Rearing Wolves to Our Own Destruction: Slavery in Richmond Virginia, 1782–1865 by Midori Takagi Page A
Authors: Midori Takagi
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"long and loud bursts of praise" that reminded the pastor of the "sound of many waters." 82 Although there had been cases of white congregants who responded similarly to services in other churches, overall black and white Baptists at Richmond's First Baptist Church received the Word of God in vastly different ways. 83
The difference between black and white congregants reflects more
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than a contrast in worshiping styles; it is indicative of distinctive theological approaches. Black Baptists in Richmond, as in the rest of the South, practiced a form of evangelicalism that brought together elements of both African and European-American beliefs, or what Mechal Sobel calls "the melding of the African and Baptist Sacred Cosmos." As Sobel describes it, black Baptists took evangelicalism and redefined it as a uniquely Afro-Baptist religion by incorporating aspects of the African cosmology and culture. 84 The melding of the two helped make evangelicalism more responsive to slave and free black residents' daily lives by bringing "within this world all the elements of the divine" a distinct component of the African faith systems. 85 In this interpretation, God exists not only in heaven but on earth as well, is compassionate, restores justice, responds and rescues those in need, and holds "the ultimate and final power over the visible and invisible creations." 86 And since God was omnipotent and omnipresent, black Christians could speak directly to him and did not need white Christians to mediate. This view of God gave bond men and women the strength to reject a white Christian theology that stressed black subordination to white slave owners as part of being a good Christian because slaves knew that only God not their owners could determine whether they went to heaven.
The Afro-Baptist view also allowed for stories of the sacred world to be discussed in terms of daily events of the secular world. The eviction of Adam and Eve from Eden, for instance, became a lesson to men who did not look after their families. Had Adam been with Eve, as the tale was once told, she would not have been tempted by the devil. But, lamented John Jasper, a resident of Richmond who became one of the most famous nineteenth-century black preachers, "Adam worn't wid her; doan know whar he wuz gorn bogin' orf sumwhars." 87 Adam's failing was a clear warning to slave and free black men: stand by your family at all times. Adam was not the only biblical figure portrayed as a member of the community and recognized for his or her good deed or evil doing. As Sobel describes, "Adam was next door, Jezebel was a present danger, Jesus a friend to share burdens with and Moses the ever-expected emancipator." 88
Other elements of the African cosmology, such as metaphysical beliefs, also entered the First Baptist Church with slave membership. 89 Much to white congregants' horror, black members maintained a strong belief in spirits and witchcraft in addition to their unshakable faith in God and saw no conflict or contradiction between the two. 90 Although the Reverend Jeremiah Jeter (1836-41) admitted that a belief in witchcraft should not be a barrier to church membership, he struggled hard to eliminate what he referred to as the "dread of imaginary beings or
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evils." 91 Jeter's successor, Robert Ryland, also made a concerted effort to "preach out their dreams and fancies, their visions and revelations, and all their long cherished superstitions." 92 Black parishioners, however, held fast to their "superstitions"; from laymen to deacons, black congregants continued to consult fortune-tellers and tell stories about "witches, hags, [and] giants.'' 93 Simon Bailey, one of the few black deacons, revealed the strength of such beliefs when he leaped to the defense of a church applicant who held views unacceptable to white congregants. The incident occurred during a membership interview when one of the white deacons, Archibald Thomas who was known to be a strict
The difference between black and white congregants reflects more
Page 58
than a contrast in worshiping styles; it is indicative of distinctive theological approaches. Black Baptists in Richmond, as in the rest of the South, practiced a form of evangelicalism that brought together elements of both African and European-American beliefs, or what Mechal Sobel calls "the melding of the African and Baptist Sacred Cosmos." As Sobel describes it, black Baptists took evangelicalism and redefined it as a uniquely Afro-Baptist religion by incorporating aspects of the African cosmology and culture. 84 The melding of the two helped make evangelicalism more responsive to slave and free black residents' daily lives by bringing "within this world all the elements of the divine" a distinct component of the African faith systems. 85 In this interpretation, God exists not only in heaven but on earth as well, is compassionate, restores justice, responds and rescues those in need, and holds "the ultimate and final power over the visible and invisible creations." 86 And since God was omnipotent and omnipresent, black Christians could speak directly to him and did not need white Christians to mediate. This view of God gave bond men and women the strength to reject a white Christian theology that stressed black subordination to white slave owners as part of being a good Christian because slaves knew that only God not their owners could determine whether they went to heaven.
The Afro-Baptist view also allowed for stories of the sacred world to be discussed in terms of daily events of the secular world. The eviction of Adam and Eve from Eden, for instance, became a lesson to men who did not look after their families. Had Adam been with Eve, as the tale was once told, she would not have been tempted by the devil. But, lamented John Jasper, a resident of Richmond who became one of the most famous nineteenth-century black preachers, "Adam worn't wid her; doan know whar he wuz gorn bogin' orf sumwhars." 87 Adam's failing was a clear warning to slave and free black men: stand by your family at all times. Adam was not the only biblical figure portrayed as a member of the community and recognized for his or her good deed or evil doing. As Sobel describes, "Adam was next door, Jezebel was a present danger, Jesus a friend to share burdens with and Moses the ever-expected emancipator." 88
Other elements of the African cosmology, such as metaphysical beliefs, also entered the First Baptist Church with slave membership. 89 Much to white congregants' horror, black members maintained a strong belief in spirits and witchcraft in addition to their unshakable faith in God and saw no conflict or contradiction between the two. 90 Although the Reverend Jeremiah Jeter (1836-41) admitted that a belief in witchcraft should not be a barrier to church membership, he struggled hard to eliminate what he referred to as the "dread of imaginary beings or
Page 59
evils." 91 Jeter's successor, Robert Ryland, also made a concerted effort to "preach out their dreams and fancies, their visions and revelations, and all their long cherished superstitions." 92 Black parishioners, however, held fast to their "superstitions"; from laymen to deacons, black congregants continued to consult fortune-tellers and tell stories about "witches, hags, [and] giants.'' 93 Simon Bailey, one of the few black deacons, revealed the strength of such beliefs when he leaped to the defense of a church applicant who held views unacceptable to white congregants. The incident occurred during a membership interview when one of the white deacons, Archibald Thomas who was known to be a strict
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