(ThyBlackMan.com) Before you scream and shout about the headline, hear me out. This may be controversial but, as you read this, I need you to forget everything you think you believe and know about Christianity. If you are a fan of history, this article is for you. What needs to be said, known and acknowledged in the black community is how Christianity has caused tremendous damages to Africans all over the world but, mostly to Africans in America. Before I get into any details id like all Christians to open their heart and eyes to the truth and pain Christianity has caused.
I’m going to start off with a disclaimer by informing you that you will read some disturbing and traumatic events that happened to our ancestors. I’d like to begin with a narrative about how Africans in America adopted Christianity. There is no doubt that Christianity is our oppressors religion, given the fact that Christians pray to a white god. There is also no doubt that we never learn about Christianity when discussing slavery. Well here it is. During kidnapping Africans and auctioning them off, leading Africans who are in different tribes to be around each other; all who have different languages, and breaking families up, selling African fathers separate from their wife and kids; former Europeans, which now we call them white Americans, came to the conclusions that Africans cannot read.
So to fix that issue, for it to play in their advantages, the first book former Europeans gave Africans to read, was the holy bible. Forced them to believe that not only are they our masters but, so is white god and if you hope and pray enough he will bless you and come save you from the white devil. Little did Africans know that was not the truth but, then again, they had no choice but to believe. To force Christianity into our culture, as we all know beating by the lash of a whip was continuously common during slavery but, black Christians lack to know that, our ancestors were beaten to believe in Christianity.
Our ancestors were tied to a pole, they called back then a whipping post. While tied to that whipping post, white Christians or even the driver (an African who has been appointed to do the dirty work of a slave master.) from time to time, will chain our brothas and sistahs to a whipping post and beat them over and over, until they confessed and hand over their love, soul, and faith to Jesus Christ; keep in mind, most Africans did not know English and so they had to be coached and pressured by a whip to say the very words “I believe in Jesus Christ“, in order not to die or suffer from any more pain. A lot of our ancestors died by these beatings, as most of the time, if a slave were to be considered disobedient that gave the white Christians power to beat “the evil” out of their slave.
After being successful in beating and killing many Africans to convert as Christians, Africans believed that white Jesus will and was going to come back and save them from the devil atrocious deeds. Many are still waiting for that day, 500 hundred years later but, that is besides the point. Furthermore, African slaves started to have secret prayer services away from the field, the biggest issue with that was, they were having these services during the time they should have been “working” on the plantation. That made slave owners upset but, never doubt the strategic mind of a murderous thief, slave owners knew they could not kill slaves whom were submissive to the all mighty, powerful white Jesus. After falling for the trap, harsh punishment, like death, was not necessary once some Africans realized to refrain from getting hurt, they’d outta listen, just to survive.
Slave owners realized the more slaves alive, the more money. So of course, African slaves were still punished for rebelling against work to pray but, slave masters did not see an issue with that, other than they were losing money by it, which gave many of the richest slave owners to capitalize on that idea of Africans practicing their religion, in order to keep their slaves tamed. With that said, black churches started on the plantation. The slave owners with enough money built churches on their plantation for their slaves, now isn’t that just the nicest thing you have ever heard of a slave master doing? In addition, slave masters, of course, said when it was okay for them to have this prayer service. They did that to “satisfy” their slaves and to keep them working when masters needed them to. Now, slaves did not make any money for the so called work they were doing but, allowing slaves to have a church, and in that same process, brainwashing and controlling them with false hope, was the most pay they got; while their masters was living fat off of their slave labor.
As long as Africans felt free in some sort of way, although, during the time they were “free” of slave labor, they were being demoralized and stripped of their culture. It was a triple win for white Amerikka, they resolved their problem with losing money by building churches on their land, stripped and demoralized African culture, while brainwashing Africans to be distracted and falsely lifted from being oppressed or their problems in general. And, made more and more money off miseducating Africans with the bible. What the black community got out of it was lies, a mechanism to remain defenseless and submissive, also poor ways of thinking.
Before I end this, I’d like to discuss one more thing, the black preacher. We in the black community, whether you attend church or not, are aware of preachers being wealthier than the church itself. It also happens to be that the evolution of Africans adopting Christianity, while being beat to convert as Christians, also was the beginning of black preachers being treated better than any other slave, due to the fact that he is preaching and practicing the religion of our oppresses to our community. Helping masters out by distributing their religion to our ancestors, resulted them to better pay. Not money but, better or more food over other slaves, better clothes and different knowledge, he most likely was in masters house more than he was on the field. Point being is that the black preacher back then was no different than the house negro or the driver but, all were abused, mistreated, and in the same predicament of finding ways to survive.
Our ancestors had no choice but to either die or believe in Christ. Some were unlucky and bled out from the lashes, and died a believer. We, the black community, being as “free” as we have ever been, have a choice. We have the choice to get rid of this poisonous cancer, and educate our people with the truth, power, and will to strive for a better and wealthier community. We are free of the chains and no more whipping post, let’s make the right choices while we have the chance. Free your mind of Jesus Christ, there is not white savior for our community. We must save us.
Staff Writer; Nena Soldaat
Keeping it real for my people. Hit me up at; NenaS@ThyBlackMan.com.
