The Bible and slavery - a Facebook post

[annsni]

So a guy I went to high school with posted this meme with this statement:

The shortest book in the New Testament is a letter written by Paul to a Christian slave owner about owning his Christian slave.

And Paul doesn't say "Christians don't own people." Paul talks about how Christians own people.

We ignore what the Bible said about slavery because the Bible got slavery wrong.

If the Bible got the easiest moral question that humanity has ever faced wrong, what are the odds that the Bible got something as complicated as human sexuality wrong?

~ Dan Savage

My response was:

The shortest book in the New Testament is a book called 3 John. It is a book written by John, not Paul. It has nothing to do with slavery. The second shortest book is 2 John - also not written by Paul and not addressing slavery. So he must be speaking of the third shortest book in the New Testament which is Philemon. As you read Philemon, you find out that Paul is sending back Onesimus back to his home and master - Philemon. He tells him "For this perhaps is why he was parted from you for a while, that you might have him back forever, no longer as a bondservant but more than a bondservant, as a beloved brother—especially to me, but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord." So he addressed the issue, speaking to Philemon and telling him that Onesimus is returning as a brother and not a slave. He told him, "So if you consider me your partner, receive him as you would receive me." He finishes out saying "Confident of your obedience, I write to you, knowing that you will do even more than I say."

So what this person wrote is untrue. I guess he never actually read the book.

I will address the fact that slavery in that time was completely different than slavery today if he engages.

What would you say?

 

[Scarlett O.]

What you said was probably the best thing anyone could have said. Kudos to you.

Since this post was more about denouncing the Bible's truths about homosexuality by trying to discredit the Bible with slavery issues, then this guy may not come back and ask about it.

But.... if he does, this link from gotquestions.org gives a great discussion about Biblical slavery. http://www.gotquestions.org/Bible-slavery.html

In addition to that, the type of slavery that was done in Civil War times and still practiced today all over the world was condemned very early by God in Exodus 21.

It says that anyone who kidnaps a person and sells him or keeps him is to be put to death.

 

[annsni]

Well, I went to bed a little early last night and the thread continued since he lives in Indonesia. It deteriorated from there with continued talk about homosexuality and I decided to not revisit the thread. When I left, he was convinced that Paul supported slavery and encouraged Philemon in how to continue to own humans. :BangHead: But it very quickly left the slavery slant and continued on the homosexuality thing and was not going well when I saw it today. So I'll walk away.