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Examples Of Southerner's Justification Of Slavery

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Southerner’s Justification of Slavery Using the Bible Slavery was first introduced into America when Jamestown was founded in 1619. It was introduced so that the slaves would do all of the work for slave owners and they would be able to make profit off of their labor. They were submitted to horrible acts of inhumanity against their will. Many slaveowners justified their actions with the bible. Slavery was introduced into Jamestown so that they could work for their owners. They constantly worked from dawn to sunset. They had to make food for the entire plantation slaves which left them no time to rest. Some of their tasks included working on the plantation, farms and fields, and in the main house. They had to constantly keep mental count …show more content…

Many of the slaveowners were church going Christians who thought they were doing the Lord’s work. They justified their actions by quoting verses from the Bible. One verse in the bible that they used to justify their actions states, “Slaves, obey your earthly masters with fear and trembling” (Ephesians 6:5). Whenever they would be questioned how they were capable of owning slaves and treating them poorly, they would state that verse and ask how anyone could go against the word of god. Another verse is Titus 2:9 which states, “tell slaves to be submissive to their masters and to give satisfaction in every respect.” They took them out of context to relieve their guilt in order to do those horrible things that they did. They thought that they were superior to African Americans, and thought that to be a good reason to use them as slaves. They thought that African Americans were unholy and that they had to be treated poorly for it. They contorted specific bible verses to use it to their advantage. Other Christians defended it by saying that Abraham, from the bible, owned slaves. Others talked about Paul returning a runaway slave to his master and that Jesus never spoke out against it. Since slaves were considered property, it was easier for them to do this. The slave owners thought that they doing the slaves a favor and they were better off as slaves rather than individual members of

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The idea behind keeping the slave’s faith in the Lord was that the Lord allows slavery because white people are better than the blacks. Basically, any slave who disobeyed their owner was disobeying the Lord, resulting in an eternity in hell, “To be good children of the Lord, the slaves must beware of Satan who created their cunning wicked master of Hell – for it was Satan who created their desires for freedom and tempted them to run away” (Oates

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Nat Turner’s Impact on Slavery The History of slavery in Virginia can be traced to 1619, soon after the founding of Virginia as an English colony by the London Virginia Company. The company established a headright system to encourage the colonists to transport indentured servants to the colony for labor. The indentured servants would sign a contract committing to work a set number of years in return for passage to the country and their freedom. Once the contract was fulfilled the servants would be released from the contract and allowed the same opportunities as whites to live on the land.

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Douglass tells us this by saying that he believes anyone who is a slave owner cannot be a Christian. In his view, he believes being a slave owner violates the very principles of being a Christian. Auld quote he believes that the Christianity practiced by the Slave owners and the Christianity practiced by non-slave owners are two

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In the short essay “Slavery as a Mythologized Institution” Frederick Douglass works hard to debunk the mythology behind the idea of slavery. In order to do this Douglass discusses how the South in a way romanticized slavery and treated it as though it was okay because the Bible said that it was. When in reality that was not a justifiable reason to enslave African Americans, but all this did was dehumanize them. When trying to justify the act of slavery in the South, the Southerners turned to the Bible in order to do just that.

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Most arguments made by the proslavery political leaders used the economy, religion, and paternalism to argue against most of the arguments made by abolitionists. Many argued that the sudden end of the institution of slavery would not only hurt the people in Europe, but also South’s very own economic who rely on slave labor to work on their plantations. Slavery in the South during the 1800 was tied closely to their economy that if it ended there will be nothing to hold and support their backbone. In addition, they also argued that if the entire slave were to be set freed, there would be a widespread unemployment and chaos. Religious arguments from proslavery advocates also were involved in slavery.

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Their masters capitalized upon their ignorance by deceitfully trying to convey to them that freedom was onerous and debauched (as in the discussion of the holidays). Slavery also ruined slaveholders, turning them from kind and fair individuals to abusing power and losing of their way. Slave owners were turned into abusive beast. They were also hypocrites, claiming to be devoted Christians but just turning around to abuse and mistreat their own slaves. Like Mr. Covey who thought as himself to be a good Christian man, Douglass says, “In this state of mind, he prayed with more than ordinary spirit.

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There were many passages in the Bible that condoned slavery. The Bible represented the mind and will of God, and biblical stories such as “The Curse of Ham” defended the inferiority of African people. Slavery was actually considered moral, not only justified. The words of the Bible were thought of as true principles of Christianity, and following the words of the Bible meant that a person was carrying out God’s will. Paternalism, or limiting freedom from someone based on the idea that they know what is best for them, was an attitude that was common among slave owners.

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The slaveholders stated that slavery should not be abolished because it is described in the Bible

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Slaves would use the Bible to learn to read, and their slave masters would allow it because they were learning about Jesus. Slaves could go to church

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Douglass explains that the slaveholders use their religion as a blanket for the evil deeds they commit to the slaves. “I assert most unhesitatingly, that the religion of the south is a mere covering for the most horrid crimes,--a justifier of the most appalling barbarity,--a sanctifier of the most hateful frauds,--and a dark shelter under, which the darkest, foulest, grossest, and most infernal deeds of slaveholders find the strongest protection.” (Douglass 72). This quote suggests that the slaveholders are using Christianity as a way of excusing their actions. How their most horrid crimes against their slaves are justified by the fact that they call themselves Christians.

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Nevertheless, slaves were forced by their owners to practice Christianity as a means to exemplify civilization. Churches

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The slaveholders believed that institution of slavery is valid and they used the text to make the slaves believe that it is true. They use the example of Ham from the scripture about how God enslaved Ham’s descendant’s. Slaveholders hid behind the words of the Bible to excuse the way they treat the slaves. Another way that they appealed to the slaves, was when they gave the slaves a break for Christmas. This was used in order to prevent the slaves from rebeling.

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The justification of Southerners came from a literal interpretation of the Bible, and many Biblical tales were utilized to justify slavery. For instance, according to Frederick Dalcho, a Southern Carolina Episcopal clergyman, Noah’s curse of the whole of Canaan was what enslaved the Africans. In the Biblical text, one story of Noah goes on to say that he slept naked after being drunk, and Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father’s nakedness and told his two brothers. After Noah woke up and realized what his son had done to him (presumably an act of homosexuality, rape, or humiliation), Noah said, “Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers” (Gen. 9:25).

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Religion and its relationship to slavery is a contradictive subject, whether it was forced upon slaves or was a form of hope and freedom is still commonly debated about to this day. However, these individuals were devoted Christians in the abolitionist movement who all

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Slavery enters human history with civilization. Primitive farmers and hunter-gathers had no use for slaves as they collected and grew food for only themselves. The extra person would only mean another person that would need to be fed. As civilization developed and people moved to towns and cities, it allowed a surplus of food from large estates in the countryside. Citizens in the town developed a wide range of crafts as not everyone needed to be a farmer.

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