume that some Christians owned slaves: “Obey your human masters” (Eph 6:5a and Col 3:22); masters should be regarded “as worthy of full respect”
(1 Tm 6:1); and slaves should accept the authority of their masters “with all reverence” (1 Pt 2:18).
Christians were to remember that they and their slaves have the same “Master in heaven” (Eph 6:9). Baptism confers a radical equality (Gal 3:28). In God’s eyes, however, that equality existed even before someone was baptized.
St. Paul wrote to his convert Philemon that he should treat Onesimus—a runaway slave whom Paul baptized and who carried this letter back to Philemon—with dignity. Paul wrote this letter to urge Philemon, a Christian, to receive Onesimus back and now treat him as a brother in Christ. Baptism did not cancel the legal status of Onesimus as a slave, but it certainly did not justify applying the death penalty to runaway slaves—as Roman law then permitted.
Over the years, some Christians regarded slavery as a consequence of sin and, thus, inevitable. Sometimes it was seen as temporary (until a debt could be paid off) but usually was permanent. Often it was justified on the claim that enslaved people were not truly human.
William Wilberforce, a devout Anglican and member of Parliament, failed for 20 years to outlaw the international slave trade before he succeeded in 1807. The law, however, required the national government to compensate slave owners for their lost “property.”
Not surprisingly, many 19th-century Christian slave owners in this country made it illegal to teach their slaves to read or even to be baptized. Too much familiarity with Scripture could be dangerous!
John L. McKenzie concludes the entry about slavery in his Dictionary of the Bible with these words: “Historically, Christianity has been the only effective destroyer of slavery.”
Finding Suitable Godparents
Because of canon law, my son and daughter-in-law are having difficulty finding good godparents for their 4-month-old son. Can they enlist a proxy? Can they have their son baptized in the Episcopal Church?
Although canon law does not explicitly state if a baptismal sponsor by proxy can be enlisted, it does not prohibit it either. However, the Canon Law Society of America states, “Although the canon [i.e., 872] says nothing about a sponsor’s presence through a proxy, this silence is not to be understood as barring the use of a proxy to stand in for an absent sponsor [at Baptism]” (A New Commentary on the Code of Canon Law, page 1061).” By the way, having a male and a female sponsor is customary, but the Catholic Church requires only one sponsor who is Catholic (Code of Canon Law, 873). A second sponsor can be someone baptized in another Christian denomination.
Is there perhaps some other issue at work here? Don’t your son and daughter-in-law know any Catholics who will accept the responsibility of helping them bring this boy up Catholic?
What are their intentions for the religious education of this child? Where he is baptized should reflect those intentions.
Why Is the Bible Biased Against Women?
In 1 Corinthians 14:34–35, St. Paul writes: “Women should be silent in the churches, for they are not allowed to speak, but should be subordinate, as the law also says. If there is anything they desire to know, let them ask their husbands at home.”
Also, in 1 Timothy 2:11–15, we read: “A woman must receive instruction silently and under complete control. I do no permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man. She must be quiet. For Adam was formed first, then Eve. Further, Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and transgressed. But she will be saved through motherhood, provided women persevere in faith and love and holiness, with self-control.”
Why do women have so small a role in God’s plan? Why is all the blame for Adam and Eve’s fall placed on Eve? Why are people baptized into Christ as “priest, prophet, and king?” Why not priestesses, prophetesses, and queens? After all, in the Old Testament, Deborah was one of the prophets!
These passages clearly reflect the dominant patriarchal culture in which the New Testament arose. Not every aspect of that—or any—culture perfectly reflects God’s intention for the human family. For example, this column’s first question and answer address the issue of slavery among Jews and, later, Christians. Any Scripture passage needs to be read in context: The quotes above from Ephesians and Galatians are as much inspired as the ones from 1 Corinthians and 1 Timothy. “Even the devil can quote Scripture,” wrote William Shakespeare in The Merchant of Venice. In fact, in Matthew’s Gospel, the tempter accurately quotes Deuteronomy three times, only to have each interpretation later rejected by Jesus (4:1–11).
The quotation above from 1 Timothy assumes that all women will marry and have children, that this will be their path to salvation. Jesus is the only path to salvation for all males and females. When a woman praised Mary for being Jesus’ mother, he responded that she was more blessed for hearing the word of God and following it (Lk 11:27), something that all Christian men and women can do.
Some gentiles criticized early Christianity as a religion of women and slaves, society’s two most marginalized groups. Though Christians were sensitive to the accusation that they were socially disruptive (called by some people “enemies of the human race”), they preached a Gospel that was all-inclusive, even if some of its members were slow to admit that.
Quick Questions and Answers
Is self-defense a sin?
No, but it must be proportionate to the danger involved. For example, if an unarmed stranger knocks on your door at home, you would not be justified in automatically shooting him or her through the door. You might not even be justified in shooting that individual at all. A “stand-your-ground” law in your state presumes that you have assessed the danger reasonably and have acted accordingly.
Why can’t baptized Catholics be baptized again in another Christian Church?
Baptism is an unrepeatable sacrament even if a person no longer affiliates with the same Christian community as when she or he was baptized.
