The Africans could not and did not fail to notice the powerful influence of the Bible upon the Europeans’ self-image, culture, and orientation. Their first reaction, as far as evidence allows, to the Europeans and to the Europeans’ understanding of themselves can be seen—and, I think, more clearly explicated—in their response to the Bible, referred to by Europeans as “Holy Scripture” or the “Holy Book.” For the great majority of the first African slaves the first reaction was an admixture of rejection,