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פירוש על עבודה זרה 33:1

Daf Shevui to Avodah Zarah

Now R. Eliezer remembers that indeed he did have a conversation with a student of Jesus.
A few notes about this conversation. First of all, it is interesting that the rabbis portray one of their greats as being intrigued by a Christian Jew’s teaching. Second, the teaching itself may be a sort of slur on Christianity. Jesus is associated here with a harlot and with a toilet. Third, the question is a typical type of rabbinic question, but is a farce of sorts. The story teller may be mocking both R. Eliezer and Jesus at the same time. Fourth, the midrash on Micah is also very typical of rabbinic style.
The final midrash is R. Eliezer’s words, where he quotes a source that interprets the “harlot” in Proverbs 5:8 as being the embodiment of illicit Jewish sects, particularly Christianity. This may imply that the authors of this story feared that Jews found Christianity to be seductive.
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