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Frederick Douglas: Blatant Hypocrisy Of Southern Christianity

467 Words2 Pages

Anthony Rizzo Mr. Curdt English 100 4/12/16 Frederick Douglass’s view on Southern Christianity Although Frederick Douglass condemns the blatant hypocrisy of Southern Christianity most forcefully in his account of his desire of a Sabbath School, a close reading of when Frederick describes about Mr. Johnson reveals how Douglass celebrates those who, in their compassion and charity, reflect the true model of Christ. Douglass condemns the blatant hypocrisy of Southern Christianity most forcefully in his account of witnessing his Sabbath School forcefully broken apart. During Douglass’s time at St. Michael’s, a white man named Mr. Wilson starts up a Sabbath school designed to teach slaves how to read the New Testament on the Sabbath. Mr. West and Mr. Fairbanks were the ones who “broke up our virtuous little Sabbath school.”(75)These two men who led classes to teach scripture to whites, on the grounds that they don't want slaves to learn to read at all. …show more content…

Johnson reveals how Douglass celebrates those who, in their compassion and charity, reflect the true model of Christ. Douglass says that Mr. Johnson is “ whom I can say with a grateful heart,”(97) “I was hungry, and he gave me meat; I was thirsty, and he gave me drink; I was a stranger and he took me in.”(97) This passage quoted is Matthew 25:35 where Christ welcomes those who cared for their fellow men, though strangers, for they will inherit His kingdom which, to Douglass, describes how Mr. Johnson treats him with compassion. Also, Mr. Johnson gave Douglass his name from a poem named Lady of the Lake, (96) which is significant because in that poem a man named Lord James of Douglass was wrongfully exiled. Which is a complement because Mr. Johnson is saying that Douglass deserved to be more than a slave. Douglass proving shows that Mr. Johnson can be described as a follower of living the Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy as a true model of

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