Bamidbar/Numbers 8:1-12:16
Sometimes, we lash out in fear with hubris and violent acts or speech. We spit on those we mean to demean. We spit to keep away bad luck. We embrace superstition and exclude those who disgust us or whom we think, in our anxious arrogance, dishonor or disrespect us.
Torah shows us a better way: how to act responsibly in relation to others to create lives with confidence and humility, mandating the duty to nurture, honor and teach those in our care and to respect the needs of the whole community. To look up with new eyes, seeing beyond ourselves to rebuild relationships with equity, equanimity and engagement. To realistically affirm the sanctity, continuity and quality of life by engaging in generous ways with our families, our community and the world, by turning back from sin, by atoning and making amends for our guilty acts, and by recovering and welcoming others to recover from shame. In that way, we can overcome the fears that pull us down, replacing our mortified anxiety with an uplifting peace and a genuine sense of connection, agency and purpose. Even while acknowledging that awareness of death and decay can trigger in us both fear and disgust, Judaism focuses optimistically on life. Sometimes, a little spit on the wound can heal it.
Spitting on Miriam
(א) וַתְּדַבֵּ֨ר מִרְיָ֤ם וְאַהֲרֹן֙ בְּמֹשֶׁ֔ה עַל־אֹד֛וֹת הָאִשָּׁ֥ה הַכֻּשִׁ֖ית אֲשֶׁ֣ר לָקָ֑ח כִּֽי־אִשָּׁ֥ה כֻשִׁ֖ית לָקָֽח׃ (ב) וַיֹּאמְר֗וּ הֲרַ֤ק אַךְ־בְּמֹשֶׁה֙ דִּבֶּ֣ר יְהֹוָ֔ה הֲלֹ֖א גַּם־בָּ֣נוּ דִבֵּ֑ר וַיִּשְׁמַ֖ע יְהֹוָֽה׃ (ג) וְהָאִ֥ישׁ מֹשֶׁ֖ה עָנָ֣ו מְאֹ֑ד מִכֹּל֙ הָֽאָדָ֔ם אֲשֶׁ֖ר עַל־פְּנֵ֥י הָאֲדָמָֽה׃ {ס} (ד) וַיֹּ֨אמֶר יְהֹוָ֜ה פִּתְאֹ֗ם אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֤ה וְאֶֽל־אַהֲרֹן֙ וְאֶל־מִרְיָ֔ם צְא֥וּ שְׁלׇשְׁתְּכֶ֖ם אֶל־אֹ֣הֶל מוֹעֵ֑ד וַיֵּצְא֖וּ שְׁלׇשְׁתָּֽם׃ (ה) וַיֵּ֤רֶד יְהֹוָה֙ בְּעַמּ֣וּד עָנָ֔ן וַֽיַּעֲמֹ֖ד פֶּ֣תַח הָאֹ֑הֶל וַיִּקְרָא֙ אַהֲרֹ֣ן וּמִרְיָ֔ם וַיֵּצְא֖וּ שְׁנֵיהֶֽם׃ (ו) וַיֹּ֖אמֶר שִׁמְעוּ־נָ֣א דְבָרָ֑י אִם־יִֽהְיֶה֙ נְבִ֣יאֲכֶ֔ם יְהֹוָ֗ה בַּמַּרְאָה֙ אֵלָ֣יו אֶתְוַדָּ֔ע בַּחֲל֖וֹם אֲדַבֶּר־בּֽוֹ׃ (ז) לֹא־כֵ֖ן עַבְדִּ֣י מֹשֶׁ֑ה בְּכׇל־בֵּיתִ֖י נֶאֱמָ֥ן הֽוּא׃ (ח) פֶּ֣ה אֶל־פֶּ֞ה אֲדַבֶּר־בּ֗וֹ וּמַרְאֶה֙ וְלֹ֣א בְחִידֹ֔ת וּתְמֻנַ֥ת יְהֹוָ֖ה יַבִּ֑יט וּמַדּ֙וּעַ֙ לֹ֣א יְרֵאתֶ֔ם לְדַבֵּ֖ר בְּעַבְדִּ֥י בְמֹשֶֽׁה׃ (ט) וַיִּֽחַר־אַ֧ף יְהֹוָ֛ה בָּ֖ם וַיֵּלַֽךְ׃
(1) Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman he had taken [into his household as his wife]: “He took a Cushite woman!” (2) They said, “Has יהוה spoken only through Moses? Has [God] not spoken through us as well?” יהוה heard it. (3) Now Moses himself was very humble, more so than any other human being on earth. (4) Suddenly יהוה called to Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, “Come out, you three, to the Tent of Meeting.” So the three of them went out. (5) יהוה came down in a pillar of cloud, stopped at the entrance of the Tent, and called out, “Aaron and Miriam!” The two of them came forward; (6) and [God] said, “Hear these My words: When prophets of יהוה arise among you, I make Myself known to them in a vision, I speak with them in a dream. (7) Not so with My servant Moses; he is trusted throughout My household. (8) With him I speak mouth to mouth, plainly and not in riddles, and he beholds the likeness of יהוה. How then did you not shrink from speaking against My servant Moses!” (9) Still incensed with them, יהוה departed.
