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Is Christianity the White Man’s Religion?

Updated: Aug 14

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The claim that Christianity is a "white man’s religion" is a modern critique, often implying that Christianity is outdated or tied to oppression. A historical and theological review reveals that Christianity is for “all nations, tribes, peoples, and tongues” (Revelation 7:9), transcending racial and cultural boundaries.



Origins of Christianity

Christianity did not originate with white Europeans. It emerged from Judaism in Judea, a region in the Middle East. Jesus was a Jewish man, likely with darker skin, and his earliest followers were Aramaic- and Hebrew-speaking Jews. Historical, biblical, and contemporary evidence refutes the idea that Christianity was invented by white men.


In its first century, Christianity spread not to predominantly white regions but to Africa, Asia, and Southern Europe. Tradition holds that the apostle Thomas brought the gospel to India, where he was martyred. Ancient churches existed in Persia, Armenia, and Syria. In Africa, Christianity took root early: Simon of Cyrene, from modern-day Libya, helped Jesus carry the cross (Mark 15:21), and the Ethiopian eunuch was among the first Gentile converts (Acts 8:26-39). Within 20 years of Christ’s resurrection, Mark (author of the Gospel of Mark) brought Christianity to Egypt, from where Coptic Christians spread it across Africa. By the 4th century, Christianity became the official religion of the Kingdom of Aksum (modern-day Ethiopia), which remained Christian into the 15th century. The Ethiopian Church even maintained chapels in Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulcher and sent monks to the Council of Florence (1431–1445). The Kingdom of Nubia, in northern Sudan, was also Christian from the 6th to 15th centuries. (1)


Theologically, Christianity’s roots are non-European. The New Testament was written by Jewish believers, and key early theologians came from North Africa. Tertullian (2nd century) was from Carthage, in modern-day Tunisia. Alexandria, Egypt, a hub of intellectual thought, produced theologians like Origen and Athanasius in the 2nd and 3rd centuries. Augustine of Hippo, a Berber from modern-day Algeria, profoundly shaped Christian doctrine, including the Nicene and Athanasian Creeds. These African Church Fathers defended orthodoxy and clarified core Christian beliefs, such as the Trinity, and their influence endures today.



Slavery and Colonialism

Critics often point to Christianity’s association with slavery in the United States (2) claiming slaveowners imposed the faith on enslaved people. In reality, enslaved individuals were not forced to convert but often embraced Christianity voluntarily, developing their own vibrant ecclesiastical practices. (3) Slaveowners misused Bible verses to justify oppression, (4) but this was what Frederick Douglass called “hypocritical Christianity,” distinct from the “pure, peaceable, and impartial Christianity of Christ,” which he described as “good, pure, and holy.” (5)


Similarly, some argue that Christianity was a tool of European colonialism in Africa, used to “civilize” native peoples. (6) It’s undeniable that some who called themselves Christians committed abuses, often cloaking their pursuit of power in religious rhetoric. Some missionaries collaborated with colonial governments for protection or transportation, but others opposed colonial oppression. For example, John Philip, a Scottish missionary in Southern Africa, campaigned against the mistreatment of the Khoi people by British colonists, leading to reforms that granted legal rights to native Africans. Philip argued that true Christian missionaries must oppose “cruelty, social wrongs, and oppression.” (7)


Moreover, Christianity in Africa was not solely spread by Europeans. African believers played a significant role. Chief Sechele I, a ruler of the Kwena people in Botswana, embraced Christianity through a Scottish missionary who taught him to read and write. Sechele, unprompted, spread the gospel among his people and neighboring regions. When English missionaries arrived in Zimbabwe, they found Christians already singing hymns taught by Sechele. (8)



Conclusion

Christianity is not defined by race and belongs to no single group. Christ “died for all” (2 Corinthians 5:15), reconciling believers—whether “Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free” (Colossians 3:11)—to God through forgiveness and eternal life. While some have misused Christ’s name for shameful acts, true Christianity, rooted in the transformation of the heart, stands against injustice and embraces all people created in God’s image.


Notes:

  1. Andrew Butterworth. “African Christianity Thrived, Long Before White Men Arrived,” The Gospel Coalition: Christian History, Nov. 16, 2022, africa.thegospelcoalition.org/article/african-christianity-thrived-long-before-white-men-arrived

  2. The issue of slavery is discussed at www.centerforbiblicalunity.com/post/slavery

  3. Chernoh Sesay Jr. “Conversion and Hypocrisy: Reflections on the Challenges of Teaching about the Christianity of Slaves and Masters,” Black Perspectives, August 7, 2015. www.aaihs.org/agency-and-conversion-reflections-on-the-challenges-of-teaching-about-the-christianity-of-slaves-and-masters/

  4. However, they knew that the very Bible that they were using to justify themselves was opposed to slavery because they strategically removed portions of the Bible that slaves were allowed to be taught so that the slaves would not think to demand, using those very Scriptures, that these “Christian” slaveholders give them better treatment and their freedom. Claide Atcho. “Is Christianity a White Man’s Religion?” The Gospel Coalition: Christian Living. March 30, 2021, www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/christianity-white-man-religion

  5. Frederick Douglass. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave, Written by Himself (Boston:  Anti-Slavery Office, 1845).

  6. “How ‘Christianity is the white man’s religion’ Feeds the Damaging Disconnect between the Diaspora and Africa,” Black Youth Project. Feb 28, 2018. blackyouthproject.com/christianity-white-mans-religion-feeds-damaging-disconnect-diaspora-africa/

  7. “Dr. John Philip, Account of his life with the London Missionary Society in Africa,” www.electricscotland.com/history//africa/john_philip.htm?utm_source=chatgpt.com

  8. Norman Etherington, “Writing David Livingstone Back into South African History,” Journal of Southern African Studies, 49(2), 285–299, June 19, 2023. doi.org/10.1080/03057070.2023.2221009



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