Describe the life and influence of olaudah equiano

Religion is central to Equiano's life and construction of identity. He explains what his African brethren believed, but came to embrace the idea of the Christian God after hearing about that faith while still a youth. Until he was converted, he believed that good works were most important, and so he was diligent in keeping the Commandments, only really failing to avoiding blasphemy. This God watched over mankind, and Equiano believed the the good things that happened to him were God's praise, while the bad things were rebukes to be learned from. Equiano spoke often of being favored by Providence. He also called himself a predestinarian, explaining that he believed that his life's course was already ordained, and so it was his responsibility to accept this. After a deadly and dangerous voyage to the North Pole, Equiano feels convicted and searches for faith on a deeper level. He eventually embraces Methodism and the idea of the free gift of salvation as central to the Christian message. This faith shapes and molds his life from then on. He has difficulty working with men who are irreligious, and makes ardent efforts to convert men who were not Christian. His religion allows him to enter into the European culture and establish his credentials for his readers. In essence, he makes himself more familiar and less 'other' by his embrace of Christianity. Thus, his religion is deep and personal, but it is also a way for him to become part of the cultural mainstream and more effectively disseminate his abolitionist views.