Daily Retreat 10/29/08
2008 Oct 29 Wed: Ordinary Weekday
Eph 6: 1-9/ Ps 144(145): 10-11. 12-13ab. 13cd-14/ Lk 13: 22-30
From today’s readings: “Each will be requited from the Lord for whatever good he does.... The Lord is faithful in all His words.... Lord, will only a few people be saved?”
Why Doesn’t the Bible Condemn Slavery?
Most people feel there is something fundamental missing when they read through the Bible and find no stronger objection to slavery than the admonition for masters to “stop bullying” (an obscure rhetorical question in Job 31:15 also can be noted in opposition to the abuse of slavery). Why didn’t Christ or His Apostles clearly condemn such a prevalent and obvious evil?
Prudence is the only answer - Christ certainly never condoned slavery, but if He had spoken in His earthly life directly against it, He would have been justly charged with insurrection, since slaves accounted for around half of the population in Rome at the time!
But Christian prudence is not to be confused with cowardly copouts! Although Christianity did not initially tackle the slavery issue head on, the tenets of the faith relentlessly struck at the roots in the societal mindset that tolerated slavery. Since the dignity and solidarity established by new life in Christ surpasses even the distinctions between slaves and freemen (cf. Gal 3:28), the ultimate unraveling of the illogic of looking on fellow humans as chattel was inevitable in the context of Christianity.
But the abolition of slavery would not have happened without the commitment of Christians to live the logic of their faith! When you and I and all Christians of this time and place courageously live the logic of our faith, the same invincible march of unadulterated Truth will eventually snuff out the scandalous vestiges of slavery that exist in prostitution rings, child labor ghettoes, and the abortion mentality that so callously abuses and disposes of human life for the convenience of other persons.
Eph 6: 1-9/ Ps 144(145): 10-11. 12-13ab. 13cd-14/ Lk 13: 22-30
From today’s readings: “Each will be requited from the Lord for whatever good he does.... The Lord is faithful in all His words.... Lord, will only a few people be saved?”
Why Doesn’t the Bible Condemn Slavery?
Most people feel there is something fundamental missing when they read through the Bible and find no stronger objection to slavery than the admonition for masters to “stop bullying” (an obscure rhetorical question in Job 31:15 also can be noted in opposition to the abuse of slavery). Why didn’t Christ or His Apostles clearly condemn such a prevalent and obvious evil?
Prudence is the only answer - Christ certainly never condoned slavery, but if He had spoken in His earthly life directly against it, He would have been justly charged with insurrection, since slaves accounted for around half of the population in Rome at the time!
But Christian prudence is not to be confused with cowardly copouts! Although Christianity did not initially tackle the slavery issue head on, the tenets of the faith relentlessly struck at the roots in the societal mindset that tolerated slavery. Since the dignity and solidarity established by new life in Christ surpasses even the distinctions between slaves and freemen (cf. Gal 3:28), the ultimate unraveling of the illogic of looking on fellow humans as chattel was inevitable in the context of Christianity.
But the abolition of slavery would not have happened without the commitment of Christians to live the logic of their faith! When you and I and all Christians of this time and place courageously live the logic of our faith, the same invincible march of unadulterated Truth will eventually snuff out the scandalous vestiges of slavery that exist in prostitution rings, child labor ghettoes, and the abortion mentality that so callously abuses and disposes of human life for the convenience of other persons.
posted by FrPitstick | 10/26/2008
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