Open your mouth and let your words illuminate Torah TB Berachot 22

I’m dedicating today’s daf in honor of Judy’s birthday.

We lived in the greater Boston metro area for eight years and made so many great and amazing connections. Judy became one of founding Mothers of Mayyim Hayyim, the pluaralistic mikvah. She donated many of her creative mikvah new ceremonies to its program bank. Today’s daf TB Berachot 22 deals with people who are ritually tamei. Most translaters translate tamei as “unclean” or “impure.” I prefer the translation “ritually unready” that I learned at the mikvah Mayyim Hayyim. To become tahor,“ritually ready” the person will ultimately need to immerse themselves in a mikvah of 40 seah, around 80 gallons of water.

According to tradtion Ezra the Scribe decreed that a ba’al keri, one who has a nocternal emmision can not study Torah before he immerses in a Mikvah. The Gemara, TB Berachot 22, delves in all the possible permintations that could arise.

The Sages stated: Zavim, lepers, and those who engaged in intercourse with menstruating women, despite their severe impurity, are permitted to read the Torah, Prophets, and Writings, and to study Mishna and Gemara and halakhot and aggada. However, those who experienced a seminal emission are prohibited from doing so. The reason for this distinction is that the cases of severe impurity are caused by ailment or other circumstances beyond his control and, as a result, they do not necessarily preclude a sense of reverence and awe as he studies Torah. This, however, is not the case with regard to impurity resulting from a seminal emission, which usually comes about due to frivolity and a lack of reverence and awe. Therefore, it is inappropriate for one who experiences a seminal emission to engage in matters of in Torah.

However, there are many opinions concerning the precise parameters of the Torah matters prohibited by this decree. Rabbi Yosei says: One who experiences a seminal emission studies mishnayot that he is accustomed to study, as long as he does not expound upon a new mishna to study it in depth. Rabbi Yonatan ben Yosef says: He expounds upon the mishna but he does not expound upon the Gemara, which is the in-depth analysis of the Torah. Rabbi Natan ben Avishalom says: He may even expound upon the Gemara, as long as he does not utter the mentions of God’s name therein. Rabbi Yoḥanan the Cobbler, Rabbi Akiva’s student, says in the name of Rabbi Akiva: One who experiences a seminal emission may not enter into homiletic interpretation [midrash] of verses at all. Some say that he says: He may not enter the study hall [beit hamidrash] at all. Rabbi Yehuda says: He may study only Hilkhot Derekh Eretz. In terms of the problem raised above, apparently Rabbi Yehuda considers the legal status of the blessings to be parallel to the legal status of Hilkhot Derekh Eretz, and therefore one may utter them orally.

Further elaborating on the issue of Torah study while in a state of impurity, it was taught in a baraita that Rabbi Yehuda ben Beteira would say: Matters of Torah do not become ritually impure and therefore one who is impure is permitted to engage in Torah study. He implemented this halakha in practice. The Gemara relates an incident involving a student who was reciting mishnayot and baraitot hesitantly before the study hall of Rabbi Yehuda ben Beteira. The student experienced a seminal emission, and when he was asked to recite he did so in a rushed, uneven manner, as he did not want to utter the words of Torah explicitly. Rabbi Yehuda said to him: My son, open your mouth and let your words illuminate, as matters of Torah do not become ritually impure, as it is stated: “Is not my word like fire, says the Lord” (Jeremiah 23:29). Just as fire does not become ritually impure, so too matters of Torah do not become ritually impure. (Sefaria.com translation)

Too often we don’t listen or learn from somebody who is different than us, who doesn’t believe like us, or doesn’t observe like us. I appreciate the openness of Rabbi Yehuda ben Beteira that reaffirms that we can learn something holy from everybody no matter what the person’s status or religious bent. Ben Zoma in Pirkei Avot is right. “Who is wise? One who learns from everyone.”(4:1)