Understanding the Context and Rationale of Old Testament Laws

Delving into the reasoning behind various Old Testament laws, such as kosher food restrictions and slavery practices, to illuminate God's intention of setting the Israelites apart and guiding them incrementally towards a more humane society. Exploring how these laws, if followed, could have potentially prevented historical atrocities of slavery in modern times through principles of anti-kidnapping, anti-harm, and anti-return. Emphasizing the cultural context of servitude in the Old Testament as a voluntary and contractual system aimed at economic reasons, contrasting it with the brutal slavery of the antebellum south.