It is better to be dominated by unknown but useful signs than to interpret them in a useless way and so thrust one's neck, rescued from the yoke slavery, into the toils of error" (St. Augustine, 32). Therefore, the issue of slavery in Augustine's interpretation is overall related to the idea of interpretation and to spiritual oppression of the soul if subject to a system of values he interprets of adopts in a wrongful manner. By comparison to Augustine's point-of-view and approach, there is the traditional sense of the term slavery, as a degrading institution for the Roman Empire at the time of its greatest expansion. Especially during the Roman domination of Palestine, the Israelites were considered to be an enslaved people; however, the perspective was more physical related, rather than spiritual. In this sense, Gregory of Nyssa draws the attention on the human inequality created by slavery, when human beings buy the freedom of other human beings (Garnsey, 1996, 82-3). His main argument summarized indicates that "made was made in the image and likeness of God, and therefore, by his nature is both free and sovereign in the earthly sphere (...) slave-owning is to oppose God, challenge his natural law, and scupper his...

However, he views slavery as being the punishment of a sin, the original sin. Therefore, a connection can be made between the two types of enslavement, physical and spiritual. The inability to see beyond the worldly signs of belief and interpret them pushes people into a state of fornication, therefore a sinful affair. Consequently, the physical enslavement can be seen as a means of punishment for the unworthy.
Overall, it can be concluded that Augustine's view on the issue of slavery is complex and sheds light on the particular aspects related both to spiritual belief and physical suffering, enabling a complex interpretation of the two notions.

References

Garnsey, Peter. Ideas on slavery from Aristotle to Augustine. London: Cambridge University Press, 1996.

Saint Augustine. On Christian Teaching. New York: Oxford University Press, 1997.