Page 29 - Tzurba M'Rabanan Volume1

ןנברמ אברוצ ׳א הרז הדובע תוכלה · 27

In addition to the prohibition of entering a house of idol worship, the Rambam writes that one must distance
oneself as much as possible from a house of idol worship:

r Rambam, Commentary on the ,הנשמה לע שוריפ | ם”במר . 12
Mishna, Masechet Avoda Zara 1:4 ד:א הרז הדובע תכסמ
Therefore, it should be known that every city of the תירצונה המואה ירעמ ריע לכש תעדל שי ךכיפלו
Christian nation that has an altar, that is to say a house of ,םתליפת תיב רמול ינוצר ,המב הב םהל שיש
their prayer, which is a house of idol worship without a ריעה וז ירה ,קפס אלב הרז הדובע תיב אוה רשא
doubt, would be forbidden to pass through intentionally, .הב רודל ןכש לכו ,הנווכב הב רובעל רתומ ןיא
and certainly to live there. However, G-d has given us over לעב םהירעב רודנש דע םהידיב ונרסמ ’ה לבא
against our will, fulfilling the prophecy of “and you shall םיהלא םש םתדבעו“ ערה ודועיי םייקל ,ונחרכ
serve gods made by the hands of man hewn in stone and
wood” (Devarim 4:28). If this is the halacha regarding the ,ריעה ןיד אוה הז םאו ”.ןבאו ץע םדא ידי השעמ
city, how much more so [is it] the halacha of the house of טעמכש ,ומצע הרז הדובע תיב ןידל רמוחו לק
idolatry itself, that it is nearly forbidden to see it, certainly ןכש לכו ,וילא ברקל ןכש לכו ,וב טיבהל רוסא
to approach it, and certainly to enter it. .וילא סנכיהל

Rav Yosef Dov Soloveitchik is quoted by Rav Hershel Schachter in his Sefer Nefesh HaRav as having taken
this principle even further.

p Sefer Nefesh HaRav, p. 230 230 ׳מע | ברה שפנ רפס . 13

When President [John F.] Kennedy was assassinated, היסנכב ותיוולה וכרע ,ידנק אישנה חצרנשכ
his funeral took place in a Catholic church, and many ולכתסה הקירמאב םידוהי הברהו ,תילוטאק
Jews in the United States watched it on television. Our םערתהו .השענה תא תוארל ידכב היזיוולטב
teacher [Rav Soloveitchik] was greatly upset by this, and תדה יקוח יפלש תויהש רמאו ,דאמ וניבר ךכ לע
said that since according to the Catholic religion, one ףתתשמש ימ ףאש םלצא לבוקמ תילוטאקה
who participates in one of their religious ceremonies by היזיוולטב תולכתסה ךרד םהלש ןחלפה יסכטב
watching it on television has “fulfilled his obligation,”
all of those Jews that watched the funeral were thereby םתוא לכש אצמנ ירה ,ותבוח דיד אצוי ןכ םג
participating in an idolatrous ceremony, which is certainly םיפתתשמ ויה היוולהב ולכתסהש םידוהיה
a violation of a prohibition. As what is the difference רומג רוסיא יאדובו ,םהלש הרז הדובעה ןחלפב
whether one enters a church, which is forbidden, or brings היסנכה ךות לא אוה סנכנ יל המו ,הזב היה
the church into his house? 5 .ותיב ךות לא היסנכה תא סינכמ וא ,רוסאד

5. It would seem that it is also prohibited to look at pictures taken from inside a church for purposes of enjoyment, as this may violate the prohibition
of deriving benefit from looking at an idolatrous object, discussed below in section 5.

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