Black People - The real reason for our problems is biblical?

Question

In Genesis chapter 9:18-27 we are told that Ham, from whose line descends the greater amount of non-white people in the world, disgraced his father Noah when he failed to cover his father's nakedness. In verses 24-27 the Bible tells us that Noah cursed Ham's son Canaan to be the lowest of slaves:

Genesis 9:24-27 (NIV)

24 When Noah awoke from his wine and found out what his youngest son had done to him, 25 he said,
"Cursed be Canaan!
The lowest of slaves
will he be to his brothers."

26 He also said,
"Blessed be the LORD, the God of Shem!
May Canaan be the slave of Shem. [a]

27 May God extend the territory of Japheth [b] ;
may Japheth live in the tents of Shem,
and may Canaan be his [c] slave."

My question is: if we are told this in the bible, then does it seem reasonable to assume that the reason for the black man's continued problems even to this day are due to this curse? What do you think?

Here's an interesting website:

http://www.hyperhistory.net/apwh/essays/comp/cw03noahsboys.htm

2Pac - Of God the Bible tells us in Psalm 104:2 :

He wraps himself in light as with a garment;
he stretches out the heavens like a tent

From what we know of light it absorbs all color, therefore I don't believe God is any one color at all. Why would he limit himself like that? Serious answers please folks!

I was just curious about this because I had heard this tought and so I never really understood. I'm glad I asked this question to clear things up. Now I think I understand. Christ abolished all curses and that extends to the O.T as well as the New. Do you think all men's problems (regardless of race) are do to sin?

Answer 1

The Hamitic Myth is derived from the Biblical story of Noah. Taken alone as presented in Genesis 9:21-27, the characters are without a racial or geographical identity. It is the later interpretation of this race/religion/nation-neutral parable which assigned the curse specifically to the Black race such that by 1460 the institution of slavery would be universally believed to be the lot of the Africans.

Evidence locates the origin of these racist elaborations with the Jewish Babylonian Talmud.

The Hamitic Myth itself has also taken on at least one other form in relation to Blackness (other versions have made Ham into a white man). Once Europeans saw evidence of the great African civilizations, they hastened to reinterpret the Hamitic Myth to suggest that the Hamites were in fact Europeans [!] who went into Africa bringing this civilization with them. This version of the Myth satisfied their academic needs--and was used when necessary by Jewish academics like C.G. Seligman among others. But, for the most part, their economic, social, religious, and political needs were met in the global promotion of the original rabbinical version.


Bible Verses Used as Justification of Slavery
1 Chron. 18:11; 2 Sam. 20:23 (foreign mercenaries)
Josh. 9:21-27; Num. 31:26-47 (hewers of wood...)
2 Kings 5:20-27 (only other Biblical curse with skin change--to white)
Jesus had Canaanite blood; 1 of the 12 Apostles was a Canaanite (Mat 10:4)
Gen 17:13; Lev 25:24, 42-6 (condone slavery; 2 types of slavery)
Exod 20:10, 17 (protects slaves)
Matt 8:5-13 (accepts slavery)
Eph 6:5-9; Col 3:22-4:1; I Tim 6:3-4 (Paul approves slavery)

Answer 2

Hi,
1) The bible is written by people, so just cross god out of it ok?
2) sons of Canaan are the palestinians, not the black people.
3) sons of shem are the arabs and the jews at that time. There are other arabs who are the sons of ham (those who live in yemen).
4) if god was great and all, how could he listen to a drunken man and punish all of his grandsons for absolutely no fault of them?
5) I traveled in Africa and talked to many people. I traveled for hours to chat with the oldest man around lake victoria, and I asked him why are white people more clever and wealthy then most africans, and his answer was that god cursed the africans! and he used your very same argument.
6) This shows you what religion does to people. If what's in the bible is true then god must be a bad thing. correct?

Answer 3

The curse was specifically on Canaan - the father of the people who were in Israel before the Israelites (or the Arabs, for that matter). In the ninteenth century all the way through the 1960's, some white pastors did indeed use these verses to justify slavery - but it was originally more about the battles the Israelites faced in the book of Joshua.

Answer 4

A curse was placed upon Canaan, that the Canaanites would serve the Semites (Jews). This has nothing to do with black people or even darker-skinned people. Racists have made charges like this through the generations, but the Bible says no such thing.

Answer 5

You know, If I look hard enough I can most likely find bible verses to support any point of view I can dream up.
I don't pretend to know the source of the black mans problems. But the source of any problems I've had can almost always be traced back to me. Either from something I did or did not do or say. I'm a big believer in individual responsibility. I don't believe I can solve any problems in my life as long as I persist in blaming someone or something other than myself for them. When I have blamed others it simply put me in a situation where I was helpless to do anything about it. When I took the responsibility for my life onto my own shoulders, my life improved.

Answer 6

the reason that racism still exists in the world today is because there are people "black and white" that don't want to lay the issue down. At a very young age, I was assualted and horribly raped by a black man, was that because of a curse? No, it was because of sin in a person. Do I disrespect the whole entire race because of this one persons actions? No. I deal with people individually regardless of race.

Answer 7

According to the prophet Noble Drew Ali,the original problem started when in Africa,the traders began to assimilate the ideas of the slave traders of Christianity .
According to Elihu Plesant Bey,author of The Biography of Noble Drew Ali,the Africans were Moors. And the problem was that Moors were Muslims,not Christians.
Arabic muslims were in the slave trade,and the Moors followed suit.
One of the most major problems. Because the Moors were denied the birthright and have been labeled everthing except what they truly are,due to not following their divine plan.
This book is very deep,and I cannot give it justice here.

When you have time,check out the website

Answer 8

you take your life and religon way too serieouslly , chill out girl and have some fun. cuz we are all one kind of people to god , and it doesnt matter to god that your skin is black or white , just your actions is the important thing to god, so jut alway pray and do the right things and have some fun .. but dont stop beliveing that just because you are black you have to be treated like a slave or other **** !!

Answer 9

In Christ ALL curses are removed!


Galatians 3:12-14
12The law is not based on faith; on the contrary, "The man who does these things will live by them."[a] 13Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree."[b] 14He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.

Answer 10

the bible is a work of fiction. plus take into the fact that the people who wrote that part of the bible were Jewish. plus white ppl didn't even live in that region at that time.
black people's problems are caused be there own apathy and the powers that be (not just white people) keeping them down and treating them likes second class humans.
all ppl need to rise up against all injustice and take down the "man"