Berakhot 53

“There is a minority of people who burn incense to witchcraft.”

And let there be fire! Today’s reading explores the essence of fire: “A flame is not a concrete, static object, but rather it constantly recreates itself.” The Gemara says that “the flame should be considered essentially new” regardless of who lit it or if it is carried from place to place. Fire is generally associated with destruction. But the flame itself in its ever-changing form, represents our ability for renewal. 

There is an interesting statement regarding the obligation to say a blessing over a fire one observes from afar which only applies if the city is predominantly Jewish (which today would preclude all cities outside of Israel.) The same logic is applied to a scent that one may smell. Why all this concern over a fire that is observed or a scent that whiffs through the air in a city that has a majority of a Jewish population (and the discussion gets granular enough to discuss if the population is 50% Jewish.) Shouldn’t we be grateful for the warmth and hearth that we gain from fire, regardless of where we live and regardless of the size of the Jewish population? Is it about identifying as a Jewish nation with each other?

Today’s reading emphasizes the importance of study among our ancestors. What happens in the study hall is so sacred that each person should say his own private blessing rather than waiting for a communal one, which might pose an unwanted distraction. And maintaining concentration is so sacrosanct that it is advised against even acknowledging a sneeze. I can only imagine how intense the atmosphere must have been in those study halls under the watchful eyes of the Rabbis.

The reading today compares women with witches in the context of the discussion of scent: “Rabbi Yosei says: Even if the majority are Jews, one may not recite a blessing, as the daughters of Israel burn incense to witchcraft and the spices were certainly made for witchcraft, not for their fragrance.”  This statement is qualified: “rather, tBut still, that minority is presumed to be women practicing witchcraft. I think we need Yalta to respond to that comment and smash some bottles of wine in protest for how women are portrayed as witches.  (Did anyone else notice the return of Ulla in the discussion of how adjacent one must be to a flame in order to say a blessing?) 

The reference to women as witches is disconcerting, although the Talmud appears to take a more benign view of witchery than other religious texts. What is damaging about this view is the inference that while men are scholars and approach the world from their learned perspective, women approach it from more of a magical and irrational one. It ultimately gets at the idea that rationality and wisdom is the domain of men.

This article from My Jewish Learning suggests that the Talmudic rabbis assumed that their own wives engaged in witchcraft:  https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/witches-witchcraft/