| OCR Text |
Show 146 LIBERTY AND SLAVERY. to be a part of "this original, peculiar," and perhaps "anomalous grant." No wonder it appeared peculiar and anomalous. The only wonder is, that it did not appear impious and absurd. So it bas appeared to some of his coagitators, who, because they could not agree with Moses, have denied his mission as an inspired teacher, aud joined the ranks of infidelity. Dr. Channing makes very light of this and other passages of Scripture. lie sots aside this whole argument from revelation with a few bold strokes of the pen. "In this age of the world," says he, "and amid the light which bas been thrown on the true interpretation of the Scriptures, such reasoning hardly deserves notice." Now, even if not for our benefit, we think there arc two reasons why such passages as the above were worthy of Dr. Channing's notice. In the first place, if he had condescended to throw the light in his possession on such passages, he might have saved Dr. ·wayland, as well as other of his admirers, from tho necessity of making the very awhvard admission that the Almighty had authorized his chosen people to buy slaves, and hold them as "bondmen forever." lie might have enabled them ATI.GUMEN'r FROM TTIE SCRIPTURES. 147 to see through the great difficulty, that God has authorized his people to commit "a sin of appalling magnitude," to perpetrate as "great a crime as can be conceived;" which seems so clearly to be the case, if their views of slavery be correct. Secondly, he might have enabled his followers to espouse the cause of abolition without deserting, as so many of them have opeu ly done, tho annics of the living God. For these two reasons, if for no other, we think Dr. Channing owed it to tho honor of his cause to notice the passages of Scripture bearing on the subject of slavery. '!.'he Mosaic Institutes not only recognise slavery as lawful; they contain a multitude of minute dll·cctions for its regulation. We neecl not refer to all of them; it will be sufficient for our purpose if we only notice those which establish some of the leading characteristics of slavoi'Y among the people of God. 1. Slaves were regarded as property. They were, as we have seen, called a "possession" and an ''inheritance."* They were even call eel the "money" of the master. Thus, it is said, "if a man smite his servant or his *Lev. ::u::v. 44, 45, 46. |
