"It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery."—Paul

These ancient words of a Jewish convert were addressed to first-century Greek Christians in Asia Minor; they had nothing to do with political slavery but slavery to religious law. Like the great Trojan horse, these words look magnificent, but they didn't seem to pose any danger to Roman principalities and powers.

Yet they contained a dangerous idea that made its way from Asia Minor, through Europe, and across the world. That idea sat patiently for centuries, only vaguely comprehended—that there is an undissolvable link between spiritual and other freedoms, and that wherever a people experience spiritual freedom, it will not be long before they create for themselves social and political freedoms.

The story of black Christians before the Civil War is a chapter in the larger story of the Trojan horse gospel, the story of a faith that finally overwhelmed whips, ...

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