- What did Miriam and Aaron do wrong?
- What happened to Miriam (but not Aaron) as a result?
(י) וְהֶעָנָ֗ן סָ֚ר מֵעַ֣ל הָאֹ֔הֶל וְהִנֵּ֥ה מִרְיָ֖ם מְצֹרַ֣עַת כַּשָּׁ֑לֶג וַיִּ֧פֶן אַהֲרֹ֛ן אֶל־מִרְיָ֖ם וְהִנֵּ֥ה מְצֹרָֽעַת׃ (יא) וַיֹּ֥אמֶר אַהֲרֹ֖ן אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֑ה בִּ֣י אֲדֹנִ֔י אַל־נָ֨א תָשֵׁ֤ת עָלֵ֙ינוּ֙ חַטָּ֔את אֲשֶׁ֥ר נוֹאַ֖לְנוּ וַאֲשֶׁ֥ר חָטָֽאנוּ׃ (יב) אַל־נָ֥א תְהִ֖י כַּמֵּ֑ת אֲשֶׁ֤ר בְּצֵאתוֹ֙ מֵרֶ֣חֶם אִמּ֔וֹ וַיֵּאָכֵ֖ל חֲצִ֥י בְשָׂרֽוֹ׃ (יג) וַיִּצְעַ֣ק מֹשֶׁ֔ה אֶל־יהוה לֵאמֹ֑ר אֵ֕ל נָ֛א רְפָ֥א נָ֖א לָֽהּ׃ {פ} (יד) וַיֹּ֨אמֶר יהוה אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֗ה וְאָבִ֙יהָ֙ יָרֹ֤ק יָרַק֙ בְּפָנֶ֔יהָ הֲלֹ֥א תִכָּלֵ֖ם שִׁבְעַ֣ת יָמִ֑ים תִּסָּגֵ֞ר שִׁבְעַ֤ת יָמִים֙ מִח֣וּץ לַֽמַּחֲנֶ֔ה וְאַחַ֖ר תֵּאָסֵֽף׃ (טו) וַתִּסָּגֵ֥ר מִרְיָ֛ם מִח֥וּץ לַֽמַּחֲנֶ֖ה שִׁבְעַ֣ת יָמִ֑ים וְהָעָם֙ לֹ֣א נָסַ֔ע עַד־הֵאָסֵ֖ף מִרְיָֽם׃ (טז) וְאַחַ֛ר נָסְע֥וּ הָעָ֖ם מֵחֲצֵר֑וֹת וַֽיַּחֲנ֖וּ בְּמִדְבַּ֥ר פָּארָֽן׃ {פ}
(10) As the cloud withdrew from the Tent, there was Miriam stricken with snow-white scales! When Aaron turned toward Miriam, he saw that she was stricken with scales. (11) And Aaron said to Moses, “O my lord, account not to us the sin which we committed in our folly. (12) Let her not be like a stillbirth which emerges from its mother’s womb with half its flesh eaten away!” (13) So Moses cried out to יהוה, saying, “O God, pray heal her!” (14) But יהוה said to Moses, “If her father spat in her face, would she not bear her shame for seven days? Let her be shut out of camp for seven days, and then let her be readmitted.” (15) So Miriam was shut out of camp seven days; and the people did not march on until Miriam was readmitted. (16) After that the people set out from Hazeroth and encamped in the wilderness of Paran.
