How Catholic Philosophy Ended Slavery

Catholics may have been the first abolitionists

This post is controversial for some. However, nations with large Christian populations have been the most adamant about ending slavery. Catholics have been a piece of that, along with protestants, Quakers, and others.

A Personal God and the Importance of the Individual

It must be said, it took a very long time to end slavery. Although I will argue in this post that the beginning of the end of slavery began with Catholic thought, it took more than a millennium for it to take place on a large scale.

The belief that God is personal and cares about you on an individual basis raises up the lowest pleb and puts him or her on a pedestal that previously could only be obtained by the nobility. It appeals to the nature of humans to be empathetic towards others.

The humanist revolution of the 17th and 18th centuries brought more people in by saying that you can value human dignity without necessarily joining the church. But the reality is the humanist revolution would likely not have happened without the influence of Christian philosophy.

As the economist, Deepak Lal wrote in Reviving the Invisible Hand: The Case for Classical Liberalism in the Twenty-First Century,

“a change in the cosmological and material beliefs mediated by the Catholic Church in the sixth through eleventh centuries, through its promotion of individualism, first in family affairs and later in material relationships. The first were a series of pronouncements by Pope Gregory I in the sixth century on family matters, and the second those by Gregory VII in the eleventh century on property and institutionally related issues.” (H/T: Forbes)

The belief that individuals have value is a core tenant of the market economy. It is also the core tenant of an individual’s rights and responsibilities. It would take hundreds of years for these ideas to percolate around the world, but it had to start somewhere.

Pope Gregory I wrote this in the 600s,

Since our Redeemer, the Maker of every creature, was pleased mercifully to assume human flesh in order to break the chain of slavery in which we were held captive, and restore us to our pristine liberty, it is right that men, whom nature from the beginning produced free, and whom the law of nations has subjected to the yoke of slavery, should be restored by the benefit of the liberty in which they were born.

Thomas Aquinas wrote this in his work On the Perfection of the Spiritual Life,

“Nothing is so repugnant to human nature as slavery; and, therefore, there is no greater sacrifice (except that of life), which one man can make for another, than to give himself up to bondage for the sake of that other.”

Papal Condemnation of the African Slave Trade in 1435

In December of 1741 Pope Benedict XIV,

“promulgated the papal bull "Immensa Pastorum Principis" against the enslavement of the indigenous peoples of the Americas and other countries. Pope Gregory XVI in his bull In supremo apostolatus (issued in 1839) also condemned slavery as contrary to human dignity.” (H/T)

Some early popes such as Pope Callixtus I and Pius I were also former slaves. But advocating for the abolition of slavery during that time would likely initiate a massive upheaval in society.

Christian Abolitionism

Christians have a long history of working to end slavery throughout the world. Countries with largely protestant populations have spent much blood and treasure ending slavery as well. The British spent 150 years using their navy to end the slave trade, at great cost to themselves and their empire. Most Americans do not seem aware of the Blockade of Africa from 1808 onward to capture and hang the perpetrators of such heinous acts.

Although this article covers times before the 18th and 19th centuries it is important to note that Quakers, Catholics, Protestants, and other Christians were all major architects of the abolitionist movement throughout the West.  

The Serenissima Republic of Venice

This fine Republic is the first nation-state to abolish the slave trade in 876, beating the rest of the Western world by a solid 900 years. La Serenissima, or “The Most Serene”, was a Republic of merchants and aristocrats. A small minority of Venetians still owned slaves, but the number was severely limited with the abolishment of the slave trade.

Doge Orso Partecipazio, promulgated a law in which it became an absolute veto to sell, buy, transport slaves by sea, let alone pay someone to transport them to the Lagoon. It was then the Doge Pietro IV Candiano with a promise in 960 to renew the ban on the slave trade altogether. (H/T: VV)

Some argue that ending slavery led to the fostering of capitalism in the area. However, it was still more mercantilist than capitalist because the state-controlled much of the trade in the area.

Many believe Japan under Toyotomi Hideyoshi was the first to end the slave trade, but that would not happen until the 16th century. It seems the main objective of Hideyoshi was to ban the sale of Japanese people to foreigners such as the Portuguese. It was still possible to sell indentured servants within Japan for much longer. Japan would also engage in the enslavement of “comfort women” up through World War II.  

The Republic of Ragusa

Although aristocratic, this nation-state was liberal and humanitarian in its approach to politics. Elections were held, allowing for changing in the guard within leadership positions. However, it was mainly a few families that ran the country.

The Republic's flag had the word Libertas (freedom) on it, and the entrance to the Saint Lawrence fortress just outside the Ragusa city walls bears the inscription Non bene pro toto libertas venditur auro (Liberty can not be sold for all the gold of the world). The slave trade was forbidden in 1416. The Republic was a staunch opponent of the Eastern Orthodox Church and only Roman Catholics could acquire Ragusan citizenship. (H/T: Wiki)

While it is unfortunate that only Catholics were allowed to be citizens, ending slavery is still a major improvement over most countries at the time.

Haiti

The Haitians, who were and are largely Catholic, led an uprising that expelled the French and finally ended slavery in 1793. Haiti did not just end the slave trade; it ended the ownership of all human beings within the country as well. Although a few states in the US ended slavery earlier, Haiti was the first country in the Western hemisphere to end slavery entirely. Next Haiti sent a delegation to France to convince them to end slavery as well in 1794. (H/T: WP)

Conclusion

Although the struggle to end slavery in the West was full of trials and tribulations it did end eventually. However, countries like India, China, North Korea, Iran, and the Congo all have a great deal of slavery and human suffering today. The rest of the world could use more Christian and humanist philosophies to bring about the end of slavery in their own countries. The founding fathers of the United States were largely deists, a group that also believes in a personal God. These concepts are highly influential to society and help improve the view that human beings are created equal.

E Pluribus Unum.