by Rvaughn » Wed Jul 12, 2017 12:29 pm
Grady Caldwell says, "The so-called Curse of Ham is a false doctrine that was perpetuated to validate the idea that it was biblical for slaves to be in subjugation to the White race." I would think that is accurate conclusion, though I've never actually studied the origin of this idea. Perhaps it became so common that many people continued to assume it was an accurate interpretation of the Bible even when it no longer served such a purpose to them personally.
There was one idea worse than this one, which probably arose for much the same purpose. I had never heard of it until several years back when I ran across a pamphlet among my grandfather's things that discussed the question "Is the Negro a Beast?" The author of the pamphlet asserted that black people were not descendants of Adam, did not have a soul, etc. Apparently this view was never as widespread and died out sooner. My grandfather died before I was born, but I know he didn't agree with the pamphlet because he had it marked up with comments and scripture verses that disagreed with the author's views. Lo and behold, about 4 or 5 years I ran across a guy who actually held this view (one I had never even heard of growing up in the South, starting life in a racially segregated South)!