Berakhot 22

I understand the focus in the Talmud on impurity; there were no hand sanitizers or antibiotics and disease spread rapidly.  There must have been heightened fear of disease. This may help to explain why it is important to maintain a certain distance when praying from human excrement. But why focus on the supposed impurity that comes from having intercourse with menstruating women? They are placed in the same category as lepers (was leprosy the coronavirus of its day?), and zavim (I found translations online indicating that this means impure discharge or the laws of ejaculation). And regardless of the status of unfortunate allegedly impure human beings, why is it inappropriate for them to study Torah according to the oral law? Certainly “reverence and awe” can be brought to the study of Torah no matter the condition of the human scholar and in fact, reverence and awe can be found through the act of study. Of course, there are many opinions, and Rabbi Yehuda expresses the sentiment that “matters of Torah do not become ritually impure.” In the end the conclusion, is that “both this and that are prohibited” and “both this and that are permitted.” That seems to sum up the day’s reading. This and that! And did all the temptation lead the men of 2,000 years ago to spend their days pouring water over themselves (It reminded me of the ice bucket challenge of a few years ago.