Miriam, the Impudent Protector
(13) “The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, of whom the name of one was Shifra and the name of the other was Pu’a” (Exodus 1:15). When he saw that they were procreating, he issued a decree against the males – that is what is written: “The king of Egypt said to the midwives….” Who were the midwives?... Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥman says: A woman and her daughter, Yokheved and Miriam. And Miriam was no more than five years old, as Aaron was three years older than Moses..... Rabbi Ḥanina bar Rav Yitzḥak said:... Pu’a, because she was impudent [hofia panim] toward her father. Amram was the head of the Sanhedrin at that time. Once Pharaoh issued his decree and said: “Every son that is born you shall cast him into the Nile” (Exodus 1:22), Amram said: ‘Isn’t Israel begetting children for naught?’ Immediately, he separated from Yokheved and abstained from sexual relations. He divorced his wife when she was three months pregnant. All Israel arose and divorced their wives. His daughter said to him: ‘Your decree is harsher than Pharaoh’s, as Pharaoh decreed only against the males, and you, against the males and the females. Pharaoh is wicked and it is uncertain whether his decree will be fulfilled or whether it will not be fulfilled. However, you are righteous and your decree will be fulfilled.’ He arose and remarried his wife. All Israel arose and remarried their wives. That is Pu’a, who was impudent toward her father.
The Hamsa or "Hand of Miriam" (from My Jewish Learning)
It is difficult to pinpoint the exact time when hamsas emerged in Jewish culture, though it is clearly a symbol of Sephardic nature. Jews might have used the hamsa to invoke the hand of God, or to counteract the Evil Eye with the eye embedded in the palm of the hand. Some hamsas contain images of fish, in accordance with Rabbi Yose son of Hanina’s statement in the Talmud that the descendants of Joseph, who received Jacob’s blessing of multiplying like fish in Genesis 48:16, are protected from the Evil Eye like fish. He explains: “the water covers the fish of the sea so the eye has no power over them (Berakhot 55b).”
Other icons besides eyes and fish have also found their way into the hamsa, including the Star of David, prayers for the traveler, the Shema, the blessing over the house, and the colors of red and blue, both of which are said to thwart the Evil Eye.
The symbol of the hand, and often of priestly hands, appears in kabbalistic manuscripts and amulets, doubling as the letter shin, the first letter of the divine name Shaddai. This mapping of the human hand over the divine name and hand might have had the effect of creating a bridge between the worshipper and God.
From the Philalogos column in The Forward
Mr. Hoffman asks, “I was raised in Brooklyn with the knowledge that spitting three times (or at least making a ritualized spitting movement or sound, which I’ve always rendered as ‘ptu, ptu, ptu’) is an effective way of warding off a kinehore.... My mother especially used it when sewing something while I was still wearing it, with remarks like, ‘Oy, azoy sheyn, kinehore, ptu, ptu, ptu.’ What is the derivation of this?”
Although Mr. Hoffman’s mother undoubtedly did what he remembers, he needs to be corrected about one thing. You don’t “ward off a kinehore” (pronounced “kinnahora”), which is a contraction of Yiddish kayn, “none” or “no,” and Hebrew ayin hara, “the evil eye.” Rather, you say “kayn ayin horeh,” “k’nayin horeh” or kinehore — that is, “no evil eye” — in order to ward off the jinx, hex or bad luck that the evil eye is believed capable of causing. And since, in the traditional superstitions of Jews and countless other peoples, the evil eye is most dangerous when you have provoked its jealousy by boasting of your (or someone else’s) successes or flaunting your (or someone else’s) good fortune, saying kinehore is most imperative at such moments. Thus, “My grandson, kinehore, brought home a perfect report card last week”; “Kinehore, she’s the most beautiful little baby”; “The doctor, kinehore, says I have the heart of a young man,” etc.
Themes
Father spits on daughter as a rebuke for an offence, causing shame, humiliation and (temporary) banishment from the community.
