The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1896-02-06
DIR. THOMPSON
And The CHURCH.
Some Historic Facts Concerning
the Relation Of the Church
to Slavery
FREEDOM AND ITS MEANING
stsi~m-nts EIpisinisg the Truth Of the
Famous Remark Thompson, Not the
Alliance. Responsible The Methods by
which the Church Can Command the
Love and support Of the Masses.

Alliance. Responsible The Methods b
which the Church Can Command tn
Love aud support Of the Masses.
Jonclusion.I
by "the Church." ! repeat, / d.
not mean Christianity.
How Ill are His high teachings under
stood
Where He hath xok.n liberty, the priest
AT His own altar binds the chain anew
Where lie hath hidden to LIES equal feast
The starving many wait upon the lew.
Where He hath spoken Peace, His nam
hath been
The loudest war cry Of contending men"
Having seen somewhat of tn,
Church's detection from the teach
ing Of it's perfect Head-its long
continued worldliness and blood,
persecution, it's persistent patronag,
OF ignorance and superstition, its in
tolerance of free thought, belief
al. action, we may now turn to con
slider its influence upon the condition
of physical bondage.
In the first centuries OF the Church
Christian and pagan alike held
slaves; and when the Holy Church
became the one controlling religion
in the Roman Empire, slavery OF
every grade was held to have divine
sanction throughout Oh rIstendom
Popular freedom was swept away,
without protest, under the crushing
systems Of serfdom and villeinage.
The Church taught that the entire
Jewish race was destined to perpet.
ual slavery on account Of its sins;
and, by easy sequence, upon the au-
thority of the pious and learned st.
Thomas, of Aquin, slavery was de-
clared a Christian institution, "be-
cause original sin deprived man of
any right to freedom" In England
when the enslaved classes, CALLED by
oppression and reused by the
glimpse Of Jesus which the hereto
Wyclif and his disciples had given
them, attempted to throw off the
yoke Of their bondage. "the Church
became an outwork of the baron
age" for continued enslavement.
Mobiles and prelates, landowners and
'tergy, banded themselves together"
says Gardiner, 'to form one great
party OF resistance" The last pur4
chaseable white slaves in England
were to be found upon the proper
ties OF the Church, the monasteries
and the bishoprics. Serfdom did not
cease in England till the 18th CEN
fury; it'lasted in Germany till the
l9th century; and it was not cone
away in Russia till 1861. In the 18th
century, men were bought and sold
in Russia like cattle; and actual sla-
very existed in Scotland in the 18th
century, where the workers in the
coal and salt mines of East Lothian
were chattels descending with the
property in the works. The Scotch
Protestant clergy raised never a
voice against the slavery existing
before their eyes; and nowhere was
the abolition of vllleinage and serf
dom the work of the Church.
Even Guizot, who would gladly
have proved the Church on the side
OF freedom, admits that slavery ex-
isted for a long period in the heart
OF Christian society without it's be-
ing particularly astonished or irri-
tated. A multitude of causes, and
great development of other ideas
and principles of civilization, were
necessary for the abolition. of this
iniquity of all iniquities." If civil
cation has advanced toward better
conditions, its advancement has not
been in proportion to the power of
the Church. The progress of hu-
mainly is dependent upon the grow
ing spirit of inquiry, whereby men
acquire deeper, broader, clearer con-
ceptions of truth, and the spirit of |
the Christ enters increasingly into
the strongholds of creeds.
The Church works no Reforma-
ton. The Church is always conser-
vative: 1t accepts phat is. It be-
comes thereby less an active factor
than plant tool in the hand of az
gressive evil. 1t threw itself for
power into the arms of Constantine.
though the power obtained proved
the subversion Of it's purpose. It
yields to the seductive wooinp of
wealth, and the subversion Of its
purpose is no less complete. Stand
ing before monarch or mammon.
when in its history has it had the
grace to say, "Get behind me, Sa-
tan" and in living faith contend for
the libel ties of men' ut can but
align ITSELF" says DR.. Yates, with
the powers that be, for they are Or
dained OF God whether the govern
ment be Populist, Democratic. Re-
publican, Kingly, or what not.n
Therefore the Church never denoun-
ced any form of slavery as q crime.
and never permitted, much less en-
couraged. slaves or subjects to
throw of the yoke of their oppres-
SION. On the contrary it has taught ,
and enforced obedience to the ,
Church and to the powers that he.
needless Of their corruption, super.
stltlon or tyranny. The Church I
loves order; 1t opposes all agitation t
In the face of existing evil; it teaches G
the oppressed of the Fathers child :
rem; wretched, ragged, starving,
miserable. the duty of submission {
even to robbery and enslavement !
through fear of receiving to them G
selves damnation." Through centn.
ries the Church has made He'll the
tomb of human liberties
The enemy Of human freedom
whether Monarch. Master, or Nam.
mon. could desire no more effective
nd for human enslavement than a
church intoxicating such doctrine. e
he could not oppose a a
church whose leading lights declare Q
nat 1.-The business of the Church is q
% save souls, not to rectify govern
nents." When, under the Church's
folding, Mammon has stripped hu- I,
nanity OF all that greed can utilize,
WY should ne not support an organ a
play the part "a spiritual transfer /
landing without com. G
'laint the useless souls of spoliated 1
victims on the ooldon -.lb. IL