RE: "Laughing At Religion" Meme Thread
November 9, 2024 at 3:56 am
(This post was last modified: November 9, 2024 at 3:58 am by TheWhiteMarten.)
Quote:The purpose is for Paul to show that Christianity is pro-slavery.
Incorrect.
Ephesians 6, written by Paul during a period of enslavement in Rome, a few years before his beheading...
Quote: "Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear and sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. 6And do this not only to please them while they are watching, but as servants of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. 7Serve with good will, as to the Lord and not to men, 8because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.
9And masters, do the same for your slaves. Give up your use of threats, because you know that He who is both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no favoritism with Him."
The reality of the Roman Empire was that slavery was legal; in some ways it differed from how we view it in the modern world and in some ways it was even more inhumane and vile; Christians made up - at this point - less than 1% of the total empire and Jews only a few % more.
Telling slaves, "Do not give up hope, live your life with dignity and to prove to the nonbeliever and the slaver the sincerity of your belief, the truth of your convictions that they might be converted and saved and that you might be rewarded in heaven for your suffering." is not a statement of a "pro-slavery" ideology, and the fact that Christianity would initially spread like wildfire amongst the slaves of the empire - to go on to abolish slavery within the Roman Empire - would be a pretty good indicator that it was never a part of doctrine.
Quote:So the Church condemned slavery by having slaves.
Atheist owned slaves in the 1800s, does that mean that atheists today condone slavery?