Themes:
1. How a parent acts (nurture vs. authority, healing vs. cursing)
2. Misogyny, power and shaming
3. Spitting: to heal, or out of fear (superstition) or disgust (rebuke)
Shame = Death
Numbers 12:14 (French)
L’Éternel répondit à Moïse: "Si son père lui eût craché au visage, n’en serait-elle pas mortifiée durant sept jours? Qu’elle soit donc séquestrée sept jours hors du camp, et ensuite elle y sera admise." (Bible de Rabbiinat 1899)
Shame: "painful feeling of disgrace, dishonor, loss of esteem or reputation" from Old English scamu from Proto-Germanic
Guilt: "the fact of having committed an offence or crime, a feeling of having committed wrong or failed in an obligation" from Old English
Mortify: "deeply humiliated," originally "dead to sin or the world," "gangrenous," from the French "to kill or destroy the life of", from Latin mortificare "cause death, kill" from mors or mortis "death"
Chagrin: "melancholy, anxiety, vexation" (from Old French dialect)
(י) וַיִּשְׁמַ֨ע מֹשֶׁ֜ה אֶת־הָעָ֗ם בֹּכֶה֙ לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָ֔יו אִ֖ישׁ לְפֶ֣תַח אׇהֳל֑וֹ וַיִּֽחַר־אַ֤ף יהוה מְאֹ֔ד וּבְעֵינֵ֥י מֹשֶׁ֖ה רָֽע׃ (יא) וַיֹּ֨אמֶר מֹשֶׁ֜ה אֶל־יהוה לָמָ֤ה הֲרֵעֹ֙תָ֙ לְעַבְדֶּ֔ךָ וְלָ֛מָּה לֹא־מָצָ֥תִי חֵ֖ן בְּעֵינֶ֑יךָ לָשׂ֗וּם אֶת־מַשָּׂ֛א כׇּל־הָעָ֥ם הַזֶּ֖ה עָלָֽי׃ (יב) הֶאָנֹכִ֣י הָרִ֗יתִי אֵ֚ת כׇּל־הָעָ֣ם הַזֶּ֔ה אִם־אָנֹכִ֖י יְלִדְתִּ֑יהוּ כִּֽי־תֹאמַ֨ר אֵלַ֜י שָׂאֵ֣הוּ בְחֵיקֶ֗ךָ כַּאֲשֶׁ֨ר יִשָּׂ֤א הָאֹמֵן֙ אֶת־הַיֹּנֵ֔ק עַ֚ל הָֽאֲדָמָ֔ה אֲשֶׁ֥ר נִשְׁבַּ֖עְתָּ לַאֲבֹתָֽיו׃
(10) Moses heard the people weeping, every clan apart, at the entrance of each tent. יהוה was very angry, and Moses was distressed [had the evil eye]. (11) And Moses said to יהוה, “Why have You dealt ill with Your servant, and why have I not enjoyed Your favor, that You have laid the burden of all this people upon me? (12) Did I produce [conceive] all these people, did I engender [give birth to] them, that You should say to me, ‘Carry them in your bosom as a caregiver [nursing parent] carries [suckles] an infant,’ to the land that You have promised on oath to their fathers?
(טז) וַתִּקַּ֨ח נׇעֳמִ֤י אֶת־הַיֶּ֙לֶד֙ וַתְּשִׁתֵ֣הוּ בְחֵיקָ֔הּ וַתְּהִי־ל֖וֹ לְאֹמֶֽנֶת׃ (יז) וַתִּקְרֶ֩אנָה֩ ל֨וֹ הַשְּׁכֵנ֥וֹת שֵׁם֙ לֵאמֹ֔ר יֻלַּד־בֵּ֖ן לְנׇעֳמִ֑י וַתִּקְרֶ֤אנָֽה שְׁמוֹ֙ עוֹבֵ֔ד ה֥וּא אֲבִֽי־יִשַׁ֖י אֲבִ֥י דָוִֽד׃ {פ}
(16) Naomi took the child and held it to her bosom. She became its foster mother [caregiver nurse], (17) and the women neighbors gave him a name, saying, “A son is born to Naomi!” They named him Obed; he was the father of Jesse, father of David.
Spitting in Judaism to Heal
הָהוּא דַּאֲתָא לְקַמֵּיהּ דְּרַבִּי חֲנִינָא, אֲמַר לֵיהּ: מוּחְזְקַנִי בָּזֶה שֶׁהוּא בְּכוֹר. אֲמַר לֵיהּ: מְנָא יָדְעַתְּ? אֲמַר לֵיהּ: דְּכִי הֲווֹ אָתוּ לְגַבֵּי אֲבוּהּ, אֲמַר לְהוּ: זִילוּ לְגַבֵּי שִׁכְחַת בְּרִי, דְּבוּכְרָא הוּא וּמַסֵּי רוּקֵּיהּ. וְדִלְמָא בּוּכְרָא דְאִמָּא הוּא! גְּמִירִי: בּוּכְרָא דְאַבָּא – מַסֵּי רוּקֵּיהּ, בּוּכְרָא דְאִמָּא – לָא מַסֵּי רוּקֵּיהּ.
