e-TiM: Online Program
e-TiM: Captivity, Trauma, and Halakhah: The Halakhic Response to Hostage Crises

Program details

Dates

July 22, 2026 to August 5, 2026

Time

Wednesdays 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM Eastern

Next class

Wednesday July 22, 2026

Register

Captivity, Trauma, and Halakhah: The Halakhic Response to Hostage Crises

Rabbi Dr. Yossef Slotnik

A four-part series examining how Chazal and later halakhic authorities grappled with the painful reality of captivity, and the values that emerge from their responses.

June 24:
The Mitzvah of Redeeming Captives
An exploration of the redemption of captives as one of Judaism's highest communal obligations, including its scope, limits, and ethical foundations.

July 1:
Rebuilding Life After Captivity
The remarkable obligation of a husband to redeem his wife from captivity and support her rehabilitation afterward. This session explores both the legal framework and the profound values embedded within it.

July 8:
Trusting Testimony in Times of Crisis
Why were our sages willing to lower evidentiary standards in cases involving captive women? We'll examine the innovative legal mechanisms developed to protect women and preserve families after captivity.

July 15:
A Fifteenth-Century Hostage Crisis
A dramatic historical case study of a mass captivity event and the extraordinary halakhic measures taken by leading rabbis to permit women to return to their husbands, revealing the flexibility and human sensitivity of the halakhic system in moments of communal disaster.

Upcoming classes

Meet the speaker

Rabbi Dr. Yossef Slotnik

Rav Yossef Slotnik is a senior educator and head of the overseas program at Yeshivat Maale Gilboa. He specializes in Talmud and is known for his engaging approach to uncovering meaning through close textual analysis. In addition to his work in the yeshiva, he is currently pursuing a second PhD in comparative religion. His first Ph.d is in Talmud from Bar-Ilan University. 

Rabbi Dr. Yossef Slotnik bio & resources