Slavery in the bible.

Par5

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Even in the 21st century, it is a sad fact the slavery is still happening in the world. Most people find this disgusting practice to be totally repugnant and immoral. Slavery was very common in biblical times and it seems strange that the biblical god did not condemn the practice of having slaves, but instead gave instructions on the keeping of slaves. The same god that condemned a man to death for simply gathering sticks on the Sabbath, a "crime" hardly in the same league as slavery.
So the question is quite simply this. Do you consider it morally acceptable to consider another human being to be your property?
 

elliott95

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No.
That was a nineteenth century problem solved by Christians, for the most part.

Maybe Brits haven't got the message yet. Slavery is wrong, and illegal.

Which is odd, since it was the British Christians that did the most to end the trans-Atlantic slave trade.
 
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mukk_in

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Even in the 21st century, it is a sad fact the slavery is still happening in the world. Most people find this disgusting practice to be totally repugnant and immoral. Slavery was very common in biblical times and it seems strange that the biblical god did not condemn the practice of having slaves, but instead gave instructions on the keeping of slaves. The same god that condemned a man to death for simply gathering sticks on the Sabbath, a "crime" hardly in the same league as slavery.
So the question is quite simply this. Do you consider it morally acceptable to consider another human being to be your property?
Never my friend :).
 
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66/40

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No.
That was a nineteenth century problem solved by Christians, for the most part.

Maybe Brits haven't got the message yet. Slavery is wrong, and illegal.

Which is odd, since it was the British Christians that did the most to end the trans-Atlantic slave trade.

ABSOLUTLY CORRECT! Had it NOT been for Christianity, slavery more than likely would still be in effect for western civilization.
 
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SoldierOfTheKing

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In antiquity, slavery was an integral part of the economic structure. It was the basic form of labor relations for that period of time. It wasn't pretty, but it was necessary in order to task the menial jobs so that society's elites would have maximum time to do their essential work. None of the great cultural achievements of the ancient world would have been possible without slavery. Human society would have been stuck at the level of hunter-gatherers, or at most small scale subsistence farming.

It was not until the development of the feudal system in medieval Europe that it became possible for an organized economy to function without slavery.
 
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66/40

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Here’s the deal about slavery in the Bible... I wrote this a long time ago while debating some atheists:

The bible does talk about slavery. People used the Bible to abolish slavery in every nation Christianity went to. The Bible was used to undo oppression, slavery and to give women their rights to every nation Christianity went to.

The Bible primarily documents the inspired story of freedom (the Exodus). The bible gives instructions on how slaves should be treated (Deut 15:12-15; Eph 6:9; Col 4:1). Again, the atheists see this as the Bible condoning all forms of slavery. Again, the haters fail to understand that slavery in biblical times was very different from the slavery that was practiced in the past. The slavery in the Bible was not based exclusively on race. Sinful man practiced slavery, not God. God had Moses demand freedom for the Jews in Egypt too. Now, "Man-stealing" which is what America did in the 19th century to Africans, was in fact punishable by death! (Exodus 21:16). Slave traders were also condemned like murderers! (1 Timothy 1:8-10).

Deuteronomy 15:12-18 talks about setting a servant free after seven years of indebted service from him/her. It also gives instruction on what to do if the servant doesn't want to go free, but wants to stay with the slave owner for life.

Finally, the bible itself was written to point the way to salvation and NOT to reform society. Many anti Christians are the ones that like to cherry pick verses to suit their sinful, arrogant and selfish lusts of this world.

In 1934, Michael King Jr changed his name to MLK Jr. He did that in honor of Martin Luther; a great (Christian Protestant) reformer who changed the course of history.

Even Martin Luther King Jr made it crystal clear, that the consistent application of BIBLICAL principles will inevitably lead to emancipation, as opposed to slavery. How different from former president Obama who once said that the bible "teaches" slavery. MLK Jr. appealed to the principles of Christian brotherhood in order to bring about racial justice.

You can't convince me otherwise that MLK Jr. (a black man) would embrace the holy bible if it indeed condoned slavery.

MLK Jr. Was impacted by the lives of other people. Gandhi was one of those people. As a result of seeing what Gandhi did, MLK believed that he could make a difference in history as well.
 
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elliott95

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ABSOLUTLY CORRECT! Had it NOT been for Christianity, slavery more than likely would still be in effect for western civilization.
Not just for the West. Less so in the West in fact that anywhere else.
For the world!!
It was Christians contemplating Christ in the "least of our brother" that led to the metanoia, the total change of spiritual consciousness that led to the eradication of slavery world wide as a legal institution.
 