The Gemara relates: There was a certain man who came before Rabbi Ḥanina and said to him: I know that this man is a firstborn. Rabbi Ḥanina said to him: From where do you know? He said to Rabbi Ḥanina: Because when people would come before his father to obtain a cure for their ailing eyes, he would say to them: Go to my son Shikhḥat, as he is a firstborn and his saliva heals this ailment. The Gemara asks: But perhaps he is his mother’s firstborn? The Gemara answers: It is learned as a tradition that the saliva of a father’s firstborn heals this ailment but the saliva of a mother’s firstborn does not heal this ailment.
Spitting in Judaism: Rebuke, Insult, or Protection from the Evil Eye
ואם אביה. הוסיף מלת ואם כאלו אמר ואם אביה וכו', מפני שלא מצינו שירק אביה בפניה מעולם ולא הנזיפה בשום זמן, אלא ר"ל אלו אביה ירק וכו', ואמר הראה לה פנים זועפות להורות שאין ירוק ירק כמשמעו רק נזיפה המתחייבת מן היריקה:
If her father. Rashi adds the word “if” as if the Torah had said “if her father” because we do not find that her father ever spat in her face or that he rebuked her at any time. Rather the Torah means to say that “if her father were to spit…” He adds “to display to her an angry face” to indicate that “spit” is not to be taken literally, only as reference to rebuke that would be a consequence of spitting.
The Gemara asks: And with regard to the Sages, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, where did they go after their miraculous deliverance, as there is no further mention of them? Rav says: They died as the result of the evil eye, as everyone was jealous of their deliverance. And Shmuel says: They drowned in the spittle of the nations of the world who held the Jewish people in contempt due to their failure to serve God in the appropriate manner. And Rabbi Yoḥanan says: They ascended to Eretz Yisrael and married women and fathered sons and daughters.
(ה) כִּֽי־יֵשְׁב֨וּ אַחִ֜ים יַחְדָּ֗ו וּמֵ֨ת אַחַ֤ד מֵהֶם֙ וּבֵ֣ן אֵֽין־ל֔וֹ לֹֽא־תִהְיֶ֧ה אֵֽשֶׁת־הַמֵּ֛ת הַח֖וּצָה לְאִ֣ישׁ זָ֑ר יְבָמָהּ֙ יָבֹ֣א עָלֶ֔יהָ וּלְקָחָ֥הּ ל֛וֹ לְאִשָּׁ֖ה וְיִבְּמָֽהּ׃ (ו) וְהָיָ֗ה הַבְּכוֹר֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר תֵּלֵ֔ד יָק֕וּם עַל־שֵׁ֥ם אָחִ֖יו הַמֵּ֑ת וְלֹֽא־יִמָּחֶ֥ה שְׁמ֖וֹ מִיִּשְׂרָאֵֽל׃ (ז) וְאִם־לֹ֤א יַחְפֹּץ֙ הָאִ֔ישׁ לָקַ֖חַת אֶת־יְבִמְתּ֑וֹ וְעָלְתָה֩ יְבִמְתּ֨וֹ הַשַּׁ֜עְרָה אֶל־הַזְּקֵנִ֗ים וְאָֽמְרָה֙ מֵאֵ֨ן יְבָמִ֜י לְהָקִ֨ים לְאָחִ֥יו שֵׁם֙ בְּיִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל לֹ֥א אָבָ֖ה יַבְּמִֽי׃ (ח) וְקָֽרְאוּ־ל֥וֹ זִקְנֵי־עִיר֖וֹ וְדִבְּר֣וּ אֵלָ֑יו וְעָמַ֣ד וְאָמַ֔ר לֹ֥א חָפַ֖צְתִּי לְקַחְתָּֽהּ׃ (ט) וְנִגְּשָׁ֨ה יְבִמְתּ֣וֹ אֵלָיו֮ לְעֵינֵ֣י הַזְּקֵנִים֒ וְחָלְצָ֤ה נַעֲלוֹ֙ מֵעַ֣ל רַגְל֔וֹ וְיָרְקָ֖ה בְּפָנָ֑יו וְעָֽנְתָה֙ וְאָ֣מְרָ֔ה כָּ֚כָה יֵעָשֶׂ֣ה לָאִ֔ישׁ אֲשֶׁ֥ר לֹא־יִבְנֶ֖ה אֶת־בֵּ֥ית אָחִֽיו׃ (י) וְנִקְרָ֥א שְׁמ֖וֹ בְּיִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל בֵּ֖ית חֲל֥וּץ הַנָּֽעַל׃ {ס}
(5) When brothers dwell together and one of them dies and leaves no offspring, the wife of the deceased shall not become that of another party, outside the family. Her husband’s brother shall unite with her: he shall take her as his wife and perform the levir’s duty. (6) The first child that she bears shall be accounted to the dead brother, that his name may not be blotted out in Israel. (7) But if that party does not want to take his brother’s widow [to wife], his brother’s widow shall appear before the elders in the gate and declare, “My husband’s brother refuses to establish a name in Israel for his brother; he will not perform the duty of a levir.” (8) The elders of his town shall then summon him and talk to him. If he insists, saying, “I do not want to take her,” (9) his brother’s widow shall go up to him in the presence of the elders, pull the sandal off his foot, spit in his face, and make this declaration: Thus shall be done to the man who will not build up his brother’s house! (10) And he shall go in Israel by the name of “the family of the unsandaled one.”
