I think any time we use the Bible to discriminate or oppress a people group we need to take a long hard look at ourselves. We also need to look at how we're reading the Bible and the words of Jesus in particular. The whole Bible is important to be sure, but especially the words of Jesus.
Why do I believe that? Jesus Himself spoke of things like, "You've heard it said, but I say to you..." I read on Twitter the other day that many 'successful' people are known to read the Book of Proverbs every month. Proverbs is a great book and one of my favorites to be sure. I wonder what would happen if those same people read a gospel a month instead though? Would it change their views on certain things? Would they still be considered successful?
Back to the idea of slavery. Slavery still exists today, and chances are you and I unknowingly contribute to it through the clothes we purchase. I think there are over 20 million and perhaps as many as 27 million slaves in the world today, I haven't heard a stat on it recently.
Many women and children and some men too are caught up in sex slavery. They are victims multiple times a day, I've heard some as many as 12-20 times a day. Think of what that does to a person's body and psyche. It makes me shudder to even consider it.
Others are caught in other types of slavery. Many are in America right under our noses. It's a difficult subject though and one we'd rather not talk about quite frankly; outside of anti-slavery campaigners.
What if we were to buy clothes ethically though? That doesn't necessarily mean buy the most expensive clothes by the way. Buying second-hand clothes is a great way to not contribute toward sweat shop labor.
Sweat-shop labor is a tough area for me. On the one hand it's the way a country usually develops their economy. On the other hand, it's a sweat shop. Who would really want to work there? It's definitely anything but ideal.
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