This week we are learning together about race and reconciliation through the lens of history. We begin today with the Presbyterian tradition, which has made such a significant impact on the history of the United States. Prior to the Civil War, Presbyterians were divided on the question of slavery. Some, such as the Presidents of Union Presbyterian and Columbia Seminaries, Robert Lewis Dabney and James Henley Thornwell, argued that slavery was in the Bible and that it should be “Christianized,” an admission that recognized its brutality. Others, especially those involved in early 19th Century revivals such as Charles Grandison Finney (founder of Oberlin College) and first Amendment martyr, Elijah Lovejoy (killed for publishing an anti-slavery newspaper), maintained that owning another human being was inherently contrary to the gospel. These divisions split the Presbyterian Church prior to the Civil War. After the war, Presbyterians sent out 900 missionaries to create high schools for freed slaves and other institutions of higher learning. Johnson C. Smith University, Barber-Scotia College, Knoxville College, and Stillman College remain.
Today we invite you to look at two articles that discuss the history of the Presbyterian Church regarding race and reconciliation.
Resources
https://slavery.princeton.edu/stories/presbyterians-and-slavery
https://www.pcusa.org/site_media/media/uploads/racialjustice/stories.pdf