[Sca-cooks] Mrs Levy again

[Stefan li Rous]

Avraham replied to me with:
>> > As I read the Old Law, yes. Touching something unclean makes you
> unclean,
>> > and then you will swell up and be dead until morning... oops, wrong
> Cosby
>> > bit. At any rate, there's lots of jiffy keen instructions for cleansing
>> > after touching the Unclean- be it pork, misc. carrion, a menstruating
>> > woman, etc. And then you have to go and get the priest to declare you ok
>> > again...
>> Do you have to pay the priest/rabbi each time he does this? Or do
>> you pay an annual fee or something? I mean some of this sounds real
>> difficult to avoid, especially if you are a women.
>
> No. In fact, for most ritual uncleanlinesses, one does NOT need to be
> "certified" clean.

Ah! Thank you.


> Remember that a rabbi is NOT a priest; he is not an intercessor with G-d, he
> has no real religious authority. The rabbi's authority is LEGAL - he only
> interprets the Law.

Yes, I believe it may have been you that explained the differance to me. That is
why I used "priest/rabbi" since the original poster said priest and since
there aren't, if I understand correctly, currently any Jewish priests. Then
the comment about needing a priest to "declare" you ok again is in error
and most of the rest of my comments not applicable.


> Most ritual uncleanlinesses can be obviated by prayer, sometimes fasting,
> and immersion in a ritual bath called a mikveh. There is no "fee" to use the
> mikveh in most cases, but the community as a whole is responsible for its
> maintenance and support.

Oh. So this is not just a bath taken in a particular way, but it must
be done in a particular spot? Or type of spot? A blessed/holy spot?

> (And yes, in the modern world, there is often an
> annual membership fee.)

Understandable.

> Women are required to bathe in the mikveh monthly
> after their courses; men only need to visit a couple of times a year unless
> they do something that makes them unclean.

I guess I don't see the reason for this aversion/fright? to the
normal monthly cycle of things, but it certainly seems to be
common to a lot of religions, both in the Middle Ages and now.
Again, thank you for answering my questions. On re-reading them
I realized that they may have come across as more belligerent than
intended. I'm more rather perplexed by many of these religious
practices. Shrug. And this isn't Judism specific.

--
THLord Stefan li Rous    Barony of Bryn Gwlad    Kingdom of Ansteorra
    Mark S. Harris            Austin, Texas          stefan at texas.net
**** See Stefan's Florilegium files at:  http://www.florilegium.org ****