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Laws of Dissociation from Idolatry and its Worshippers
Laws of Worship of God
Sources
A
§
The Sages taught:
What is the definition of the
soothsayer
mentioned in the verse: “There shall not be found among you…a soothsayer” (Deuteronomy 18:10)?
Rabbi Shimon says: This is one who applies seven types of semen [
zekhur
] to
one’s
eye
in order to perform sorcery.
And the Rabbis say: This is one who deceives the eyes,
as though he is performing sorcery.
Rabbi Akiva says: This is one who calculates
the fortune of
times and hours, and says,
for example:
Today is
a
propitious
day
for going away
on a journey…
Sanhedrin 65b:19-66a:2
The Sages taught
with regard to
a charmer
that the prohibition applies
both
to
a gathering of large
animals to one place
and
to
a gathering of small
animals to one place,
and even
to a gathering of
snakes and scorpions.
Abaye says: Therefore,
with regard to
this
person,
who
through sorcery
gathers a hornet and a scorpion
to harm each other, he is nevertheless
prohibited
from doing so
even if he intends to prevent them from harming
him.
Sanhedrin 65a:21-22
The
baraita
stated:
And
in the case of
a gentile who has his hair cut by a Jew, when
the Jew
reaches
the gentile’s
forelock, he removes his hand
and does not cut it, because it is associated with idol worship. The Gemara asks:
And how much
space should the Jew leave around the forelock?
Rav Malkiyya says
that
Rav Adda bar Ahava says: Three fingerbreadths in each and every direction.
Avodah Zarah 29a:13
§ The mishna teaches:
And
among those who have no share in the World-to-Come is
one who whispers
invocations
over a wound. Rabbi Yoḥanan says: And
that is the case only
where he spits into
the wound while he whispers,
as one does not mention the name of Heaven over spittle,
and doing so is an act of contempt for God.
It was stated
that
Rav says: Even
the verse: “When
a leprous mark
is in a man, then he shall be brought to the priest” (Leviticus 13:9), in which there is no mention of the name of God, may not be whispered as an invocation…
Sanhedrin 101a:4-6
The Gemara answers: The members
of the house of Rabban Gamliel are different,
as
they were close to the monarchy,
and therefore had to learn Greek wisdom in order to converse with people of authority.
As it is taught
in a
baraita
(
Tosefta
,
Shabbat
7:1): One who
cuts
his hair in the
komi
style, which was the gentile fashion of cutting and wearing the hair,
is
considered to be acting in the
ways of the Amorites,
and it is prohibited to act in their way…
Sotah 49b:14
The Sages
say
in response:
The household of Rabban Gamliel is different, as they
held
close
ties
with the government.
Since knowledge of Greek wisdom was crucial for the members of this family, the Sages exempted them from the general decree,
as it is taught
in a
baraita
: With regard to
one
who
cuts his hair
in the fashion of
komi
,
a certain haircut favored by the Romans,
this is
considered one
of the ways of the Amorites,
i.e., a gentile practice prohibited by the Torah (Leviticus 18:3)…
Bava Kamma 83a:3
It is forbidden to purchase or sell any durable entity to an idolater within three days of one of their holidays. [Similarly, within this period, it is forbidden] to borrow from them, to lend to them, to accept payment from them or to repay them for a loan that is supported by a promissory note or collateral. It is, however, permitted to collect a loan which is supported by a verbal commitment alone, because one is saving one's property from being lost to them.
It is permitted to sell them an entity which will not endure - e.g…
Mishneh Torah, Foreign Worship and Customs of the Nations 9-11
MISHNA:
The list of those liable to be executed by stoning includes those who practice various types of sorcery. The mishna describes them:
A necromancer is a
pitom
from whose armpit
the voice of the dead appears to
speak. And a sorcerer is
one
from whose mouth
the dead appears to
speak. These,
the necromancer and the sorcerer,
are
executed
by stoning, and one who inquires
about the future
through them is in
violation of
a prohibition.
Sanhedrin 65a:1
It is related that
Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi would recite these verses
to protect him from evil spirits during the night
and fall asleep
while saying them. The Gemara asks:
How could he do that? But doesn’t Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi
himself
say: One is prohibited from healing himself with words of Torah?
The Gemara answers:
To protect
oneself
is different,
as he recited these verses only to protect himself from evil spirits, and not to heal himself. The Gemara challenges:
But rather, when
Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi
said
that this
is prohibited…
Shevuot 15b:11-12
The Gemara answers: One who
directs inquiries to the dead
employs a different method to contact the dead,
as it is taught
in a
baraita
:
“Or directs inquiries to the dead”; this is one who starves himself and goes and sleeps
overnight
in a graveyard so that a spirit of impurity should settle upon him,
and he can listen to what the dead are saying.
