Questions tagged [slave-serve-eved-avadim]

Use for questions about the practice of slavery in Judaism, including when a person is considered a slave, the obligations of slaves and slave owners, and laws regarding the practice or regulation of slavery.

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Half Jew half Gentile

I always thought it was a misconception to be "half-Jewish". Usually the speaker means one of their parents are Jewish, making them either fully Jewish or fully Gentile. However, I saw today that the ...
robev's user avatar
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Does a husband have to maintain his wife's bondwomen?

A mishna on Ketubot 59b lists the household tasks a husband may demand of his wife (grinding corn, baking bread, washing his clothes, etc). It then goes on to say that if she brought a bondwoman (...
Monica Cellio's user avatar
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What happens if Hebrew Slave goes on strike?

@Joel's answer to my previous question "whats-so-slave-ish-in-the-hebrew-slave" showed a possible difference between a slave and an employee - the later can simply walk away. That made me think: what ...
Al Berko's user avatar
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3 votes
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Punishment for disobedient Jewish slaves

What exactly is the punishment for a disobedient Jewish (Hebrew) slave? And what exactly is the procedure for the punishment, does the owner go before the Beit Din, or do the judgement themselves? And ...
Kirk's user avatar
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Why the was the enslavement prophecy made to Abraham?

The Torah says: וַיֹּ֣אמֶר לְאַבְרָ֗ם יָדֹ֨עַ תֵּדַ֜ע כִּי־גֵ֣ר ׀ יִהְיֶ֣ה זַרְעֲךָ֗ בְּאֶ֙רֶץ֙ לֹ֣א לָהֶ֔ם וַעֲבָד֖וּם וְעִנּ֣וּ אֹתָ֑ם אַרְבַּ֥ע מֵא֖וֹת שָׁנָֽה׃ וְגַ֧ם אֶת־הַגּ֛וֹי אֲשֶׁ֥ר ...
Maurice Mizrahi's user avatar
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At the time of the giving of the parshah of Nirtza (of avadim), was the avoda done by the Bchoros?

Or was it done by the kohanim at that time? [The din of nirtza is briefly to make a hole in the ear of a slave who wants to continue serving his master, he becomes a slave until Yovel.] The question ...
Dovid's user avatar
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What should a woman do if she owns male slaves

It seems a woman is forbidden to acquire male slaves Rambam Avodim 1.2 and Shulchan Aruch 267.19 What should/must she do if she does? For example her property (Nichsai Milug and Tzon Barzel) she ...
hazoriz's user avatar
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Is a pilegesh the same as a handmaiden?

I'm confused as to whether what the actual relationship to a man a pilegesh actually has in Jewish Law. I've seen conflicting sources: (1) Hebrew school taught a pilegesh is a secondary wife (...
eternalsquire's user avatar
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Martzeia in the eye?

The Torah describes how a slave who doesn't want to leave his master (by Shmitah) has to get pierced through his ear: Exodus 21:6 וְהִגִּישׁ֤וֹ אֲדֹנָיו֙ אֶל־הָ֣אֱלֹהִ֔ים וְהִגִּישׁוֹ֙ אֶל־הַדֶּ֔לֶת ...
Moishe's user avatar
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Why are the descendants of Hurdus still considered to be slaves according to Shmuel?

In Maseches Kiddushin 70b it seems that Shmuel held that Hurdus and his descendants had the status of slaves, but in Gittin 38a it seems that according to Shmuel, if the master gives up on retrieving ...
User123's user avatar
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Why would Sarah need to convince Hagar?

Asking for someone else. Rashi on the parsha, Beresheet 16:3, brings a midrash from Beresheet Rabbah 45:3 which says: "And Sarai, the wife of Abram, took Hagar the Egyptian, her maidservant (...
Harel13's user avatar
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Can a slave say the Haggadah?

Throughout the Haggadah, we make reference to the fact that originally we were slaves, but now we are freed. To quote just a couple of them: עבדים היינו לפרעה במצרים...ואלו לא הוציא הקב״ה את אבותינו ...
DonielF's user avatar
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Is Eved Ivri obligated in honoring one's parents?

A tough question that I could not find anyone mentioning. The Gemmorah in Kiddushin 30b says a married woman is exempt from honoring the parents as "whereas with regard to a woman, it is not in her ...
Al Berko's user avatar
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Who fasted with Ester?

The Bavli, M'gila, says that the seven servants that Ester had while in Hegay's harem were שהיתה מונה בהן ימי שבת, used by Ester to count the days of the week. Rashi explains שהיתה משרתת לה אחת באחד ...
msh210's user avatar
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Is a maidservant required to be 'moseret nefesh' for her master?

In Sefer Bereshit, 30:3-13 the maidservants of both Rochel and Leah are given to Yaacov in their stead to build Yaacov's house through bearing additional children. Since the text states that any ...
Yaacov Deane's user avatar
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What was the main purpose of the Exodus?

From some pesukim it seems that the main purpose of yetzias mitzrayim was to provide relief from their burdens and bring them to the promised land e.g. Shemos 3:8 וָאֵרֵד לְהַצִּילוֹ מִיַּד מִצְרַיִם ...
Nahum's user avatar
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Ha Boel Aramis Kanoim Pogen Bo

I saw somewhere (I think that it was in a Tosphos) that since an Eved Canaani and a Shifcha Canaanis have some Kedushas Yisroel (they are mechuyavim in the mitzvos of a woman), the principal of Ha ...
arnold merenstein's user avatar
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Can a Gentile be an eved Hashem?

Shalom. Some discussion of the concept of an eved Hashem can be found here: https://www.shortvort.com/2618/ And here: https://www.kby.org/english/torat-yavneh/view.asp?id=3684 My question is: Can a ...
Tom W's user avatar
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Why does Hizkiya say that old men are a burden while old women are an asset, and would this apply today?

The Gemara in Arakhin 19a quotes Hizkiya, who explains why the value of a man decreases more with age than a woman's value decreases: אמר חזקיה אמרי אינשי סבא בביתא פאחא בביתא סבתא בביתא סימא בביתא ...
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Freeing a slave by kinyan

Gittin 39b tells the story of a slavewoman whose master attempted to free her by giving her his hat. But this wasn’t valid because it was HIS hat. For the transfer to be valid, the object would have ...
Zarka's user avatar
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Source on the Abarbanel's stance on Slavery?

Per this answer, the Abarbanel agreed with natural slavery as a consequence of the curse on Canaan. Ironically, according to historian David Brion Davis, Abarbanel played a pivotal role in providing ...
Elie's user avatar
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Does an ex-slave need to do Tshuva?

Rashi, on Shemot 21:6 that talks about an Eved-Ivri extending his servitude, writes: What is the reason that the ear had to be pierced rather than any other limb of the servant’s body? Rabban ...
Harel13's user avatar
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Eved: why does it refer to both a slave and a servant?

What's the different between a slave and a servant, and why are both being refered to in the Tenach as 'eved' (both are being used to translate 'eved').
Levi's user avatar
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1 answer
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How can an 'Eved own an 'Eved?

Yevamoth 66a discusses certain rules pertaining to ownership and legal rights that can be passed down or up the chain of ownership (eg., whether an 'Eved - slave - owned by the wife of a Kohen may eat ...
Seth J's user avatar
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Circumventing the conversion fuss by enslaving and freeing

Can a long path of the Orthodox conversion be circumvented by the following procedure*? Enslaving a Gentile person by buying from him/herself Dipping him/her in a Mikve before a Beis Din for the ...
Al Berko's user avatar
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