Denmark Vesey's Bible: The Thwarted Revolt That Put Slavery and Scripture on Trial

Denmark Vesey's Bible provides a timely and provocative account of the role of the Bible in the largest insurrection against slaveholders in US history. Jeremy Schipper's book explores how Vesey used biblical texts to promote and justify the revolt, while his accusers portrayed plantation owners as benevolent biblical patriarchs. It sheds light on the uses of scripture in America's troubled racial history and draws lessons from a terrible moment in the nation's past.

Format: Hardback
Length: 216 pages
Publication date: 08 March 2022
Publisher: Princeton University Press

Denmark Vesey, a formerly enslaved man, was executed in Charleston, South Carolina, on July 2, 1822, for plotting what could have been the largest insurrection against slaveholders in US history. Witnesses testified that Vesey used biblical texts to promote and justify the revolt. During his trial, Lionel Henry Kennedy, a magistrate, accused Vesey of treason and attempting to pervert the sacred words of God into a sanction for crimes of the blackest hue.

Denmark Veseys Bible delves into the story of this pivotal trial, exploring the role of scriptural interpretation in the fierce battle against American white supremacy and its ruthless enforcement. Jeremy Schipper vividly brings the trial and its aftermath to life, drawing on court documents, personal letters, sermons, speeches, and editorials. He demonstrates how Vesey compared people of African descent with enslaved Israelites in the Bible, while his accusers portrayed plantation owners as benevolent biblical patriarchs responsible for providing religious instruction to the enslaved. What emerges is an explosive portrait of an antebellum city gripped by racial terror, violence, and competing visions of biblical truth.

By shedding light on the uses of scripture in Americas troubled racial history, Denmark Veseys Bible offers valuable lessons from a painful moment in the nations past, empowering us to confront racism and religious discord today with renewed urgency and understanding.

Weight: 412g
Dimension: 148 x 223 x 26 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780691192864