Joseph C. Miller Memorial Lecture by Juan Lewis

In this lecture I will analyse whether Jesus of Nazareth, his family, and close friends and disciples were slave owners. Most scholars now agree that the emergence and expansion of Christianity did not mean a substantial improvement in the condition of slaves, even if the accommodation of the early Christian churches with the institution of slavery itself is often seen as a contradiction, a dilemma, or a paradox.
The emphasis in scholarship, however, is always on Jesus’ followers, rather than on the man himself. In order to reveal whether Jesus may have owned slaves, I will first try to identify which historical Jesus I am talking about. I will then move to whether we can pin down Jesus’ views on slavery from his teachings and parables. Finally, I will discuss Jesus’ social and economic standing and his relationship with real slaves
and servants.