{"id":13202,"date":"2010-09-02T18:16:46","date_gmt":"2010-09-02T18:16:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/production.ou.org\/life\/other\/masechet_shevuot_20a26b\/"},"modified":"2016-11-30T06:02:26","modified_gmt":"2016-11-30T11:02:26","slug":"masechet_shevuot_20a26b","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ou.org\/life\/torah\/masechet_shevuot_20a26b\/","title":{"rendered":"Masechet Avodah Zarah 20a-26b"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Coming Week’s Daf Yomi by Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz<\/em><\/p>\n

This essay is based upon the insights and chidushim (original ideas) of Talmudic scholar Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, as published in the Hebrew version of the Steinsaltz Edition of the Talmud.<\/em><\/p>\n

Avodah Zara 20a-b: Traditional values<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

Traditional values regarding sexuality seem somewhat old-fashioned in the modern age. Nevertheless, the Gemara<\/a> on today’s daf<\/em> shows a deep understanding of sexual drives and the need to avoid situations that will lead to inappropriate thoughts and actions.<\/p>\n

The Gemara quotes a baraita<\/a><\/em> that interprets the passage in Sefer<\/a> Devarim<\/a><\/em> (23:10<\/a>) that warns people to avoid all evil things \u2013 venishmarta mi-kol davar ra<\/em> \u2013 to be referring specifically to issues of sensuality. Thus the baraita<\/em> forbids a man from gazing at a beautiful woman, even if she is unmarried, or at any married woman, even an unattractive one. Similarly, the baraita<\/em> forbids watching animals engage in sexual relations or even looking at the colorful clothing worn by women. In the Gemara, Rav Yehuda<\/a> quotes Shmuel<\/a> as extending this prohibition to the clothing itself, even if the clothing is hung out and is not being worn; Rav Papa<\/a> limits this prohibition, however, only to cases where the man knows the woman to whom these clothes belong.<\/p>\n

The emphasis on colored clothing should be understood in the context of the times of the Mishnah<\/a>. From the limited archaeological evidence that we have, together with information that we find in histories of the time, men’s clothing was usually a single color \u2013 either the original color of the fibers or else yellowish brown or black. Special clothing would have stripes of a brighter color, like blue or purple. Women’s work clothing also was ordinarily a single, plain color. Clothing that women wore for celebratory purposes \u2013 or for purposes of intimacy \u2013 were specially made to be colorful (see Sefer Shoftim<\/em>, Judges 5:30<\/a>). \u00a0Such clothing was, therefore, considered to be sexually “suggestive” in-and-of itself.<\/p>\n

Thus we find that the Gemara attempts to limit activities that will lead a man to gaze upon out-of-the-ordinary sights that may be sexually stimulating.<\/p>\n

\n

Avodah Zara 21a-b: Syria in Bible and Mishnah<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

According to the Mishnah<\/a> on today’s daf<\/em>, there are a number of restrictions on selling or renting houses or fields to non-Jews. These restrictions may stem from concern that the places that are given to the non-Jews may lose the opportunity for fulfillment of mitzvot<\/a><\/em> – e.g. that tithes will no longer be separated from the produce of the field – or that there is a prohibition against giving a non-Jew a stake hold in the land, based on the interpretation of the passage in Sefer<\/a> Devarim<\/a><\/em> (7:2<\/a>) that concludes with the words lo techanem<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Rabbi Yossi<\/a> distinguishes between three different areas:<\/p>\n