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Everybodyknows

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No.
That was a nineteenth century problem solved by Christians, for the most part.

Maybe Brits haven't got the message yet. Slavery is wrong, and illegal.

Which is odd, since it was the British Christians that did the most to end the trans-Atlantic slave trade.

ABSOLUTLY CORRECT! Had it NOT been for Christianity, slavery more than likely would still be in effect for western civilization.
The fact that Christians 'solved' slavery has nothing to do with the question. The question is why is it not condemned by the Bible in the first place.
 
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Another Lazarus

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In antiquity, slavery was an integral part of the economic structure. It was the basic form of labor relations for that period of time.

Thats right !!! the poors had to sell their muscle in exchange for food and shelter so they are called slaves to their masters. God didnt create slavery. If the master is good the slaves will be happy.

As a matter of fact many people in our modern world work like slaves for their company. some even kill themselves due to overload of job. some died of overwork. they work in stress situation at the office and hoping to get home soon. they just bear the pain because they need to sell their muscle to a master in exchange for money to buy food.
 
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elliott95

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The fact that Christians 'solved' slavery has nothing to do with the question. The question is why is it not condemned by the Bible in the first place.
The Bible is a very complicated source of information and morality. Why wouldn't it be? Morality is a struggle, and finding effective and just social institutions to allow a people to survive and prosper in our harsh and unforgiving world is well nigh an impossible task. People looking for straightforward and easy answers would do well not to even look at the Bible. It is not for those who like everything to be simplistic.
For those who read with understanding, the dignity and absolute worth of all human beings who have been created in the image of their Creator becomes know as soon as people open their eyes and open their ears and see what is really being said.

Abraham and Sarah left Egypt flush with goodies and slaves ill-gotten based on their lies to the Egyptians. For the next five hundred years, their progeny were in turn enslaved by Egypt. When finally sprung by God, the lesson for them as they were coming back into positions of power and authority, including over the lives of those who were now wer among the unfortunates was "Remember, you were slaves once in Egypt. ....'Remember how you were treated back then when you are in a position of power over those now working for you' ".
Hagar the Egyptian slave oppressed by Sarah was avenged by five hundred years of slavery, and it was in fact her Arab progeny that started the ball rolling by selling Joseph as a slave to the Egyptians in the first place.
It doesn't sound like the Bible was just 'okay' with slavery when that was the magnitude of the consequence that flowed from their own oppression. People who think that the Bible is just 'okay' with slavery are people who can't see the forest for the trees.
 
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Everybodyknows

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In antiquity, slavery was an integral part of the economic structure. It was the basic form of labor relations for that period of time. It wasn't pretty, but it was necessary in order to task the menial jobs so that society's elites would have maximum time to do their essential work. None of the great cultural achievements of the ancient world would have been possible without slavery. Human society would have been stuck at the level of hunter-gatherers, or at most small scale subsistence farming.

It was not until the development of the feudal system in medieval Europe that it became possible for an organized economy to function without slavery.
So God set up a nation based on his laws and morals but couldn't solve the problem of having an functional economy without slavery. Good thing those medieval Europeans worked it out eventually.
 
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Par5

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No.
That was a nineteenth century problem solved by Christians, for the most part.

Maybe Brits haven't got the message yet. Slavery is wrong, and illegal.

Which is odd, since it was the British Christians that did the most to end the trans-Atlantic slave trade.
Sadly, slavery is still a problem in the modern world and if as you say the problem of slavery that existed in the 19th century was solved for the most part by Christians, then that is only right and proper as Christians were, for the most part, the people who were involved in that slavery. The white Christian slavers even used the bible to justify their vile trade.
Where did you get the idea that I don't see slavery as being wrong and needless to say, illegal? I have already stated that slavery is totally repugnant and immoral.
Do you believe it is morally acceptable to consider another human being to be your property?
 
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Viren

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It's true advance civilizations couldn't exist without slavery. We still have slaves, but they are now in the form of machines burning fossil fuels.

The Bible doesn't seem to be against it, but also stresses that everyone is a slave.

"Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ." Ephesians 6:5
 
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Par5

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ABSOLUTLY CORRECT! Had it NOT been for Christianity, slavery more than likely would still be in effect for western civilization.
If you believe that Christians helped stop the slavery of black Africans in the 19th century, then as I said to another poster, as it was Christians who were mainly involved in that slavery, then it was only right and proper they stopped such a vile trade. White Christian slavers used the bible to justify that vile trade!
 
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The white Christian slavers even used the bible to justify their vile trade.

