In Reply to: More answers from the teacher - part 9 posted by Student on October 18, 2006 at 10:49:15:
Again, I appreciate you taking the time to explain all this and if the Jews 2-3,000 years ago were actually practising things this way and servitude was an equal-rights situation more like an employer-employee situation with a full benefits package, then the Israelites would have been enlightened far beyond their time.
However, I want to be certain that this is what the Israelites were actually practising. For e.g. one of the most humane interpretations of the Torah (below) was written by Rabbi Kook who only lived 100-120 years ago. Forgive my doubts, but was he actually describing historical realities 2-3,000 years earlier or was he interpreting the verses with a modern mindset? I mean, have any rabbis from 2,000 years ago been quoted on this subject?
I do tend to think the Jewish servitude situation was more humane than first glance would appear, but my concern is what latitude for harshness existed.