"Christianity. Slaveholding Christianity avoided the Gospels because of their concentration on Jesus's ministry. It valued the epistles because of their emphases on attaining proper knowledge of Jesus and on obedience. Slave Christianity avoided Paul's epistles because of their lack of emphasis on historical liberation, as well as apparent sanctioning of slavery. It valued the Old Testament because of its focus on God's liberating acts in history."    - Kelly Brown Douglas ; The Black Christ (p. 49)