A Survey of Racialism in Christian Tradition

Compiled by @Anorselda (Twitter). @Solsen (Substack).

I feel that this survey is best read in PDF format so as to preserve the editorial choices made for the sake of clarity. The PDF is available for download or available at https://archive.org/details/a-survey-of-racialism-in-christian-sacred-tradition (you can also download it from here).

The compilation begins on page 3. The discussion of race begins on page 10.

A Survey Of Racialism In Christian Sacred Tradition

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It is 282 pages long, and is comprised primarily of quotes from various Church Fathers, with some citations from Church Doctors, Church Councils, and Pontiffs. While I approach this from a Catholic perspective, the majority of works cited are authored by Church Fathers, and the even larger majority (with the exception of only 6 works) predate the Reformation.

Some writings are less racially charged, and others more. There are writings that are often about the unity of all races (in their calling to follow Christ) but yet distinguish by race. Some of these make very clear distinctions even between what we can now understand and define as ethnicity (a select stock of descent; Irish versus Breton), nation (a body of members derived from the same ethnicity), country (a collection of members either of closely related ethnicities or of one ethnicity), and race (a broad grouping categorized by a general descent, especially as defined by continental region). Saint Isidore of Seville goes so far as to include the prohibition of miscegenation under the natural rights of nations.

There are however very many explicitly racial writings, some of which are racially discriminatory (distinguishing between and making distinct the lines and rights of races or ethnicities) and in many cases racist (assigning value to races or ethnicities). To clarify the use of liberal-appearing terminology, I am not giving a condemnation.

For example, Saint Augustine describes black complexion as ugly, and Saint Peter of Alexandria seems to believe that blackness of skin necessarily represents reprobation – at the very least symbolically. While I can’t in good faith argue exactly the same, the connection between blackness of skin and sinfulness (especially through the Curse of Ham) is present throughout. In many passages I have also bolded places which discuss a kind of natural inferiority conferred by birth or lineage (though not always defining this by racial lines), such as Saint Thomas’ defence of natural slavery. Many authors describe certain races or ethnicities as inherently barbarous or wicked.

I felt that this survey should begin with an examination of Galatians 3:28 (There is neither Jew nor Greek: there is neither bond nor free: there is neither male nor female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus.), and the context in which the Church Fathers viewed this verse. I’ve begun with a short collection of excerpts which deal with temporal inequality, and the way it relates to this verse. Or rather, the way in which it doesn’t. Though this passage is typically not framed in racial terms by the Fathers (because Jew and Greek to them represent the Jewish race, and then every other race on Earth) it is often – and in fact typically – framed by the difference between sex. In a Patristic and otherwise Tradition-based view, this passage speaks about the opening of salvation to all kinds of people, and with absolutely no attempt to dismiss temporal inequality, nor to bring forth temporal equality.

Saint Augustine does additionally frame this as regards to class, however, Saint Chrysostom by rank, and Saint Hilary by race.

The below description enumerates and explains some of the choices made as to inclusion, highlighting, expanse, and formatting.

This survey is not organized by chronology, or in fact necessarily by relevance, but by an organic process of accumulating sources, in whatever order I happened to read them. Sources range from the very early Church, including the 1st century, primarily to the 16th century; at the end I have included some very recent writings (from the 20th century) to demonstrate how the views of the cited authors have carried forth into the modern age.

In some places I have continued the citation of a writing through a different source; I don’t always remember why, but in some cases it’s because I moved to a more comprehensive and inclusive source to survey a work in its whole, after finding valuable citations in various parts of it. I have tried to keep formatting consistent (such as the primary usage of “x”, with ‘x’ being secondary), but some or very many instances may escape my view. Most formatting choices I have made only for clarity, which I feel to be necessary in a work of this length which is not in any kind of academic or book-based form, so as to avoid lengthening its run any further (as I suppose I’m doing here) by inserting page breaks for chapters or authors.

I have cited all sources by their direct link, so that nobody has any need to click on a random hyperlink.

I doubt very much that this survey will or can be comprehensive, as I am in the process of finding more resources as I write this. However, I have done my best to make it as close to comprehensive as it reasonably can be by only the manhours of one person.

I have used bolding to indicate the important sections of texts I have also underlined certain bolded sections, and by this I mean to indicate important words or phrases. I have in a very few places bolded, underlined, and italicized portions of a text so as to indicate (without disrupting the flow of the text) that a word or phrase holds a supreme importance in the survey’s purview.

I have tried to keep commentary to a minimum, inserting it only where I feel it is absolutely necessary to prevent low IQ cherry picking, and adding footnotes which I feel may help illuminate some kind of context.