Sex, Slavery, and the Church on Dec. 4th

On Sunday December 4, at 7:15 pm, at St. Margaret’s Church (1820 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009) Dr. Ibrahim Sundiata will speak on “Sex, Slavery, and the Church.” Slavery and marriage have something in common – both are nearly institutions. Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all have urged clemency and manumission. Yet, the expansion of each has called into question the regulation of unequal sexual relations, property and labor.

It was only about two-hundred and fifty years ago that the movement for the total abolition of slavery everywhere came about. Debate rocked the Roman Catholic Church, from Georgetown in D.C. to Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. Eventually, abolition became incorporated into Church social policy as an integral part of its social mission. The struggle should remind us of the current struggles around sexuality, gender, and reproductive and civil rights that continue to confront us.