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not be a violation of “Do not stand idly by the blood of your fellow- extract from Gehenna a man who sinned with a gentile woman, for he
man.” However, if the concern that she may become infected with the is viewed as being uncircumcised.
disease is significant, for, as the physician wrote, the man is constantly This applies if it is clear that the man sinned. If we are unsure if
abroad in places where the disease exists, then the physician must he really sinned, he should be given over to a beis din, so that they can
urge the man to tell his wife about the danger. If the man refuses investigate and hear his explanation of how he contracted the illness
to tell his wife, one has to consider whether or not the physician is directly. It is very serious to disqualify a person and to remove him
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obligated to save her from the danger if the matter will endanger the from his presumption of being kosher, as mentioned above regarding
physician’s livelihood etc. This is especially so since it is obvious that the woman whose husband went abroad. Therefore, as long as there
the man is not completely irresponsible: he came to the physician to is the possibility that he was infected without sinning, one should
be tested, and perhaps his intention was to tell his wife himself if he assume that that is what happened. Perhaps he became infected in
were indeed infected.
a mikveh or in a swimming pool, or perhaps he slept in a motel on
 an unclean sheet. Moreover, oftentimes, the diagnosis of syphilis is
The above applies if both spouses are Jewish. But if he is a gentile, incorrect. As explained in Responsa Chasam Sofer (Yoreh Deah #158),
the woman who lives with a gentile violates a very stringent Torah the determinations made by medical knowledge are viewed by the
prohibition. As it says, (Devarim 7:3): “You shall not make marriages Torah as possibilities rather than certainties. The reason we desecrate
with them.” The Sefer Hachinuch writes (#427) that it is prohibited for Shabbos based on the word of a physician is because even a possibil-
us to marry someone from the Seven Nations or other gentiles, and a ity of pikuach nefesh is sufficient to require desecration of Shabbos.
woman who lives regularly with a gentile has thrown off the yoke of Indeed, one of the pious men of Jerusalem said that he himself was
this prohibition, and she is an apostate. The Iggros Moshe writes (Even infected with syphilis in the mikveh. Even though this would be ex-
Haezer, Part 1 #140) that a woman married to a gentile is viewed as tremely rare, one can assume that this is the case with a mohel who
an apostate (mumeres), and it is a mitzvah to grant her a divorce like has a presumption of kashrus.
any other apostate.
We learn in Megillas Rus (1:5) that Machlon and Kilyon died Furthermore, the Chafetz Chaim (Hilchos Lashon Hara, Rule 6:2,
because they married gentile women. The Targum explains the verse and in Be’er Mayim Chayim 31) rules according to the Maharik (cited
“And they both died, Machlon and Kilyon,” that they married women above), that even if there is circumstantial evidence (devarim nikarim)
from other nations. Because they violated the decree not to marry that indicates that the slander is true, one cannot rely on it to flog the
non-Jewish women, their lives were cut short. In addition, we do not alleged sinner or cause him to lose money. In view of the above, we
bury a Jewish woman who lived with a gentile in a Jewish cemetery. would be forbidden to flog the mohel or make him return money he
(See also Biyur Halachah (end of #329 and #608, s.v. aval). was paid for performing a circumcision since we now view the fee as a
It is also says in Iggros Moshe (Orach Chayim, Part 2 #73) that it result of a mistaken transaction. We are also not allowed to dishonor
is forbidden to call up to the Torah reading a bar mitzvah boy whose him or view him as a sinner as long as we have no witnesses to testify
father is a gentile, even if his mother is Jewish. Although he is clear- that he sinned.
ly considered Jewish halachically and one is obligated to teach him However, when it comes to warning people so they not catch his
Torah and mitzvos, as long as his mother does not live according to disease or use a dishonest mohel, devarim nikarim are sufficient. The
Torah and remains with the gentile and he is raised in their home, one Be’er Mayim Chayim (there, 28), writes as follows:

372 1 Medical-HalacHic Responsa of Rav ZilbeRstein A mohel has syphilis 2 353

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