The Church and Prejudice: Section 1: Part 1 Summary

Methodist, Baptist, Presbyterian, Prejudiced

  • Douglass jumps right into his examples of prejudice he's experienced in the church.

Example #1: Prejudice in the Northern Methodist Church

  • Douglass went to a Methodist church up north.
  • White people got to hang out by the altar, while black people were stuck near the door. Seems wrong.
  • The minister served communion to the white people.
  • Then he yelled to the black people, "Come and get it! God doesn't care that you're black!"
  • At which point, Douglass understandably felt unwelcome and never went back.

Example #2: Prejudice at the New Bedford Revival

  • Yep, this revival is also segregated.
  • Douglass watched as a deacon served communion to a black girl. Then the white girl next to her refused to drink from the same cup.
  • Which seemed not okay to Douglass since supposedly they worship the same Jesus, who loves everyone the same.

Example #3: Who Does the Cooking in Heaven?

  • At the same revival, Douglass saw another white girl go into a religious trance.
  • The girl claimed to have seen heaven, and a curious grandma wanted to know if black people were there.
  • The girl said she didn't know, because she didn't go into the kitchen, where all the black people would obviously be if they were in heaven.
  • Seriously?