Season 2: Episode 61
Enslaved Christians and the Making of the Bible
Date Aired: 4/08/2024
In the first-century Roman world where Christianity was born, 20 percent of the population was enslaved. Enslaved people were laborers, farmers, artisans, scribes, teachers, servants, and sex workers. And as our guest Candida Moss explains, enslaved people also played a critical role in the spread of Christianity, including the authorship of biblical texts. How does it change our understanding of the Bible and early Christianity when we recognize the influence of enslaved people? Does Jesus’s revolutionary message—and his ignoble “slave’s” death—make more sense when we think about how many of Jesus’s early followers may have been enslaved?
Listen to the episode on the Biblical Time Machine website or wherever you get your podcasts.
Disclaimer: The Society of Biblical Literature is not responsible for the content of this podcast. The opinions expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect those of the Society of Biblical Literature, its members, or its staff.
