Christianity, Philemon, and Slavery: Were Black Slaves Brainwashed?
In his book Conversations with God , James Melvin Washington (whose work predates a book of the same title by Neale Donald Walsch) writes a chapter titled "Slavery and the Eclipse of the African Gods." Washington's description of Black slaves and their conversion to Christianity suggests this conversion was not the result of "brainwashing" by slave owners in pursuit of submissive slaves. Rather, Washington describes this process as the eclipse of the African gods. I found his discussion interesting and convincing. If slaves had been "brainwashed" by owners, owners would not have banned private gatherings when slaves met to worship. When you have someone totally under your mental control, you don't worry about what they will do when you're not watching. Additionally, the proscriptions against slaves learning to read would not have been so vigorously enforced if slave owners really believed their own propaganda: slaves weren't very smart...