Chizkuni on Deuteronomy 25:9
According to the plain meaning of the text, this procedure enables her to become the heir of her deceased husband, as her brother-in-law who would normally inherit his estate had refused to “inherit” the whole estate, i.e. his widow also. The best known example in the Bible of the procedure is the story of Ruth and Boaz, in Ruth chapter 4. In answer to the heretics criticising this procedure as demeaning for women, this procedure may be understood as follows: “if you wish to perform your duty to marry me, I will serve you like a maid serves her master.” ... When he replies that he is not willing to do so, she will spit out in front of him to signal that she thinks his refusal by rejecting her is disgusting. She hints by her action that as of now she considers him as not worth any more than the spittle she has ejected from her mouth. She will reply and say: she does this in order 1) to shame her brother-in-law, and b) to put her mind at rest.
"Spitting in God's Eye" by Melanie Phillips in the Jewish News Service (Jerusalem, October 5, 2023)
Earlier this week, ultra-Orthodox Jews parading through Jerusalem’s Old City passed a group of Christians bearing a large wooden cross. Some of the Jews spat on the ground in the Christians’ direction. Two days later, Jerusalem police arrested five Jews involved in a similar spitting incident. The spitters provoked widespread outrage and disgust. They were denounced by Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the chief rabbis of Israel and the United Kingdom, and a number of ultra-Orthodox politicians as well.
The rabbis and other Orthodox folk were particularly incensed by the claim that spitting at Christians was an “ancient Jewish practice.” On the contrary, they said, it had no place whatsoever in Jewish religious law and was a desecration of God’s name.
Some have maintained that it’s a custom among certain religious Jews to spit on the ground in the presence of “idol worshippers” to ward off the “evil eye.” The fact that this may be an established superstitious practice, however, doesn’t make it any less reprehensible.
For centuries, hundreds of thousands of Jews in Europe were subject to forced conversions by the Catholic Church under the threat of expulsion or death. Countless numbers of Jews were tortured or massacred for refusing to abandon their faith. For centuries, hundreds of thousands of Jews in Europe were subject to forced conversions by the Catholic Church under the threat of expulsion or death. Countless numbers of Jews were tortured or massacred for refusing to abandon their faith.
This inherited collective trauma is reflected in Talmudic and other rabbinic sources and remains an all-too-live issue in the minds of many religious Jews. “I support spitting at every cross, every Christian, to degrade them forcefully. They used to slaughter and massacre us,” one such man told Israeli Army Radio....
For further discussion
- What is the best response to someone who (properly or improperly) displays disgust or who (rightfully or wrongly) delivers a rebuke?
- What superstitions do you believe or practice, even if unknowingly or out of habit, for good fortune or to prevent a bad outcome?
- How do our actions influence the course of events?