The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1865-12-22

d the grace whichstae Dime srlsis dias'es
upon earth sstsfor ino6e spttit were Yah pap
"tised in OF body whether Jew q 0entile'
|" whether had Or1ree." !" THERE'S neither
I. Jew ior dsntile there isneithsr bond nor
.. free there 10 neither male nor female. For
:. YOU are all one In Christ Jcsus." Wherever
Christian doctrines prevailed, slaves, for the
nr.t time. lrarneti that, though they were an.
fortunate; though birth, poverty, or tho re-
verses OF war, had condemned them to misfor-
tune, they were at least acknowledged rs men
and brethfen, and that between them and
their masters there was a reciprocity Of rights
and obligations. This was the germ which
Christianity deposited ~ the ultimate enfran-
chlsement OF enslaved mankind.
I Now, 1t Is true, class OF texts may be found
which seem to conflict with those we have
quoted, but, ~ expoundeti by learned theolo-
gians, perfectly harmonixe. It was natural that
the passages already mentioned shouid ne mis-
understood and exaggerated, and II was 10
guard against this that Christianity exhortea
servants to obey their masters, not as pleasing
men. hut as the servants OF Christ IL hao
also by its doctrines Of peace, forgiveness ana
iusttce. prepared the way for the ultimate eA'
,;nction Of war and desp0tism, but the pro-
cess in each and all must be necessarily gra-
,,ual !: and in the meantime ii defined the d"ties
If soldiers. and enioined subjects to honor ana
obey their King.
II Is matter of history that the first Efforts Oh
tho Christian Church were directed TO the
mitigation of the cruel treatment OF slaves ana
the Improvement of their condition The
c,nons. DEGREES and other documents which
show the solicitude of the Church on TINS SUD-
;ect would of themselves fill = volume. "A Pc
rusal of them will refute the rr"Vaieht idea
that the extinction Of serfdom In Europe was
accomplished by the force OF lnIeres's'
primarily, and not of ideas. Christianity
made itself master of ideas ana man.
ners, communicated to them a new I'M
pulse, and gave them different direc-
ton. The whole process, however, was, in the
nature Of things, gradual; the rigor OF slave
laws became relaxed, their observance was
neglected. their equity doubted, their expedi-
ency questioned, until at length the institn-
ton crumbled to its downfall.
Slow and protracted, however, as was the
a great number OF the slaves did
not know the value of liberty, did not conduct
in their new state, according to
the dictates of reason; and while they en-
ioyed the rights, did not know how to fulfil the
of freedom. Not less prominent
than her influence in producing emancipation
were the efforts of the Church to secure the
work she had accomplished, and to impart to
the freemen that education and morality which
are essential to the proper appreciation OF
their new condition. There is no brighter
record in the annals of Christian civilization
than the manner in which the Church tri-
umphed over these Inconvenience and Difficult
ties, inseparable from the nature Of things.
These reflections are not without interest in
onr present condition. The benefcent inn
pulses and energies of Christianity have been
brilliantly exhibited in the moral and physical
elevation OF the Southern slave under the
slave institutions, now abolished. 1t would be
impossible to find in the past ages any ex-
ample of bondmen who received, with few ex-
ceptions, such humane and cOnsiderate treat
ment, and the hardships of whose lot were
alleviated by SO many sympathies. Their rapid
multiplication proved their physical comforts
In health and manhood they were rarely over
worked /; in infancy, sickness and old age, they
were provided for and relieved. That their
spiritual interests were not neglected is evil
dent from the fact first stated by Rev. DIR.
STYLES, of this city, that the number OF COM
municants in the Southern churches is greater,
in proportion to the population, than that OF
any other country, and the number of slaves
in the South converted to Christianity greater
than the sum total Of all the heathens con-
verted by the combined missionary societies of
the United States and Great Britain. 1t can
not be doubted that the men who exhibited
this practical benevolence TO their former bond
men will prove their best friends, now that
they are free, and viii. labor to exalt their mo-
raj condition, and to make them feel. by prac-
teal sympathy and Christian charity, that we
desire their welfare and improvement.