Language:
English
Year of publication:
2024
Titel der Quelle:
Harvard Theological Review
Angaben zur Quelle:
117,1 (2024) 138-160
Keywords:
Walker, David, Criticism and interpretation
;
Bible. Influence
;
Image of God Biblical teaching
;
Abolitionists
;
Slaves Emancipation
;
Political theology
Abstract:
In the 1820s it was predominantly Black abolitionists who opposed gradualist abolitionism and the concept of colonization, while, in general, White abolitionists opposed slavery, viewing it as seductive or as sin in itself, but did not want full emancipation for Blacks. Therefore, David Walker’s Appeal from 1829 is a central document in that it calls for immediate and full emancipation as well as opposition to racism and White supremacy. This article argues that the shift in political aim of Black radical abolitionists correlates with an innovation in theological foundation. Walker grounds his quest for immediate and full emancipation in an egalitarian concept of imago Dei. It is this theological foundation that became influential in radical abolitionist discourse and was employed by Maria M. Stewart as well as William Lloyd Garrison. As a result of research on Walker’s theological innovation, it comes to the fore that he most likely was influenced by Black Freemasonry, especially Prince Hall.
DOI:
10.1017/S0017816023000445
URL:
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