Indiana State sentinel. (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1864-01-04

to-as his entire article sh0ws--was not civil,
but religious right: the right of brotherhood in
Christ Jesus, as redeemed by Him. aud an heir
TO the same glorious inheritance. "a the Apostle
st. Paul describes it In his Epistle to the Gala
fans, chapter vii. 26: ''For you are all children
of God, by faith in Jesus Christ. "a. For as many
of you as have been baptized in Christ have put
on Christ D. There is neither Jew nor Greek;
there is neither bond nor free; there is neither
male nor female. For you are all one in Christ
jesus %. And if you be Christ's, then you are
the seed Of Abraham, heirs according to the
promis =.
In the New Testament we find instances of
pious aud good men having slaves, and in no case
do we find the Saviour imputing it to them as a
crime, or requiring their servants emancipation
In chapter viii OF st. Matthew, we read of CEN
turou who addressing the Lord Jesus said, v. 9:
For / also am a man of authority, having
soldiers under me; and / say to this man, Go,
and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he
cometE; and to my servant. Do this, and he doth
it. 10. And Jesus hearing this, wondered, and
said to those that followed him. Amen, / say to
you, have nc. found so great faith in Israel"
13 "And Jesus said to the centurion,
Go. and as thou hast believed. so be il done to
thee. And the servant was healed Mt the same
hour" ST. Luke in chapter vii relates also the
testimony which the ancients of Israel gave of
this strangers virtue and how he loved their ma
a
In many Of His parabIes, the Saviour describes
the master and his servants in variety Of ways,
without any condemnation or censure of slavery.
In Luke, xvii. He describes the usual mode of
acting towards slaves the very basis upon
which He teaches one of the most useful leasons
of Christian virtue V. T. "But which of you,
having servant ploughing or feeding cattle,
will say to him. when he is come from the field.
/ Immediately, Go sit down, 8. And will not
rather say to him, Make ready my supper, and
gill thyself. and serve me while eat aud drink,
and afterwards thou shalt eat and drink? 9.
| ID ,th he thank that servant because he did the
things that were commanded him? TO- think
not. SO YOU also. when you shall have done all
the things that are commanded you. say, Weare
Improbable servants, We have done that which
we ought TO do"
After the promulgation of the Christian re-
! gion by the Apostles, the slave was not told by
them that he was in state of unchristian du-
rance. l Cor. vii, 20: "Jet every may abide in
the same calling in which he was called. 81.
Art thou called, being bondman; care not for
il: hut ii thou mayest be made free il rather.
%. For he that is called in the Lord, being
bondman, is the freeman of the Lord Likewise
he that is called being free, is the bondman of
Christ %. You are bought with price, be not
made the bond slaves of men. "a Brethren, let
every man. wherein he was called. therein abide
with God" Thus a man by becoming Christian
was not either made free or told that he was
free. but he was advised, if he could lawfully
procure his freedom, to prefer it to slavery. The
25d verse has exactly that meaning, which We
find expressed also in chap. vi 90: "For you are
bought with great price; gorify and bear God
in your body which is addressed to the free as
well as to the slave; all the servants of God,
and should not be drawn from his service by the
devices OF men, but should walk worthy of the
vocation in which they are called" Eph iv. |,
and the price by which their souls (not their bod
ies) were redeemed. is also described by st.
Peter. l,c i. 10: "Knowihg that you were not
| redeemed with corruptble gold silver from
your vain conversation of the tradition of your
Fathers" 10 "But tho precious blood of Chriss,
as a lamb unspotted and undefiled. That it
was a spiritual redemption aud spiritual service
st. Paul again shows, Heb, tx Ia. How much
more shall the blood of Christ. who through the
Holy Ghost offered Himself without spot to God .
cleanse our sonscience from dead works TO serve
the living God?" Ii is then a spiritual equality,
as we before remlrked, in the words of St. Paul,
/ Cor XII. l3: For la one spirit we are baptised
into one body. whether Jews or Gentiles, whether
bond or free And in the same chapter he ex-
patiiies TO show that though all members of the
one mystical body, their places their duties. their
gifts are various and different And in his epistle
to the Galatians, chap. iv., he exhibits the great
truth which he desires to inculcate by an illustra
|
without single expression OF their censure
Nor did the Apostles consider the Christian
master obliged to liberste his Christian servant
st. Paul. IN his Epistle to Philemon, acknowl-
edges the right of the mister TO the services of
his slave, for whom, however. he asks, a
special favor, pardon for having deserted his
owner 10 Il beseech thee for my son Ones-
muA, whom have begotton in my chains. l..
Who was heretofore Improbable 70 thee, but
NO Efab blo l.<xfh 10 ~ har
| have sent back to thee And do thou receive
him as my own bowels" Thus, a runaway slave
still belonged TO his master, aud though having
become Christian. so far from being thereby
liberated from service, he was bound TO return
thereto end submit himself TO his owner. In the
saine manner that st Paul sent Onesimus, did
the angel send Agar. Gen. xiv. s.; "And when
Sarai afflicted her, she ran away. Z. And the
angel of the Lord having found her by a fount-
ain OF water in the wilderness, which is in the
way to Hur in the desert. 8. He said to her:
Agar. handrnaid Of Slrai. whence comest thou ?
aud whittier goest thou? Aud she answered: |
flee from the face of Sarai, my mistress. g. And
the angel of the Lord said to her: Return to thy
mistress and humble thyself under her hand "
St. Paul, indeed, in v. b. says. Though
might have much confidence in Christ Jesus to
command thee that which is to the purpose" 1t
was the command Of friendship. and upon the
plea of gratitude. as he exhibits in v. 10: "Not
to say to me that thou owest me thy OWL, self
also" because OF the conversion and instruction
of Philemon by the Apostle and the friendship is
exhibited in " %: "But withal prepare me also
lodging: for / hope through your prayers l
shall be given unto you" Still the Apostle felt
that even notwithstanding all those grounds, the
right OF Philemon subsisted unmpaired l3.
Whom would have detained with me. that he
might have miuistered to me in the bonds OF the
Gospel. Ia But without thy counsel would do
, nothing, that thy good deed might not be as il
were of necessity, but voluntary Ii is true that
, in ~. l6 the Apostle requests his manumission.
but in v. ls he exhibits his readiness to pay his
ransom IL required. "And if he hath wronged
thee in ANYTHING. or is in thy debt. put it to my
} account" And he makes himself legally re
! sponsible. 49,. Il, Paul, have written with my
, own hand, will repay is" Philemon acceded
to the request of st. Paul. forgave Onesimus,
) and sent him to Rome to serve the Apostle,
| from whom hereceived his freedom. and was one
| of the bearers of the letter to the Colossians
, (Col. iv. 8
, Again. it is manifest from the Epistle of st
Paul to Timothy. that the title of the master
continued good to his slave. though both should
/, be Christians, chapter vii: .Whosoeyer are serv.
ants under the yoke. let them count their masters
worthy of all honor, lest the name and doctrine
/ of our Lord be blasphemed. 2. But they who
hare believing masters let them not despise them
e because they are brethren: but serve them the
rather, because they are faithful and beloved who
i; are partakers Of the benefit. These things ex
!, hort and teach" And in the subsequent part h
: declares the contrary teaching TO be against the
{ sound words of Jesus Christ, and to spring from
! ignorant pride. f lf.t 4fa
Slaves are still further urged by the Apostle Il
due obedience in his Episte to the Ephesians. vi