Christian Europe’s primary Other was a metaphysical Devil, not an ethnic group.

Evidence

The real Other in the Christian world was the Devil — represented by the “Bogey,” the “Bugaboo,” the “Black Man.” Thus, the main difference was a metaphysical difference with moral ramifications, and other differences were mirrored in this central difference - identity and otherness were essentially measured in relation to God and the Devil. — David Theo Goldberg, John Solomos, A Companion to Racial and Ethnic Studies, 185

Categorization

• DEFINE: Shows that Europe’s foundational otherness-dyad was theological (God/Devil), which colors how later ethnic and racial others were coded.
• XREF: Provides genealogical grounding that antecedes racial formation; connects to arguments that race absorbed prior religious frameworks.
• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — David Theo Goldberg, John Solomos, A Companion to Racial and Ethnic Studies, 185