I hear this claim a lot. And yet, when I ask atheists what verse they allegedly used to justify slavery, the atheists can never give an example.
 
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Slavery still exists today. In the inner cities of America young women are being trafficked and forced into prostitution to support their "masters." They are drugged and gang raped into submission and kept in line with narcotics and fear. Yet society doesn't hunt down and exterminate the slavers. Rather we consider them almost like mini kings looking after their empires. Muslims kidnap schoolgirls and sell them around the world as sex slaves. The wealthy are too busy bidding on them to try any kind of rescue. For the most part, nobody cares. They are just lost.

Rather than complain about some ancient sins, why not do something for the current victims? Start a thread to raise awareness of current victims. Re-post missing persons ads whenever you can. Donate to causes dedicated to eliminate human trafficking. Vote out status quo politicians and elect people who will crack down on human trafficking. Turn in suspected drug dealers and pimps. Let's have zero tolerance for the scumbags who victimize our children.
 
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Par5

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Here’s the deal about slavery in the Bible... I wrote this a long time ago while debating some atheists:

The bible does talk about slavery. People used the Bible to abolish slavery in every nation Christianity went to. The Bible was used to undo oppression, slavery and to give women their rights to every nation Christianity went to.

The Bible primarily documents the inspired story of freedom (the Exodus). The bible gives instructions on how slaves should be treated (Deut 15:12-15; Eph 6:9; Col 4:1). Again, the atheists see this as the Bible condoning all forms of slavery. Again, the haters fail to understand that slavery in biblical times was very different from the slavery that was practiced in the past. The slavery in the Bible was not based exclusively on race. Sinful man practiced slavery, not God. God had Moses demand freedom for the Jews in Egypt too. Now, "Man-stealing" which is what America did in the 19th century to Africans, was in fact punishable by death! (Exodus 21:16). Slave traders were also condemned like murderers! (1 Timothy 1:8-10).

Deuteronomy 15:12-18 talks about setting a servant free after seven years of indebted service from him/her. It also gives instruction on what to do if the servant doesn't want to go free, but wants to stay with the slave owner for life.

Finally, the bible itself was written to point the way to salvation and NOT to reform society. Many anti Christians are the ones that like to cherry pick verses to suit their sinful, arrogant and selfish lusts of this world.

In 1934, Michael King Jr changed his name to MLK Jr. He did that in honor of Martin Luther; a great (Christian Protestant) reformer who changed the course of history.

Even Martin Luther King Jr made it crystal clear, that the consistent application of BIBLICAL principles will inevitably lead to emancipation, as opposed to slavery. How different from former president Obama who once said that the bible "teaches" slavery. MLK Jr. appealed to the principles of Christian brotherhood in order to bring about racial justice.

You can't convince me otherwise that MLK Jr. (a black man) would embrace the holy bible if it indeed condoned slavery.

MLK Jr. Was impacted by the lives of other people. Gandhi was one of those people. As a result of seeing what Gandhi did, MLK believed that he could make a difference in history as well.
You the one who is cherry-picking. Your god gave different instructions for the treatment of Hebrew slaves to slaves of other nations. The point is that there is no condemnation of slavery in the bible, and slavery is slavery no matter how you try to dress it up. If a person can have his children taken away from him and used as an inheritance by his master, then that person is a slave. If a person can be beaten by his master and die as a result of that beating, but so long as he survives for a few days before dying the slaver escapes any punishment because the slave is his money, then that person is a slave. If the slaver puts an awl in someone's ear to show ownership as one would with a sheep, then that person is a slave. These are all the ingredients of slavery. I see nothing good in any of those things, so I ask you, do you believe it is morally acceptable to consider another human being to be your property?
 
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JoeP222w

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Do you consider it morally acceptable to consider another human being to be your property?

No. And nowhere in the Bible does God command such a thing.

If you believe that what is described in the Bible as slavery is comparable to the slavery in Colonial times in America or slavery of today, you do not have a correct understanding of scripture. If you believe that God said that having slaves in the Bible was a righteous act, you do not understand the Bible.

The same god that condemned a man to death for simply gathering sticks on the Sabbath, a "crime" hardly in the same league as slavery.

No sin is righteous before God, by definition. And when you stand before God, you will be compared to the perfect standard, that is Jesus Christ. You will be unable to compare your sin to another sin, nor will you be able to compare yourself to another sinful person whom you think is far more evil than you. God requires absolute perfect which is His sovereign right as the eternal Creator. And since you did not self-create, you have absolutely no grounds on which to judge God, your Creator.
 
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