Sanhedrin 65b:14
MISHNA:
In the case of
a city in which there is
active
idol worship,
it is
permitted
to engage in business transactions with gentiles who live
outside of
the city. If the
idol worship
is
outside
the city, it is
permitted
to engage in business
within
the city.
What is
the
halakha
with regard to
traveling there,
a place where a pagan festival is being celebrated?
When the road is designated
only
for that place,
it is
prohibited
to use the road…
Avodah Zarah 11b:11
Rabba bar bar Ḥana said
that
Rabbi Shmuel bar Marta said
that Rav said, citing
Rabbi Yosei of Hutzal: From where
is it derived
that one
may
not consult astrologers? As it is stated: “You shall be wholehearted with the Lord your God”
(Deuteronomy 18:13). The Torah demands absolute faith in God and acceptance of His justice, without attempting to predict the future.
Pesachim 113b:15
§ The mishna teaches that
one may assist gentiles
who work the land
during the Sabbatical
Year. The Gemara asks: May
one
really
assist
them?
But didn’t Rav Dimi bar Shishna say in the name of Rav: One may not hoe with a gentile during the Sabbatical
Year,
and one may not double the greeting
extended
to a gentile,
saying:
Shalom
,
shalom
? The Gemara answers:
No,
one may not actually help a gentile in his work, but
it is necessary
to state that one may
merely say to them: Be strong…
Gittin 62a:11-13
It is taught
in a
baraita
:
Rabbi Shimon ben Elazar says:
With regard to one who is successful with his first business transaction after he has built
a home,
after the birth of
a child, or
after he marries
a woman, even though
he may
not
use this as a means of
divination
to decide upon future courses of action,
it is
an auspicious
sign
that he will continue to be successful. Conversely, if his first transaction is not successful he may take that as an inauspicious sign.
Chullin 95b:13
The Gemara asks:
But doesn’t Rav say
that
any divination that is not like
the divination of
Eliezer, the servant of Abraham,
when he went to seek a bride for Isaac (see Genesis 24:14),
or like
the divination of
Jonathan, son of Saul,
who sought an omen as to whether he and his arms bearer would defeat the Philistines (see I Samuel 14:8–12),
is not divination?
Since Rav did not rely on the omen in his decision making, he did not violate the prohibition against divination, and there was no reason for him to penalize himself…
Chullin 95b:8-9
MISHNA:
And these are the festivals of gentiles: Kalenda, Saturnalia, and Kratesis, and the day of the festival of their kings, and the birthday
of the king,
and
the anniversary of
the day of the death
of the king. This is
the statement of Rabbi Meir. And the Rabbis say: Every death that includes
public
burning
is a festival that
includes idol worship, and
any death
that does not include
public
burning
is
not
a festival that
includes idol worship. But
in the case of
the day of shaving his,
i.e…
Avodah Zarah 8a:5
§ One of the gentile festivals listed in the mishna is
the day of the festival [
geinuseya
] of their kings.
The Gemara asks:
What is
meant by:
The day of
geinuseya
of their kings? Rav Yehuda says:
This is referring to the
day on which the gentiles appoint
and crown
their king.
The Gemara asks:
But isn’t it taught
in a
baraita
: Two gentile festivals are
the day of
geinuseya
and
the
day on which the gentiles appoint their king?
This indicates that these are two separate occasions…
Avodah Zarah 10a:9
§
Rav Mattana says:
Since
Rome established
the festival of
Kalenda
on a specific date,
and all of the nearby towns are ruled by
Rome, i.e., they pay their tax to Rome and provide its needs but do not themselves celebrate the festival, is it
prohibited or permitted
to engage in business transactions with the gentile residents of
those towns? Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi says: It is prohibited
to engage in business during the time of the
Kalenda with everyone…
Avodah Zarah 8a:12-8b:3
MISHNA:
One may not rent a house to
a gentile
in Eretz Yisrael, and needless to say
one may not rent
fields
to them, as explained in the Gemara.
And in Syria
one may rent houses to
gentiles,
but
one may
not
rent
fields. And outside of Eretz
Yisrael
one may sell houses and rent fields to
gentiles; this is
the statement of Rabbi Meir. Rabbi Yosei says: In Eretz Yisrael one may rent houses to
gentiles
but
one may
not
rent
fields…
Avodah Zarah 20b:19-21a:2
§
Rabbi Yona found Rabbi Elai, who was standing at the entrance to
the city of
Tyre.
Rabbi Yona
said to him:
The
baraita
cited above
teaches
that if one bought
an animal
at a pagan fair
it should be destroyed. What
should be done with
a slave
purchased at the fair? Rabbi Yona elaborated:
I do not raise the dilemma
about
a Jewish slave,
as it is obvious that the master cannot cause him harm.
Where it is a dilemma for me
is the case of
a gentile slave…
Avodah Zarah 13b:6-12
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