[Book Review]: "God, Slavery, and Early Christianity: Divine Possession and Ethics in the Shepherd of Hermas by Chance E. Bonar (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2025)"

Abstract

This review examines Chance E. Bonar’s work God, Slavery, and Early Christianity: Divine Possession and Ethics in the Shepherd of Hermas. Bonar interprets the relationship between God and humanity in early Christian thought through a “master–slave” dynamic, arguing that the system of slavery functioned not only as a social structure but also as a theological framework. Through the text The Shepherd of Hermas, the author internalizes the concept of slavery with “divine possession” and “doulology,” defining servitude to God as a bodily and ethical mode of existence. The book provides a detailed analysis of how the culture of slavery in the ancient Mediterranean shaped Christian moral understanding. Bonar’s study fills a gap in the literature regarding the relationship between slavery and faith, as well as the influence of The Shepherd of Hermas on early Christianity. It also offers a new perspective on obedience, ethics, discipline, and the concept of God. The book stands as an important reference for researchers in the fields of early Christianity, slavery studies, and the social sciences of religion.