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1) THIEVES OF BAVEL

(a) Thieves came upon Rav Menasheh; he said 'I am heading to Pumbadisa'. When he reached Bei Tursa (his true destination), the thieves realized that they were tricked.

1. The thieves: You are a Talmid of (Rav) Yehudah the swindler!
2. Rav Menasheh: You know him? You should be excommunicated!

(b) For the next 22 years, they tried to steal, but did not succeed. All but one (a weaver) came to ask to permit the Cherem; that one was eaten by a lion.

1. The thieves of Bavel are so much coarser than those of Eretz Yisrael (who praised R. Akiva)!

(a) (Mishnah): A Bas Yisrael may not help a Nochris give birth, for the child will serve idolatry;
(b) A Nochris may help a Bas Yisrael give birth.
(c) A Bas Yisrael may not nurse a Nochris' baby;
(d) A Nochris may nurse a Bas Yisrael's baby when the mother is there.
(e) (Gemara - Beraisa - R. Meir): A Bas Yisrael may not help a Nochris give birth, for the child will serve idolatry;

1. A Nochris may not help a Bas Yisrael give birth, we are concerned she will kill the baby.
2. Chachamim say, a Nochris may help a Bas Yisrael in front of Yisraelim, but not alone.
3. R. Meir says, even in front of others is forbidden, perhaps she will crush the forehead and they will not see.

i. A Nochris scolded her friend: why do you help Benos Yisrael give birth?!
ii. Her friend: Your suffering should be as great as the number of babies I have killed, like the number of branches in the river!

4. Chachamim: The friend was fibbing.

(f) (Mishnah): A Bas Yisrael may not nurse a Nochris' baby.
(g) (Beraisa - R. Meir): A Bas Yisrael may not nurse a Nochris' baby, for the child will serve idolatry.

1. A Nochris may not nurse a Bas Yisrael's baby, we are concerned she will kill the baby.
2. Chachamim say, she may nurse when others are there.
3. R. Meir forbids even when others are there, lest she put poison on her breast.

(h) We must teach the argument in both cases.

1. If we only taught the argument about helping give birth, one might have thought that Chachamim permit because she cannot kill the baby without them seeing, but they agree that nursing is forbidden, lest she put poison on her breast.
2. If we only taught the argument about nursing, one might have thought that R. Meir forbids lest she put poison on her breast, but they agree that she may help a Bas Yisrael give birth, because she cannot kill the baby without them seeing.

(i) Contradiction (Beraisa): A Bas Yisrael may help a Nochris give birth for pay, but not for free.
(j) Answer (Rav Yosef): It is permitted for pay, to avoid animosity.
(k) (Rav Yosef): A Bas Yisrael may help a Nochris give birth for pay on Shabbos, to avoid animosity.
(l) Rejection (Abaye): There will be no animosity, she can say 'We may desecrate Shabbos to deliver a baby that will observe Shabbos, but not for a baby that will not observe Shabbos.'
(m) (Rav Yosef): A Bas Yisrael may nurse a Nochri baby for pay, to avoid animosity.
(n) Rejection (Abaye): There will be no animosity:

1. A single girl can say 'I cannot nurse, I want (that men will desire me,) to get married!'
2. A married woman can say 'I cannot nurse, I do not want that my husband will despise me!'

(o) (Beraisa): Nochrim and people that graze (their own) small animals (they constantly steal by grazing on others' property) - we do not throw them into a pit (to actively kill them), nor may (Me'iri - must) we raise them from a pit to save them.
(p) (Rav Yosef): It is permitted (Me'iri - obligatory) to raise them for pay, to avoid animosity.
(q) Rejection (Abaye): There will be no animosity, he can say 'I cannot save you now, my son is (in great danger) on the roof', or 'I must meet the officer now, or else I will suffer a great loss'.

(a) (R. Avahu): Nochrim and people that graze small animals - we do not throw them into a pit, nor do we raise them;

1. Minim (heretics), informers (that lie to extortionists, causing them to take people's property) and Mumrim (people that habitually transgress a certain Mitzvah) - we throw them into a pit, we do not raise them.

(b) Objection (R. Yochanan): "L'Chol Avedas Achicha" - this includes property of a Mumar;

1. If we must return his property, all the more so we do not kill him!
2. Rather, we must delete 'Mumrim' from the Beraisa.
3. Question: Why not say, we must return the lost object of a Mumar who eats Neveilos l'Tei'avon (to fulfill his lust), the Beraisa teaches that we kill a Mumar who eats Neveilos l'Hach'is (to anger Hash-m)?
4. Answer: R. Yochanan holds that a Mumar l'Hach'is is considered a Min (which was already mentioned in the Beraisa).

(c) (Rav Acha or Ravina): A Mumar l'Tei'avon is considered a Mumar, a Mumar l'Hach'is is considered a Min.
(d) (The other of Rav Acha and Ravina): Even a Mumar l'Hach'is is a Mumar.
(e) Question: According to the latter opinion, what is a Min?
(f) Answer: One who serves idolatry is a Min.
(g) Question (Beraisa): If one ate one flea or mosquito, he is a Mumar.

1. Surely, this was Lehach'is, and he is a Mumar!

(h) Answer: He did not intend to anger Hash-m, he merely wanted to taste forbidden food.
(i) (R. Avahu): We throw them into a pit, we do not raise them.
(j) Objection: Obviously, if we throw them into a pit, we do not raise them!
(k) Answer #1 (Rav Sheshes): This teaches that if there was a way to climb out of the pit, one should find a pretext to close it, e.g. 'I do not want my animals to fall in'. (Tosfos - this applies even when the Nochrim rule the area, we only throw them in a pit when Yisraelim rule; Ritva - we never throw them into a pit, we only prevent them from leaving).
(l) Answer #2 (Rabah and Rav Yosef): One covers the pit with a rock, saying 'I must pass my animals over the pit.'
(m) Answer #3 (Ravina): One removes the ladder, saying 'I need it to save my son, he is on the roof'.

(a) (Beraisa - R. Meir): A Yisrael may circumcise a Nochri for the sake of conversion;

1. He may not circumcise him for medical reasons, e.g. if there is a worm in the foreskin.
2. R.Meir: A Nochri may not circumcise a Yisrael, for they are suspected of killing.
3. Chachamim say, a Nochri may circumcise a Yisrael, only if others are there.
4. R. Meir forbids this - perhaps he will tilt the knife and make the baby incapable of having children.

(b) Question: Is it really true that R. Meir does not allow a Nochri to circumcise a Yisrael?!

1. Contradiction (Beraisa - R. Meir): If there is no Yisrael Mohel (one who knows how to circumcise) in the city, one should use a Nochri Mohel, not a Kusi Mohel;
2. R. Yehudah says, one should use a Kusi Mohel, not a Nochri Mohel.

(c) Answer #1: The opinions must be switched: R. Meir says, one should use a Kusi Mohel, not a Nochri Mohel;

1. R. Yehudah says, one should use a Nochri Mohel, not a Kusi Mohel.

(d) Objection: Does R. Yehudah really permit using a Nochri Mohel?!

1. (Beraisa #1 - R. Yehudah): Circumcision by a Nochri is invalid - "V'Ata Es Brisi Tishmor".