Warren Billings has an essay on this topic about Elizabeth and Fernando Key (if I am recalling the names correctly). The English customarily believed that Christians should not own other Christians as slaves. This belief was held so strongly, in fact, that even after the 1667 laws was passed, owners were reluctant to have their slaves baptized because they thought it might lead to the individual's freedom. Edward Bond > > Emily Rose asked, "Have you by any chance come across any records of > manumission tied to or coinciding with baptism? > > They only thing I recall on that subject is that in the early > history of > Virginia there was some doubt as to whether slaves who converted to > Christianity would still be slaves. A law of 1705 put an end to that > possibility, > > "All servants imported and brought into the Country...who were not > Christians in their native Country...shall be accounted and be > slaves. All > Negro, mulatto and Indian slaves within this dominion...shall > be held to be > real estate. If any slave resist his master...correcting such > slave, and > shall happen to be killed in such correction...the master shall > be free of > all punishment...as if such accident never happened." > > Paul >