Commentary for Avodah Zarah 55:10
ורבי יוחנן היכי עביד הכי והאמר רבה בר בר חנה אמר רבי יוחנן כל מכה שמחללין עליה את השבת אין מתרפאין מהן אדם חשוב שאני
But how could R. Yohanan do this: Did not Rabbah b. Bar Hanah say in the name of R. Yohanan: Any sore for which Shabbat may be transgressed should not be healed by a non-Jew? It is different with an important man.
Daf Shevui to Avodah Zarah
Generally speaking it is prohibited for a non-Jew to heal a Jew if the wound is serious enough that we could transgress Shabbat for it (such as scurvy). The fear is that the non-Jew will surreptitiously kill him. But if the person being healed is an important man like R. Yohanan, then we are not afraid that the non-Jew will kill him.
Ask RabbiBookmarkShareCopy