As Tom begins his journey through the Middle Passage and into his “new way of life,” he continues to ask the question “Is God here (358)?” Each time that Tom interacts with a new character, he attempts to give them solace by reminding them of God’s presence, but he is quickly told by each of those people that God is not at the plantation. In the cabins, one woman tells Tom that she wishes she knew where to find the Lord and when Tom reminds her that the Lord is everywhere she replies, “I know de Lord an’t here (358).” Another woman later replies to his insistence on the Lord’s presence and reminds him “The Lord never visits these parts (362).” As Legree threatens to whip Tom again for not obeying, Tom asks for the Lord’s help and in this moment of anguish, Cassy appears as an apparition. She rests a “cold, soft hand” on Legree and wills him to stop this violence which leads to Legree leaving Tom alone.
I was really interested in Stowe’s imagery that the only true evidence of the Lord that the reader has seen at this point is Cassy’s kindness and strength despite their conditions. In her abolitionist themes, Stowe crafts an image of the true presence of the Lord as the bonds that form between those who are enslaved and the endurance of their humanity despite attempts to convince them that they are inhuman. Stowe appeals to the religious nature of the reader and shows that while the scene of slavery argues against the existence of God, the humanity of those like Tom and Cassy makes them agents of the Lord.
As you articulate, Stowe seems to suggest that God manifests in the presence of humanity; in the absence of humanity, God cannot be. In other words, Stowe equates God with humanity, given that humanity denotes compassion. Tom seems to be that very embodiment of God-like compassion: pretty much (with the exception of his momentary struggle to find it on Legree’s plantation), where Tom goes, God goes – so much so that Tom actually reenacts Christ’s self-sacrifice. Legree, on the other hand, drains humanity and, therefore God, out of everyone in his path. He, himself, appears to have rejected his own humanity long ago, accepting a “godless” life of evil. Legree’s actions here are a projection of himself: In his objectification of the enslaved people on his plantation, Legree has dehumanized himself, and vice-versa. Any inkling of humanity, any reminder of God, must be exterminated. However, he begins to be haunted periodically by his mother – one of the only experiences of compassion, humanity, and, therefore, religion in his life. Tom seems to serve a few purposes for Legree: a reminder of Legree’s mother; a representation of the life path that Legree turned down; and, finally, Christ himself – God. But with Tom as Christ, who does his death save? The enslaved population? The white man? America as a whole from the dehumanizing effects of slavery? Is Tom just a symbol for the power of God to eradicate slavery (evil; the absence of humanity)? Or is he a model citizen – the devout, docile, “simple” Black person?
I also found this distinction interesting. The way that religion seems to dwindle as Tom is moved further South parallels the increasing racism and horror that Tom faces. Stowe represents the enslaved people as morally superior to their slave owners due to their devotion to religion. For example, Tom reads the bible with more understanding than Sicero, despite his struggle actually reading the words. He reads slowly and absorbs the word of God that offers him solace. In contrast, the slave owners, especially the most cruel ones, are shown to lack religion. The last man who owned Tom murdered his slaves by forcing them to work until they died, and he had no religion in him. Stowe almost seems to associate religion with the enslaved people, rather than the white people that claimed authority over everything, including the religion. Its inherently racist to distinguish someones religiosity based on their race, and yet Stowe uses this as a tool to humanize enslaved people in her novel. The pairing of religion and slavery helps generate a religions drive for abolition due to the immorality of slavery.