British Baptists apologize for role in slave trade

SWANWICK, England — Baptists in Britain have apologized for their role in the slave trade. The Baptist Union of Great Britain Council, observing the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the trans-Atlantic slave trade, passed a resolution at its Nov. 12–14 meeting in Swanwick, England. “We offer our apology to God and to our brothers and sisters for all that have created and still perpetuate the hurt which originated from the horror of slavery,” the resolution said.

The trans-Atlantic slave trade brought millions of kidnapped and captured Africans as slaves to the Americas in exchange for money, guns and other goods. It was officially abolished by the British in 1807, but slavery in the British colonies wasn’t abolished until 1838.The council, which made the trans-Atlantic slave trade the main focus of its meeting, further repented “of the hurt we have caused, the divisions we have created, our reluctance to face up to the sin of the past, our unwillingness to listen to the pain of our black sisters and brothers and our silence in the face of racism and injustice today.”